As a basic guide to Irish folklore, you could do a lot worse than this. The introduction gives a nice overview of the history of folklore collection and its development from the early days of good old T Crofton Croker to the current folklore collection in UCD. Then a marvelous selection of stories big and small, from all over the country, from the many collectors and of many varieties. If you're reading this kind of thing, you have to make allowances for the repetitions that arise from oral telling which translates poorly to the written form, but enough of the stories come perfectly formed, whether through the work of the collector or the skill of the teller, to arouse nothing but respect and admiration. There's a long version of the the old King Of The Cats story that is perfect despite the familiarity. There is a flabbergasting epic about a wicked blacksmith who makes a deal with the devil that must have kept entire communities snowed in for months crowded eagerly round the storyteller to hear what happened next. A useful and enjoyable handbook.