Scan barcode
thebiblioshelf's review against another edition
4.0
Hag is a wonderfully relevant and apt anthology of British and Irish folktale retellings, perfect for the upcoming Halloween season. Filled with feisty female characters, atmospheric settings and morals aplenty, the fairytale lover within me thoroughly enjoyed rediscovering some of these bygone traditional tales.
Originally a podcast series, Professor Carolyne Larrington conjured up a writing experiment which tasked 8-10 inspiring British and Irish women authors to write a contemporary retelling of a forgotten folktale with a modern, feminist twist. This collection reminds me of a fresh uplift on the gothic horror genre - think Angela Carter meets Henry James’ Turn of the Screw. With particularly eerie and dark stories, the tales within are guaranteed to get you in the mood for Halloween and those darker nights by the fire.
As someone who has spent a fair bit of time reading folk/fairytales (I even did my dissertation on them) I was pleased to see a few of the more familiar and popular creatures making an appearance here such as selkies, boggarts, fairies and mermaids. That being said, the stories they were contained within felt fresh and new, I didn’t feel like I’d read any of them before – whilst the concepts may have been familiar, the stories themselves had me gripped to finding out what was going to happen, so they felt like more than just your average retellings.
What I particularly liked in Hag, was the focus on different regions from the UK rather than just a generalisation of British and Irish tales. It really did emphasise the nature of how transient traditional stories are and how they have shaped places across our entire nation. Also, the settings of each story became more relevant and heightened; you could visualise the area you live in and the places you’ve visited. Kudos too goes to the authors who managed to incorporate some the regional accents and dialects into the speech of their stories to make them all sound incredibly authentic.
The breakdown at the end recaps for the reader the ‘original’ tales as they may have been told in anthologies from the 19th and early 20th centuries. These short snapshots not only refresh your memory of all the stories you’ve just read, but it also helps to see just how these tales have been revamped and updated for our 21st century world - they now have a modern diversity which wasn’t necessarily present in their earlier versions.
It is highly evident to see how much effort and hard work each author has put into their own retelling. Shamefully, I wasn’t aware when first diving into these stories just how well known some of these amazing writers are and it’s made me want to add more of their own voices and writings to my ever expanding TBR pile – there is some serious talent within this book and it shines off each and every page in the tone of the retellings and the way the stories have been brought to life within the pages.
Review to go live on my blog on 30th September
Originally a podcast series, Professor Carolyne Larrington conjured up a writing experiment which tasked 8-10 inspiring British and Irish women authors to write a contemporary retelling of a forgotten folktale with a modern, feminist twist. This collection reminds me of a fresh uplift on the gothic horror genre - think Angela Carter meets Henry James’ Turn of the Screw. With particularly eerie and dark stories, the tales within are guaranteed to get you in the mood for Halloween and those darker nights by the fire.
As someone who has spent a fair bit of time reading folk/fairytales (I even did my dissertation on them) I was pleased to see a few of the more familiar and popular creatures making an appearance here such as selkies, boggarts, fairies and mermaids. That being said, the stories they were contained within felt fresh and new, I didn’t feel like I’d read any of them before – whilst the concepts may have been familiar, the stories themselves had me gripped to finding out what was going to happen, so they felt like more than just your average retellings.
What I particularly liked in Hag, was the focus on different regions from the UK rather than just a generalisation of British and Irish tales. It really did emphasise the nature of how transient traditional stories are and how they have shaped places across our entire nation. Also, the settings of each story became more relevant and heightened; you could visualise the area you live in and the places you’ve visited. Kudos too goes to the authors who managed to incorporate some the regional accents and dialects into the speech of their stories to make them all sound incredibly authentic.
The breakdown at the end recaps for the reader the ‘original’ tales as they may have been told in anthologies from the 19th and early 20th centuries. These short snapshots not only refresh your memory of all the stories you’ve just read, but it also helps to see just how these tales have been revamped and updated for our 21st century world - they now have a modern diversity which wasn’t necessarily present in their earlier versions.
It is highly evident to see how much effort and hard work each author has put into their own retelling. Shamefully, I wasn’t aware when first diving into these stories just how well known some of these amazing writers are and it’s made me want to add more of their own voices and writings to my ever expanding TBR pile – there is some serious talent within this book and it shines off each and every page in the tone of the retellings and the way the stories have been brought to life within the pages.
Review to go live on my blog on 30th September
kdscolliver's review against another edition
3.0
Perhaps inevitable with collections of short stories, some were compelling whilst others took some determination to finish.
cwill89's review against another edition
dark
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
3.0
alliwag's review against another edition
3.0
Loved the concept of this collection, but it was hit or miss for me in terms of quality of the writing and storytelling. I ended up DNFing four stories (mostly due to craft issues), but the standouts really hit hard, with a fairytale conceit surrounding a strong emotional core. Also liked the inclusion of the source tales at the end.
Standouts were A Retelling by Daisy Johnson, Between Sea and Sky by Kirsty Logan, and The Holloway by Imogen Hermes Gowar.
A Retelling was my favorite and the eeriest of the lot, with sharp writing and an effective bit of metafiction.
The Droll of the Mermaid by Natasha Carthew was probably my quickest DNF solely due to the haphazard punctuation (or lack thereof) which, instead of reading as a stylistic choice, made the sentences a nightmare to parse. I couldn't retain any story details because I was so focused on picking it apart.
Standouts were A Retelling by Daisy Johnson, Between Sea and Sky by Kirsty Logan, and The Holloway by Imogen Hermes Gowar.
A Retelling was my favorite and the eeriest of the lot, with sharp writing and an effective bit of metafiction.
The Droll of the Mermaid by Natasha Carthew was probably my quickest DNF solely due to the haphazard punctuation (or lack thereof) which, instead of reading as a stylistic choice, made the sentences a nightmare to parse. I couldn't retain any story details because I was so focused on picking it apart.
kellyvandamme's review against another edition
3.0
Not quite what I hoped it would be, but entertaining enough. I didn't enjoy all the stories in equal measure, as is often the case with anthologies, but the stories I loved well made up for those I didn't.
archivistbyday's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed the original fairytales being at the back of the book to read after
zoefranka's review against another edition
dark
emotional
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
4.0
Content Warnings
Graphic: Domestic abuse, Miscarriage, Physical abuse, and Pregnancy
kstarchuck's review against another edition
3.0
There were two or three truly glorious standouts in this anthology, but the rest felt underwhelming and as if they'd not quite reached their full potential, with one that was bafflingly disappointing. I'm glad to have read it, and I think it's a fantastic premise, but I think the end result is a bit mixed.
mcatcarr's review against another edition
funny
hopeful
mysterious
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
3.5