Stories from South Uist

Book excerpt: This is an extraordinary collection of tales from one of the very greatest Gaelic storytellers, Angus MacLellan, and translated by one of Scotland's finest Celtic Scholars, John Lorne Campbell. The stories in the book include every type of tale found on South Uist, from Fingalian heroes and ghost stories to international folktales and humorous and historical local anecdotes. These tales of ancient kings, thrilling escapes, jealous stepmothers and magic spells are fascinating not only for their narrative power, but also their links with myths and legends from Ireland, Scandinavia, France and Greece. The Hebrideaen island of South Uist was one of the last places in Western Europe where the ancient art of Storytelling was still honoured and practised, and the style of these translations is at once original and hypnotic, reflecting the oral tradition at their source.