"Europe's pagan traditions never seem to have been stamped out. Instead, parts of them have been with us all along, as [Hutton] demonstrates in his sprightly–and spritely–account of four female figures: Mother Earth; the Fairy Queen; the Lady of the Night; and the Cailleach of the Gaelic tradition."–Peter Stanford,
Daily Telegraph "Hutton's arguments are thoughtful and convincing. . . . [He] propose[s] these archetypes as 'new superhuman figures which operated outside of Christian cosmology.'"–Elizabeth Dearnley,
Times Literary Supplement "Whether your interest is in the history of formal religious practice, folklore, or mythology, or in the influences motifs of divine nature . . . have had and continue to have upon modern thought, I very much recommend this new book as an entryway into a remarkably expansive garden of possibilities as to how even the most so-called 'settled matters' may still be examined, and by which your interpretation of the world may be enlarged."–Johannes E. Riuitta,
Well-read Naturalist "A wonderful book, deeply thoughtful and engaging, packed with great research and thought-provoking ideas."–Marion Gibson, author of
Witchcraft: The Basics "This splendid book greatly expands our knowledge of how apparently pagan divine figures of European tradition evolved. By deftly showing what we know–and what we only
think we know–the author illuminates how these figures have mattered over the centuries, and continue to do so."–Mark Williams, author of
The Celtic Myths that Shape the Way We Think "England's favourite historian has done it again! In this series of essays, he traces the histories of four popular feminine figures from folklore, showing us the vitality of human creativity and its shaping of tradition even under periods of religious domination."–Sabina Magliocco, author of
Witching Culture: Folklore and Neo-Paganism in America
