The Hidden Folk: Stories of Fairies, Dwarves, Selkies, and Other Secret Beings

by Lise Lunge-Larsen, Beth Krommes (Illustrator)

Overview

Selkies, fairies, gnomes, hill folk, river sprites—do you believe in them? Perhaps among the flowers, beside a mountain, or near deep waters you’ve caught a glimpse, once or twice, of what you thought might be the silvery shadow of a dwarf, or a hint of a fairy’s wing, or the tail of the water horse. Or was it just the odd light of dusk or dawn playing tricks? As Lise Lunge-Larsen’s magical, timeless stories reveal and Beth Krommes’s enchanting scratchboard illustrations capture, the hidden folk are there, all right: you just have to know where—and how—to look.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780547528205
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	08/30/2004
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	80
File size:	53 MB
Note:	This product may take a few minutes to download.
Age Range:	4 - 7 Years

About the Author

Lise Lunge-Larsen is an award-winning author and a professional storyteller. Born and raised in Norway, she lives with her family in the hills of Duluth, Minnesota.

Beth Krommes is the Caldecott Winning illustrator of The House in the Night  and other beautifully illustrated, much-acclaimed picture books like Swirl by Swirl, and  Butterfly Eyes and Other Secrets of the Meadow. She lives in Peterborough, NH. Visit her online at www.bethkrommes.com.

Editorial Reviews

Goblins and ghosts are not the only elusive phantoms this season. "Like whispered rumors of strange happenings," the eight tales in The Hidden Folk: Stories of Fairies, Gnomes, Selkies, and Other Secret Beings by Lise Lunge-Larsen, illus. by Beth Krommes, were "originally told as fact," according to the author's source note. The tales of mysterious Northern European creatures inspire enchanting scratchboard illustrations in a folk-art tradition, featuring ruddy, rotund humans while brightly clad fairies lurk among leaf fronds and selkies take refuge in the sea. ( Aug.) Copyright 2004 Reed Business Information.

Publishers Weekly

These very brief tales offer insight and warning: where you might find the hidden folk, how to treat them, and what might happen if you use them badly. From the flower fairies, readers learn how lily of the valley came to be, the uses of tulips and why parsley is bitter. A boy who mistreats the farm gnome called a "nisse" learns, tossed and muddied, why this is not a good idea. River sprites behind waterfalls teach fiddle-playing, but with a catch, and the selkie story is a familiar one to those who have seen The Secret of Roan Inish. These small, delightful tales are fabulously illustrated by Krommes's scratchboard pictures. She fills the linear patterns inherent in scratchboard design with rich and brilliant color, at once cozy and majestic. It's very easy to see elves, gnomes, and dwarves being comfortable in such places. (source note, references) (Folktales. 5-9)

Kirkus Reviews

The author draws on a rich tradition of legends and myths, retelling them in an accessible manner that will captivate readers.
School Library Journal, Starred

The intimate and chatty tone of the text...encourages confidence in the teller's veracity and repeated reading of the collection.
Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books

The tales of mysterious Northern European creatures inspire enchanting scratchboard illustration in a folk-tradition.
Publishers Weekly

These small, delightful tales are fabulously illustrated...it's very easy to see elves, gnomes, and dwarves being comfortable in such places.
Kirkus Reviews

Professional storyteller Lunge-Larsen presents eight short tales, retold or intevented, featuring magical creatures that lurk just out of sight...Krommes provides handsome borders and stylized full-page illustrations that give this gathering a suitably folktale feel.
Booklist, ALA

From the Publisher