Refreshing ... beautiful ... academic but lively ... the book offers the experience of immersion into the strange, romantic and occasionally frightening world these songs were, and are, a part of ... A triumphant addition to the English folk canon, both as a source of reference and as an endlessly enjoyable collection to dip into—The Times

The New Penguin Book of English Folk Songs couldn't be better timed ... an utterly indispensable collection of music for murder, wooing and wanton abandon—Record Collector

Compelling ... fascinating and refreshingly objective ... Free of any cloying romanticism ... An impressive and nourishing book, with an appeal far beyond the folk aficionado. Roud and Bishop have created something vital—Telegraph

A wonderful resource of knowledge and scholarship—Tim Cumming, Independent