The Goblin Pony and Other Tales: Magical Creatures, A Weiser Books Collection

By Andrew Lang, Reginald Bakeley and Varla Ventura

Varla Ventura, fan favorite on Huffington Post’s Weird News, frequent guest on Coast to Coast, and bestselling author of The Book of the Bizarre and Beyond Bizarre, introduces a new Weiser Books Collection of forgotten crypto-classics. Magical Creatures is a hair-raising herd of affordable digital editions, curated with Varla’s affectionate and unerring eye for the fantastic.

Excerpted from the English folklorist Andrew Lang's greater collection, these delightful tales of goblin ponies and little gray men are introduced by self-declared fairy hunter and goblinproofer Reginald Bakeley.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Red Wheel Weiser
• Release date: Jun 1, 2012
• ISBN: 9781619400801

Andrew Lang

Andrew Lang (March, 31, 1844 – July 20, 1912) was a Scottish writer and literary critic who is best known as a collector of folk and fairy tales. Lang’s academic interests extended beyond the literary and he was a noted contributor to the fields of anthropology, folklore, psychical research, history, and classic scholarship, as well as the inspiration for the University of St. Andrew’s Andrew Lang Lectures. A prolific author, Lang published more than 100 works during his career, including twelve fairy books, in which he compiled folk and fairy tales from around the world. Lang’s Lilac Fairy and Red Fairy books are credited with influencing J. R. R. Tolkien, who commented on the importance of fairy stories in the modern world in his 1939 Andrew Lang Lecture “On Fairy-Stories.”

Book preview

Ride On

Recognition and regard for the literary contributions of the Brothers Grimm, Hans Christian Andersen, and other historical collectors of popular folklore seem to grow with each passing year. Their fairy stories are thought of as compelling entertainment, perhaps even offering a window into the human psyche. What is less often understood is the absolute peril these brave men placed themselves in during the act of compiling their beloved anthologies. Take the example of Andrew Lang, known now primarily for his collection of fairy-story books. He is thought of as a children's author, but in his day he was a force to be reckoned with, publishing more than 150 works on anthropology, history, classical literature, and—as a founding member of the Society for Psychical Research—the mysteries of the mind.

Imagine the brave Lang, stepping down from his tower of learned study to mix with the common people in treacherous, fairy-riddled territory. He passed the boundaries of the town walls and handed himself over to the wilderness, crossing moors, penetrating forests, and ascending craggy cliffsides to reach the rough-hewn huts of the natives who could provide the lore he so doggedly sought.

The simple people he encountered did not disappoint. In their contributions to the annals of fairy lore they described in great detail the dangers awaiting anyone venturing past the threshold of the cottage door and into the wilds. What was certain was that goblins, elves, and other miscreants lurked along the shady paths winding through the countryside. What was not so certain was whether any poor soul meeting these monsters would endure the encounter. Those survivors passed along to Lang their techniques for defeating the fey, or recounted the fates of those who had given their lives to the malicious spirits.

Here is a trio of such tales Lang collected and published in 1900 in his Grey Fairy Book. The first features a murderous goblin pony, the second a grotesque and bloodthirsty dwarf, the third a basilisk of a man who pulverizes stone merely by looking at