The Merry Adventures Of Robin Hood: A Collection, And Some Ballads

Here is my modest collection of Robin Hood books and a record with the album title of 'A Tapestry of Music for Robin Hood & his King' by Early Music group St. George's Canzona. The two books on the left are both editions of  'The Merry Adventures of Robin Hood' by Howard Pyle, a delightful book with fine illustrations, for Howard Pyle was one of the greatest illustrators of all time, and wrote great storybooks too; I highly recommend it, it's one of my favourite books.  This is part of the wonderful preface to that story:

 'You who so plod amid serious things that you feel it shame to give yourself up even for a few short moments to mirth and joyousness in the land of Fancy; you who think that life hath nought to do with innocent laughter that can harm no one; these pages are not for you. Clap to the leaves and go no farther than this, for I tell you plainly that if you go farther you will be scandalized by seeing good, sober folks of real history so frisk and caper in gay colours and motley, that you would not know them but for the names tagged to them...there are a whole host of knights, priests, nobles, burghers, yeomen, pages, ladies, lasses, landlords, beggars, pedlars, and what not, all living the merriest of merry lives, and all bound by nothing but a few odd strands of certain old ballads...which draw these jocund fellows here and there, singing as they go.'

Most of us strongly disapprove of robbery and law breaking, yet these old tales and ballads continue to be loved and are eternally popular; most everyone loves Robin Hood!  We tend to think that the Sheriff of Nottingham was a bad fellow who deserved what he got, and the same goes for those other naughty types who also received the same treatment.  The struggle between liberty and the oppression of the peasants in these tales grip people, and the adventures of those hearty, robust men living hearty robust lives in the forest, nearly always being clever enough to be a step ahead of the tyrants, and we mustn't forget the humour, the jolly good times they have and the tricks they heartily laughed at; the manly comradeship the characters enjoyed.   There are many appealing elements in these tales, whatever version you encounter (though I imagine one should probably steer clear of any new modern retellings).

Since the above photo was taken, some time ago, three more Robin Hood books were later added to the collection (though I haven't read these yet):

For your enjoyment, here is a selection of good recordings of Robin Hood-themed songs:

'Robin Hood and the Tanner' by St. George's Canzona:

'Gamble Gold/Robin Hood' by Steeleye Span:

'Robin Hood and the Pedlar' by Barry Dransfield:

'Robin Hood & the Bold Pedlar' by The Owl Service:

An Entertaining Selection: Books Read In 2019

Hello again.  Despite taking a break from blog-writing, a rather long break, I have been reading though, and this past year's choices were full of mystery, adventure, fantasy; a lot of entertaining stories indeed!   Here they are, in order of finishing, with many photos.


