This large-format gift book gives leprechauns and their kinfolk the sort of whimsical, copiously illustrated treatment which made Wil Huygen's and Rien Poortvliet's 1976 Gnomes a bestseller in many parts of Europe. Anderson's illustrations, particularly of devices like leprechaun traps and poteen stills, have a meticulous dottiness slightly reminiscent of W. Heath Robinson. It's all based on actual folklore, with authorities like Katharine Briggs given due credit, but doesn't take itself too seriously. "Others say leprechauns are just a load of old cobblers," Macnamara's text admits, adding that this is quite true since they're notorious for both longevity and shoemaking. The varieties of Irish leprechaun are illustrated by retold folktales, including a version of the classic "Three Wishes" story where the third wish is needed to undo the damage caused by the first two. Additional notes tell of banshees, brownies, hobgoblins, pookas, spriggans and more of the usual supernatural suspects. The endpaper design provides the board for "Magpie", a game based on the old Irish Brandubh or Black Raven, which looks quite playable: the simple rules are given in full. Not so easily followed are the directions for finding pots of gold at the ends of rainbows. Lightweight but amusing. --David Langford