
In a quiet corner of Fife, the little burgh of Sandyriggs drifts through days of easy‑going routine. Shopkeepers and farmers alike find their lives punctuated by long, unhurried intervals, and with few newspapers or books to occupy them, word‑of‑mouth becomes the chief entertainment. It is in these moments that the town’s tradition of oral storytelling comes alive, inviting listeners to share in the community’s collective memory.
At the heart of this tradition sit the Steedman couple, a retired pair whose modest cottage radiates the warmth of steadfast faith and good humour. Their devotion to the old Seceder ways is matched only by their love of a well‑told yarn, and they welcome any eager ear with a pipe, a cup of toddy, and a sparkle in their eyes. The narrator, a frequent guest, discovers how their recollections weave together history, folklore, and the everyday quirks of village life.
The collection gathers these lively anecdotes, ranging from mischievous spirits to humble heroics, each narrated with a gentle Scottish cadence. Listeners are treated to a portrait of a bygone era where imagination fills the gaps between harvests, offering both charm and a glimpse into the resilient spirit of Fife’s people.
Language
en
Duration
~5 hours (295K characters)
Publisher of text edition
Project Gutenberg
Credits
Produced by Chris Curnow, Graeme Mackreth and the Online Distributed Proofreading Team at http://www.pgdp.net (This file was produced from images generously made available by The Internet Archive)
Release date
2019-06-28
Rights
Public domain in the USA.
1834–1907
A Scottish schoolmaster and man of letters, he wrote practical guides to reading as well as warmly observed sketches of local life. His best-known work, The Queer Folk of Fife, draws on the character and humor of eastern Scotland.
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