Katharine Mary BriggsCritiques

I liked the book and I'm sad to see it going to a charity. But I have to downsize my library and this is one of the victims. The reality is that I will never be able to sit down and read it ....pity. And I've only referred to it briefly since I bought it. Maybe Chad thought I might throw into my writing some obscure phases from the fairy world. ...well a bit late for that now. But four stars from me.

The Eternity Gate by Katherine Briggs is a work of Young Adult Fiction. Readers of all ages who enjoy works of fantasy will enjoy this book. The twists and turns will keep you reading.

Katherine Briggs created a storyline and characters I wanted to continue reading about. Seyou holds secrets and serves as a handmaid to the princess. She represents the perfect female protagonist for this story.

I found myself wanting Seyou and her companions to succeed in their quest. I personally look forward to the sequel of this story. I look forward to seeing how the journey continues.

So, if you are looking for Young Adult Fiction, check out The Eternity Gate by Katherine Briggs.

I received a complimentary copy of this book, but this in no way influenced my review. All opinions are my own.

The Eternity Gate is well written. There are also fascinating characters and beautiful surroundings. I was struck by Seyo's self-assurance as a person who isn't afraid to ask for assistance and finds courage in the people she loves.

Along with the thrilling action and heart-pounding suspense, other themes like loyalty, duty, and merit are skillfully woven into the plot and character interactions, all of which led to a very fulfilling conclusion. This book will interest you if you like both fantasy and action.

Disclosure of Material Connection: I requested and received a copy of this book from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

Nora St. Laurent
TBCN Where Book Fun Begins!
The Book Club Network blog https://psalm516.blogspot.com/

What a fantastic debut novel from Katherine Briggs! I loved Seyo's first person narrative and her curious, clever, and brave soul that lived for all things history. Her priestess' heart was pure and receptive, which allowed her faith to grow and mature as she sought to find and open the Eternity Gate. Seyo's journey to save her kingdom had tons of action and battle, betrayals at every corner, and surprises at every stage. The plot was complex and deeply layered; the characters were quite wonderful and moving. My favorite character was Geras, who had a painful past but a heart-stirring redemption story and was the epitome of loyalty and selflessness.

It does end on a cliffhanger of sorts and I can't wait for the second book of this duology. Any fantasy fan would thoroughly enjoy this epic adventure of kingdoms at war and race to find and open the ancient relic prophesied to hold power and judgment.

I received a complimentary copy courtesy of Enclave Publishing via Celebrate Lit Tours and was under no obligation to post a positive comment. All opinions are my own.

With action that doesn’t stop, this book will have you feeling like you are there with the characters. I love a strong female character and the author has gifted us Seyo. Strong, fierce and ready for whatever comes her way , she defends with confidence. There is a side to her that is vulnerable which makes her very relatable. How many of us knows what it feels like to not feel accepted by others? Seyo deals with this yet still stays focused on her mission.

There is a strong message which I loved discovering in the story. Sometimes we can do something that feels like a sacrifice yet still wonder if we chose the right path. A character in the story illustrates that very well. Fast paced with excitement gives this book a feeling of never wanting to leave. I loved the inspirations in the story that inspire us. Overall a great story with this reader looking forward to the next book. I’m glad I have had the privilege of finding a new author to read.

I received a copy of this book from Celebrate Lit. The review is my own opinion.

This is one of Katharine Briggs' most important works. This is a book written by arguably the most important and learned contemporary scholar in the genre. It deserves a place in every serious collection of fairy literature. Briggs has become the springboard for virtually every serious later author/study in the field.

This volume, by one of the most important contemporary authors in the genre of fairy studies, is a must for every humanities reference collection. It is comprehensive and very approachable for individuals of many backgrounds and interests from literature genre studies to art and the social sciences.

I've decided to be generous and forgive the blatant error about the Isle of Man's 'black dogs' which she calls 'Mauthe Doog'. The correct term is 'Moddey Dhoo', and not even pronounced in a similar way to her spelling. This should have been corrected in editing, but considering how early on it way I nearly lost all hope for the correctness and accuracy of the rest of the book, but from my own research around the subjects of the book this was the only major error I could find.

That said, the book is a miniature treasure trove of information, and is excellent for introducing new folklore to the curious. The essays chosen were very brief but informative, and even though they were dry they were concise and easy to read.

It took me a while to get passed the errors about Manx folklore that I grew up learning, but I realise that they are not well known elsewhere in the world. On the one hand it could have been easily double checked, on the other it was nice to see our Island's culture being included as it is often neglected in books such as this.

I've decided to be generous and forgive the blatant error about the Isle of Man's 'black dogs' which she calls 'Mauthe Doog'. The correct term is 'Moddey Dhoo', and not even pronounced in a similar way to her spelling. This should have been corrected in editing, but considering how early on it way I nearly lost all hope for the correctness and accuracy of the rest of the book, but from my own research around the subjects of the book this was the only major error I could find.

That said, the book is a miniature treasure trove of information, and is excellent for introducing new folklore to the curious. The essays chosen were very brief but informative, and even though they were dry they were concise and easy to read.

It took me a while to get passed the errors about Manx folklore that I grew up learning, but I realise that they are not well known elsewhere in the world. On the one hand it could have been easily double checked, on the other it was nice to see our Island's culture being included as it is often neglected in books such as this.

