Britian’s Folklore Year

I really enjoyed this book! As a fan of British folklore and its myriad customs and celebrations, it was a very comprehensive overview of old and new customs and events throughout the year. I feel that folklore has become more mainstream acceptable over the last few years. For instance the audience at Hastings Jack in the Green Mayday celebration has grown dramatically. The British Folklore Year would be a great introduction for anyone who wants to know more about the history, meaning and traditions that make up the ritual year.
The introduction reminds the reader how much a country’s folklore can enable us to understand our culture and who we are as it
‘brings with it a sense of identity.’ The intro also discusses previous surges of interest in folklore during the 19th and early 20th centuries:
‘when people staring collecting material about traditional customs in response to the increasing urbanisation during the Industrial Revolution. It was an attempt to preserve the past by recording the lives of rural people: what they did and how they did it.’
This continued after the Second World War and more recently in the 21st century. There is an explanation of the folklore year with fixed and moveable dates and the cycle of the seasons as well as an overview of the relevant celebrations and festivities that aim to give
‘a flavour of the culturally diverse range of celebrations and festivities, both national and local, that comprise it.’
There is a sense of humour as well when the author says, prior to launching into Spring,
‘And don’t worry, no wicker men. Well not many anyway…’
The book moves through the 4 seasons with such activities as Cheese Rolling in Gloucestershire, the World Stinging Nettle Eating Championships (in which the 2024 male champion chomped his way through 116ft of nettle stalks and 2023 women’s winner defended her title by getting through 64 feet, both aided by a pint of cider each), worm charming and also more recent additions such as the Yorkshire Pudding Race. The enigmatic and ancient Abbot Bromley Horn Dance is discussed as well as many others. More recent customs and events are included and although I have no idea what morris dancing is about but it always looks enormous fun.
The author, Mark Norman, is the curator of the Folklore Library and Archive so he knows his stuff and the book is written in an accessible and knowledgeable style. It’s a short book at 224 pages with lovely linocuts used as illustrations throughout and on the cover.
Finally, I was at the Rochester Sweeps Festival a couple of year ago when a group of Ukrainian dancers, dressed in their traditional national costumes, joined in and from that moment I felt that two cultures blended as one .

My thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for an ARC.

A fascinating look at the history of folklore and folk customs in Britain, shaped by the course of a year.

Britain’s Folklore Year is such a fun little journey through the UK’s quirkiest and most magical traditions, season by season. Mark Norman brings to life everything from cheese-rolling to maypole dancing, with so many weird, wonderful rituals in between.

If you’re into folklore, seasonal vibes, or just love discovering unusual traditions, this book is like a year-round sprinkle of magic for your shelf.

An informative and thoroughly enjoyable exploration into the history of British folklore. British culture has been so poorly protected, I was completely unaware of so many festivities and events that were once the highlight of our country’s year, and I loved that this took us through a year in the life of British folklore.

Thank you to NetGalley and the publishers for this ARC.

An informative and comprehensive guide to British folklore, myths and folk traditions.

Great book to dip in and out of, completely accessible with fantastic rereadability

An informative and charming compendium of folkloric traditions. It was shorter than I expected and sometimes lacked the deeper research, context and history I would like for these topics. However, I assume it is meant as a smaller gift book which is not always clear from a digital ARC. In that regard, it makes a good introductory title and is often written with humour and warmth.

However, I was disappointed to see a reference to the British Isles in this book from such a wonderful and reputable organisation like the National Trust, which is controversial and archaic in my opinion. In addition, the book seemed confused about the scope. The title says it was about British folklore but includes events from Northern Ireland (which is not in Britain, but rather the UK) and the rest of Ireland (neither in the UK nor Britain). This could have been avoided by simply stating in the introduction that sometimes the author will (understandably) discuss folklore from these regions at times because of our intertwined history and shared Celtic heritage.

An interesting and fairly comprehensive guide. Not only giving information on specific days/events but on more general customs too. As well as giving background on what folklore means/is. Also includes some lovely illustrations.

This is a great introduction to British folklore and how folklore and rituals are centred around the seasons. This book highlights some of the ancient and modern customs which bring the community together to celebrate. This book had me reminiscing about events I attended as a child that were similar to those described in the book. I think this is a great addition to the literature on folklore of the UK. Many of the events featured in Ben Edge’s documentary Frontline Folklore are part of this book. I love that this book has a timeline of annual events at the back of the book so you can experience the events yourself.

Thank you to NetGalley and National Trust Books for allowing me to review this advance copy.

Rating 3.5⭐️

This is a lovely trip around the British Isles and through its history. This book looks at traditions and folklore not only from centuries ago but also those which only sprang up in the twentieth century. From well known festivals and events to obscure ones which occur only in one corner of the UK, our year in folklore is a rich one - and this book captures that.