1.  Fairy Gold:  A Book of Old English Fairy Tales-ed. by Ernest Rhys, 1912

2.  Prince Caspian by C.S. Lewis, 1951

3.  The Voyage of the Dawn Treader by C.S. Lewis, 1952

4.  J.R.R. Tolkien, Architect of Middle Earth by Daniel Grotta

5.  Secret Chambers and Hiding Places by Allan Fea, 1901

6.  The Secret of Chimneys by Agatha Christie, 1925

7.  Weekend With Death by Patricia Wentworth, 1941

8.  The English Ghost-ed. by Peter Ackroyd, 2010

9.  The Coldstone by Patricia Wentworth, 1930

10.  Fear By Night by Patricia Wentworth, 1934

11.  The Red Lacquer Case by Patricia Wentworth, 1924

12.  The Case of the Late Pig by Margery Allingham, 1937

13.  English Fairy Tales:  Retold by F. A. Steele, 1918

14.  Manalive by G.K. Chesterton, 1912

15.  Haunted By Books by Mark Valentine, 2015

16.  Islands by John Fowles, 1978

17.  The Four Men by Hilaire Belloc, 1912

18.  The Mystery of Fu Manchu by Sax Rohmer, 1913

19.  The Devil Doctor by Sax Rohmer, 1916

20.  The Phantom of the Opera by Gaston Leroux, 1910

21.  Trains and Buttered Toast by John Betjeman, 2006 compilation

22.  Brandy For the Parson by Raymond Foxall, 1970

23.  The Loch Ness Story by Nicholas Witchell, 1974

24.  The Si-Fan Mysteries by Sax Rohmer, 1917

25.  Gryll Grange by Thomas Love Peacock, 1896

26.  Folk Revival by Fred Woods, 1979

27.  Gale Warning by Dornford Yates, 1939

28.  Living Legends by Richard Barber, 1980

29.  Song of the Harp:  Old Welsh Folktales by Linda Barrett- Osborne, 1975

30.  Curious Myths of the Middle Ages by Sabine Baring-Gould, 1866

31.  The Folio Book of the English Christmas, Folio Society

32.  The Box of Delights by John Masefield, 1935 (a re-read)

*began months ago and halfway though: 

William Morris by Fiona MacCarthy

A Degree of Mastery by Annie Tremmel Wilcox

*still reading occasionally from the year before:

The Journal Of A Tour To The Hebrides by James Boswell, 1786

Visions & Beliefs In The West Of Ireland by Lady Gregory, 1920

I intend to make this year's reading at least as interesting, varied, and entertaining as this past year's reading, with perhaps a bit more History added to the mix, and, as usual, a mix of favourite authors and authors I haven't yet read anything by before; so far it is going well, and there are many titles I plan to get to in the upcoming months, though there are no set plans, which makes it more fun.  

Huntingtower by John Buchan: A Wonderful Tale of Adventure

'Huntingtower' by John Buchan, from 1922.  I love this book, read it in 2015 and right away it became one of my all-time favourites. There is so much to enjoy in this book, such as the characters (some are wonderfully warm and noble, others are dastardly villains but of course one doesn't like them; the setting of the Scottish countryside; discovering what is behind the sinister goings-on; the bravery of the men and boys, all to be admired. 

 

"Dickson McCunn, a respectable, newly retired grocer of romantic heart, plans a modest walking holiday in the hills of south-west Scotland.  He meets a young English poet and, contrary to his better sense, finds himself in the thick of a plot involving the kidnapping of a Russian princess, who is held prisoner in the rambling mansion, Huntingtower.  This modern fairytale is also a gripping adventure story, and in it Buchan introduces some of his best-loved characters, including the Gorbals Die-Hards, who reappear in later novels.  He also paints a remarkable picture of a man rejuvenated by joining much younger comrades in a challenging and often dangerous fight against tyranny and fear."  

 

Buchan gives a lovely description of Dickson McCunn's imagination and inclinations at the start of this adventure: 

 "He had had a humdrum life since the day when he had first entered his uncle's shop with the hope of some day succeeding that honest grocer; but his feet had never strayed a yard from his sober rut.  But his mind, like the Dying Gladiator's, had been far away.  As a boy he had voyaged among books, and they had given him a world where he could shape his career according to his whimsical fancy.  Not that Mr McCunn was what is known as a great reader.  He read slowly and fastidiously, and sought in literature for one thing alone.  Sir Walter Scott had been his first guide, but he read the novels not for their insight into human character or for their historical pageantry, but because they gave him material wherewith to construct fantastic journeys.  It was the same with Dickens.  A lit tavern, a stagecoach, post-horses, the clack of hoofs on a frosty road, went to his head like wine.  He was a Jacobite not because he had any views on Divine Right, but because he had always before his eyes a picture of a knot of adventurers in cloaks, new landed from France among the western heather."

 

So this has been the man's life so far, a gentle, unexciting existence, but what adventure (and as yet undiscovered bravery) there is awaiting him in this ripping yarn!  Highly recommended. 

There was a television adaptation of this made in the 1970s, along with some other Buchan stories, and I'm hoping that they will all be released on DVD sometime.  You can find this one on youtube, here is part one: