I am an unmitigated fan of the Pagan Portals series from Moon Books. Maybe not the tone to set for a book review, but the truth is that they do exactly what they set out to do with these books and I'm glad that they do. Morgan Daimler once talked about their Pagan Portals book on The Morrigan thusly: " I wrote this hoping to fill a need I perceived at the time, when there were some longer, deeper books on the Morrigan out there but nothing that was meant as a basic intro. I'm really proud of how well that hope has been fulfilled, and how much this book has helped people dip a toe into the deep pool that is Morrigan lore." That sums up Pagan Portals pretty well - if you're already an expert, you don't need to add one of their books to your library unless it's meant to be an on-hand loaner for an interested friend. But if you don't already know a lot about a subject, but want to, they are bite-sized nuggets of knowledge that can get you started on your new path of learning. And speaking of Morgan Daimler, I now have my paws on their 2024 release, Celtic Fairies in North America. The obvious question, then, is if this latest entry continues the Pagan Portals tradition.
Yep, it does. From the very beginning of the introduction, Daimler sets out the path for the book to come, and also tackles the question that will be some readers' very first thought: Celtic fairies? In America? No, right? The response is not so much an argument as it is a proffered perspective that you can take or leave. After all, what can this debate really be about? Given that people have numerous perspectives on what it even means to believe in the existence of fairies, trying to codify a single system of where these fairies can or cannot exist is practically meaningless. The approach offered up is simply to do the research and describe as fully as possible the picture that emerges. In this case, Daimler explains, the picture (very basically, there's a 100+ pages I'm trying to condense here) is that either fairies, or beings existing in the same ecological-spiritual niche as fairies, have been part of cultural lore for centuries throughout North America; all the way from the Lutin of Nova Scotia to the Duende of Mexico. In some cases, Daimler provides sources for journals telling the story that I suspect most of us think of as the most common, that of immigrants from Europe bringing their beliefs with them wholesale and never wondering if they would or would not hold up in their new home. Of course they would. But the author also goes the extra mile to dig up stories amongst indigenous populations that do not require very much squinting to see them as the same spirits with different names, or at least close cousins.
Celtic Fairies in North America is not meant to be an exhaustive look into the subject, but I found it to be a very thorough one for my curiosity; I don't particularly venerate any fae, although I've learned to be polite. As far as my needs were concerned, I'm good. But, one of the great things about Daimler is that they cite their sources. If you find that the book has only aroused your interest without satisfying it, there's a four page-ish bibliography to initiate the next phase of your research. I think that the odds of you being so interested are pretty good, given what an enjoyable read this primer turned out to be.
~review by Wanderer
Author: Morgan Daimler
Moon Books 2024
128 pp. Paperback $12.95 USD
