# Looking for a book on Scottish folk tales **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [March 9, 2016, 8:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386 "2016-03-09T08:23:40Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 8:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/1 "2016-03-09T08:23:40Z")
When I was growing up, my grandmother had a book on Scottish folk tales. It was a hardcover, with a whitish cover; illustration on the front cover was of a little old scribe like fellow, seen from the back, with a tam and a candle as he wrote. Any chance this rings a bell with anyone? ---
**Author:** ![Sattua](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/sattua/32/11906_2.png) [@Sattua](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sattua)\ **Post date:** [March 9, 2016, 3:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/2 "2016-03-09T15:39:16Z")
Doesn’t ring a bell … any luck with an [Amazon search](http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_sb_noss?url=search-alias%3Daps&field-keywords=scottish+folktales) for it? ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 10, 2016, 3:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/3 "2016-03-10T03:48:20Z")
tried Amazon and ABE but didn’t find it. ---
**Author:** ![MikeG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mikeg/32/4329_2.png) [@MikeG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MikeG)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2016, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/4 "2016-03-12T19:59:35Z")
Look for George MacDonald. I think that might the author. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2016, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/5 "2016-03-12T21:30:21Z")
**Piper** –give us a date that it must have been published before. That will winnow things a bit. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 12, 2016, 10:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/6 "2016-03-12T22:46:32Z")
Thanks for the suggestions! > [@MikeG](#): > > Look for George MacDonald. I think that might the author. I looked through his wiki page and didn’t see it in the list of works. I agree it’s in his neck of the woods, though. > [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](#): > > **Piper** –give us a date that it must have been published before. > That will winnow things a bit. I know I read it before 1976. ---
**Author:** ![bonzer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/45deac/32.png) [@bonzer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/bonzer)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2016, 12:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/7 "2016-03-13T12:13:27Z")
The massively prolific old-timey Scottish collector of folk tales was [Andrew Lang](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Andrew_Lang). Doing a Google image search on his name, etc., throws up endless examples of his book covers. I’d suggest scrolling through those to see whether anything rings a bell. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2016, 2:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/8 "2016-03-13T14:38:39Z")
Was that [_Claymore and Kilt_](https://books.google.com/books?id=TTcaBAAAQBAJ&pg=PP1&dq=claymore+and+kilt&hl=en&sa=X&ved=0ahUKEwiIw7XI8b3LAhVCNT4KHZWvD-wQ6AEIKjAA#v=onepage&q=claymore%20and%20kilt&f=false)? With the legend of St Columba and the tale of the Gaberlunzie Man and all? I had that book when I was a kid too. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2016, 3:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/9 "2016-03-13T15:44:38Z")
The author of _Claymore and Kilt_, (pen name) Sorche Nic Leodhas, [wrote a bunch more books of Scottish folktales too](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sorche_Nic_Leodhas) (_Heather and Broom_, _Thistle and Thyme_, etc.). Dollars to donuts that this is the author the OP is thinking of. ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 13, 2016, 9:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/10 "2016-03-13T21:39:45Z")
If any of this hits home, post a link. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 14, 2016, 2:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/11 "2016-03-14T14:46:49Z")
Yeah, I looked up how to spell “Gaberlunzie” and everything. I need closure, dammit. :mad: Of course, maybe none of these suggestions has panned out and the OP’s still patiently waiting for that madeleine moment of recall. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 4:18am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/12 "2016-03-16T04:18:39Z")
been following the different links, but haven’t found it so far. i remember that it had a couple of tales about Sir Michael Scot in it; one about how he lost his shadow to the Devil, and another about how he cursed some farmers into dancing for failure to feed him once. ---
**Author:** ![LC\_Strawhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@LC\_Strawhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LC_Strawhouse)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 4:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/13 "2016-03-16T04:51:26Z")
It’s [Scottish Legendary Tales](http://www.amazon.co.uk/Scottish-Legendary-Tales-Elisabeth-Sheppard-Jones/dp/B002LT8JO2/ref=sr_1_3/277-1503570-5923016?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458103806&sr=1-3) by Elizabeth Sheppard-Jones. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 6:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/14 "2016-03-16T06:40:27Z")
That’s it! Thanks, **LC Strawhouse**! How did you find it? ---
**Author:** ![LC\_Strawhouse](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/e19adc/32.png) [@LC\_Strawhouse](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LC_Strawhouse)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 1:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/15 "2016-03-16T13:56:15Z")
> [@Northern\_Piper](#): > > That’s it! Thanks, **LC Strawhouse**! > > How did you find it? Being an Ontario boy can be helpful, I thought I remembered that book from a primary school library or something. I put a few keywords into google search and there it was. ---
**Author:** ![Northern\_Piper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/northern_piper/32/5304_2.png) [@Northern\_Piper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Northern_Piper)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 7:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/16 "2016-03-16T19:23:32Z")
Thanks very much! ---
**Author:** ![Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bosda_di_chi_of_tricor/32/16845_2.png) [@Bosda\_Di\_Chi\_of\_Tricor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bosda_Di_Chi_of_Tricor)\ **Post date:** [March 16, 2016, 9:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/17 "2016-03-16T21:52:49Z")
> [@LC\_Strawhouse](#): > > It’s [Scottish Legendary Tales](http://www.amazon.co.uk/Scottish-Legendary-Tales-Elisabeth-Sheppard-Jones/dp/B002LT8JO2/ref=sr_1_3/277-1503570-5923016?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1458103806&sr=1-3) by Elizabeth Sheppard-Jones. After all this, I added it to my Amazon Wish list. ---
**Author:** ![Kimstu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/k/ecd19e/32.png) [@Kimstu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kimstu)\ **Post date:** [March 18, 2016, 2:10am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/looking-for-a-book-on-scottish-folk-tales/748386/18 "2016-03-18T02:10:33Z")
Hurray! Thanks for the follow-ups.