I particularly liked the Seasonal Events Calendar - meaning that anyone who fancies experiencing some of these events knows exactly where and when to find them. The fact that the meteorological and astronomical year are both represented as well as the wheel of the year being referred to throughout were also lovely touches, as were the illustrations.

Overall a lovely coffee table book and the perfect gift for a history-lover with an eye for the unusual.

This is an excellent beginner's guide to the rich folklore and myths of Britain. Comprehensive and compelling, perfect to dip in and out of as the seasons pass.

This was a really interesting book with thoughtfully-chosen sections. The information was suitable for those with little or no knowledge of the subject and was presented in an accessible style.

The examples of local traditions still practised was an added bonus.

My only issue with this e-format is it was incredibly difficult to read because letters were missing all over the place, mainly Fs. Hopefully this will be rectified by the publication date.

Britains folklore is a interesting book to flick through, it’s set out in seasons but it is quite wordy and a few more illustrations/ pictures would of helped me stay more engaged. Would make a nice edition for my bookshelf but I’m not sure how often I would pull it out to read.

A really entertaining book. I was totally unaware of how many rituals and events there are. I haven't completely finished as I think it is better to read each season as it begins. Great fun and very enlightening.

Lovely book, full of info about folk traditions around the UK

I read it like front to back, and I'd suggest it's not really great for that! It'd make a lovely dip-in book, something for the bathroom or coffee table

It had a lot of info in it, but very little substance, this means it has many more named celebrations and traditions in it but scant info about each one. This isn't necessarily an issue, but worth noting that it's a starting point rather than something more in depth

Overall a nice book, would make a decent present for that "ARGH!" person in your life!

I received an advance copy for free from NetGalley, on the expectation that I would provide an honest review.

This is a perfect book for anyone who loves folklore, heritage or spirituality. It is a great book to give as a gift, and definitely one I will be gifting family members for around Christmas time.
I am a huge huge fan of folklore and I was so excited to see the National Trust was publishing a year folklore reflection. The book is structured by the seasons (both meteorologically and astronomically) with an overview and recap at the end. I appreciated how, at the end of the book, there is a list of folklore celebrations which you can still get involved with today. I will definitely be checking these out especially as I found out about Garland Day in Castleton!
The writing style is easy to understand and goes into enough detail to each event whilst still managing to cover a whole years worth of folklore events. Mark Norman's narrative style gives enough context without reading paragraphs of dense historical context. This allows the book to cover a whole years worth of events some popular, and some less-known.
Thank you to Netgalley and National Trust Books for this advanced copy in exchange for an honest review.

Thanks to NetGalley and the publisher for an advance copy of this book.

I am sorry to say that I was disappointed by this book. I assume that when it is published it will have more illustrations and possibly photographs and might be more of a coffee table book, a book for dipping in to rather than reading through.

I know a bit about the beliefs, traditions and ceremonies of the Celtic, pre Celtic and and mediaeval societies but there were quite a few events listed here which are new to me, so that is interesting.

But generally I found the book underwhelming, I feel that it is flatly written, just a list really of the various activities, fairs and observances which have survived or been revived from the past and. It reads a bit like a collection of pamphlets made into a book. I was surprised to see mentions of events with origins in the last 50 or so years, not what I would consider part of folklore.

Generally, it is reasonably interesting and would be a good introduction to traditional events.

A short, clear and delightful book about British traditions. I especially loved the illustrations and the author’s style.
This is an ARC review. I appreciate receiving this copy from NetGalley and the publisher in return for an honest review.

The book contains a lot of interesting backstories about different events throughout the year. It is a nice introduction on the topic. It covers a lot of topics in one rather short book, so I personally would have preferred it to be a longer book just to pack a bit more details in.

This is an interesting book on traditional folklore in Britain.
The mixture of traditions across the ages gave the book a good breadth of knowledge for a reader looking to dip their toe into the pool of folklore.
It is very much a basic introduction though and for more detail on particular traditions and celebrations one would have to look elsewhere for more depth and detail.

And quick and interesting read.

What an amazing book, which is a book to cherish throughout your life. So useful when visiting new places in Britain and creating a love of folklore, traditions and customs.
I read it through and was fascinated, amused and amazed at different times throughout the book.
The linocut illustrations are just right as they fit in well with the subject matter. Gaudy illustrations would detract from the text.
This is a book for everyone who cares about Britain’s past traditions and keeping folklore alive in communities.
It would be especially useful for teachers as they would always find something to educate and delight a child and create a starting point for eg. writing poetry about spells and charms, facilitating informed discussions and creating a love of folklore.
Which person. young or older would not be fascinated by stinging nettle eating championships, Pixie Day, Ganging Day and creating the Dumb Cake . You too can make an Imbole and read about all the festivals taking place throughout the year.
I loved it and shall be buying a copy so that I can read it throughout each season.