Book Review: Dead of Winter by Sarah Clegg

It’s not often I’ll sit down and read a non-fiction book cover to cover; true crime books, maybe, now and then, or collections of ‘true’ ghost stories. I have plenty of what I think of as reference books – books that collect and list historical events, folk and fairytale creatures, and all manner of witchy and pagan stuff, and I’ve read them, though in bits, here and there, dipping into them when I have a spare half hour or if I need information on something that I know is inside. But when I received ‘Dead of Winter’ (as a Yule present, fittingly), I knew it was one I’d want to sit down and go through cover to cover.

Sarah Clegg has clearly done a lot of research for this book. Somehow, though, she delivers her research not in dry, academic tones, but in the warm, conversational tone of someone discussing their adventures abroad or a beloved novel. I particularly appreciated the footnotes – normally something that puts me off, tears me out of the main script, hers were funny, insightful and occasionally sarcastic additions to the main text that made it all the more familiar in tone. What it amounted to was a book that draws you in and keeps you interested, entertaining you and almost tricking you into not realising that you’re learning something.

And there is so much good information in here. The Krampus, Wassailing, the Mari Llywd (one of my favourites, even if I always struggle to spell it), and so much more. A lot of the characters I was familiar with – everyone knows about Christmas in some form or other, after all – but there were plenty I didn’t know. But I do now … and dear reader, this book has given me IDEAS!!!! Thanks Sarah, I’ll be including you in some future acknowledgements! I also appreciate the MR James plug – I will be looking for the exact book you mentioned, I love a good Victorian ghost story, especially at Christmas!

All in all, this is an excellent, entertaining and informative read. If you love Christmas, but also love the darkness of winter, or if you just wonder where some of the crazy Christmas traditions came from, pick up this book. You will not regret it.