Somerset Folk Tales (eBook)

These Somerset tales, newly collected or retold with a strong sense of the land and the waters that shaped them, reflect our enduring interest in the natural landscape. Let these stories from the Summer Lands take you on a journey: across wind-wild moors that plummet to treacherous tides traversed by sea morgans; on a scramble from gorges shaped by the Devil's spite to caves dwelled in by bitter witches. Discover ancient mines and dragons' haunts, and emerge into forests and fields to be befriended by bees or bedevilled by fairies; then stroll beside ancient waterways, where willows walk and orchards talk. From Gwyn ap Neath to Joseph of Arimathea, your travelling companions will meet you from legend, history and living memory - from the places where they were once known best. Sharon Jacksties has a sharp eye for the landscape of Somerset and the seen and unseen stories that it holds, a sympathetic ear for the dialect of the South West, and a playful wit that brings this collection of tales to vivid and delightful life.

Sharon has been a performance, community and applied storyteller for over 30 years and is the author of 4 books published by The History Press. Sharon has storytelling teaching practice in the UK and abroad, regularly running courses at Halsway Manor, England's only residential centre for the performing arts. Much of her work is focused on the stories of place, teaching how to invoke a 'sense of place' through the stories of various locales and working site specifically with performance programmes, e.g. for The National Trust and countless museums. Until recently she was UK ambassador for The Federation of European Storytelling organisations. Sadly this new post came to a premature end due to Brexit. As a performance storyteller she is known for her eclectic repertoire and for telling unusual and seldom-heard stories from all over the world.