Hobberdy Dick is the hobgoblin who protects Widford Manor and has for countless years. The house has changed hands and no longer belongs to the original family, and Dick isn't too keen on the new owners. He does take a liking to the older son, though, and also a young maidservant, who, it so happens, is the only living relative to the original inhabitant and therefore the rightful heir to the riches buried in the old stable...

I started this one without high expectations, to be honest - I assumed it would be another children's book from the '50s that hasn't aged well - but I was very happily surprised. You can't help but love Dick and his well-meaning antics, and the young protagonists are very easy to root for. I also loved the keeping up of old traditions and beliefs, as lovingly told by the author as they are respected by the manor's working folk. Definitely recommended.½

This is a scholarly collection mean for folklorists, not children or casual readers, though some of the individual stories might be amusing. The foreword gives a history of folktale collecting in England from the 18th century onward, and the introduction discusses the tales in terms of the international tale motif classifications. The tales themselves are organized thematically, with three broad categories (Wonder Tales, Legends, and Jocular tales, the two latter larger categories being subdivided into more meaningful divisions such as saints, giants, ghosts, etc. The tale sources range from medieval to contemporary.

A thorough scholarly study beginning with a full review of traditional fairies in folklore and going on to some examples of literary uses of fairies.

The Laird of Duffus was walking out in his fields one day, when a cloud of dust whirled past him, and from the midst of it he heard a shrill cry of "Horse and Hattock". Being a bold man, he repeated the cry, and immediately found himself whirled away in the air with a troop of fairies to the King of France's cellar. There they caroused all night so merrily that the Laird fell asleep and was left behind. The royal butler found him the next day, still fast asleep, with a cup of curious workmanship in his hand. He was taken before the King, and told him all that had happened. The King pardoned him, and he returned home with the fairy cup, which was kept in his family for several generations.

A selection of tales from her four-volume dictionary of British folk-tales and legends, with interesting introductions to each section. "Horse and Hattock" is one of the shortest stories in the book, and Duffus is a real place, near Elgin in northern Scotland. The Lairds of Duffus did own a fairy cup, a silver cup with their arms engraved on it, but there was nothing about it that would make you think that it actually came from fairyland.½

A wonderful compendium of the folkloric inhabitants of the British Isles.

In addition to entries about the Little People, there are also entries on certain folkloric motifs, such as Shapeshifting and Captives in Fairyland, and on prominent collectors of tales and writers upon the subject.

As well as the usual index and bibliography, the book also has an Index of Types and Motifs, by which folklore tales have been categorised, thus making it easy to compare similarities between stories which sometimes span the length of the land. This is also facilitated by the entries being cross-referenced within the text (rather like a hyper-text webpage).

Although not a book that I would read from cover-to-cover, it's fun to dip into: often, having gone to look up a particular entry, I find that I've lost half an hour or so flitting from topic to another.

There are also line illustrations throughout, and a set of monochrome plates showing classic depictions of fairies, elves, goblins, et al.

In summary, an excellent and engaging reference work.

This is a big, big book. Big in volume. Big in price. But big in value, too.

For some reason, the study of British folk tales was slow to catch on. Charles Perrault in France and the Grimms in Germany came long before Joseph Jacobs compiled the first serious collection of English folktales. This lack meant that there was never a collection as substantial as that of the Grimms. Katherine Briggs changed that. She gathered up just about everything in this multi-volume work, organizing the tales into categories and then arranging them by title within the categories.

That by itself would have been important enough, but she also classified them by motifs (based on the Aarne-Thompson motif set) and indexed them on this basis. And she listed parallel versions, allowing the user of the dictionary to find the materials not included in the book.

The result is one of the greatest references on folklore in the English language. If the works of Stith Thompson are the first thing anyone should acquire (and they probably are), this book has a very strong claim to be second. You'll quickly learn to work around the few minor defects it has.

As the title says this is a sampler from Brigg's larger work. However the stories she selects are entertaining and funny, as well as representative of the folklore genre.

One of the most wonderful tales I've ever read. For the first time in a long, long while, I had the experience of being completely engrossed in a story. I couldn't put it down. It was a complete pleasure!

An excellent resource for all things fairy

This book is better for the anecdotal snippets than as a resource for all things Fae. Though an encyclopedia, it's brief enough to read cover-to-cover without much effort or loss of interest. And scattered throughout the 150 or so pages are numerous whimsical illustrations by Yvonne Gilbert, which make reading it that much more enjoyable.½

Helpful with identifying & creating your own wildest dreams, if you're a fantasy buff or a writer.

Katharine Briggs was the president of the English Folklore Society and wrote many books about the folklore of the British Isles. The first section of this little book contains articles about fairies, followed by folk tales about fairies, all of which are taken from her dictionary of fairies.

One of those dip inable books that craft a story and an explanation in one. Wonderful background reading for so many aspects of life!

Extremely well researched book about the good folk within literature, lots of coverage of the folklore surrounding the sidhe, and some contemporary accounts.

a gem of a find in an old used book store. turley enclycopedic.

AWESOME collection of fairy lore. If you loved Brian Froud's Faeries, you will recognize a lot of the beings and tales related here -- you can tell that Froud plumbed Briggs's many writings for his source material. This book sports a thorough bibliography and a valuable glossary of fairy creatures.