British writer and storyteller John Row has bought a house in a small village in Transylvania, in central Romania, and now plans to gather Romanian fairy tales he learns from villagers in a bilingual book.

John Row, 72, has decided to buy a house in the village of Colibita, Bistrita-Nasaud county, even before visiting Romania, local Digi24 reported. He saw pictures of the country and decided to move here.

The British writer has always been fascinated by traditional stories and, when he discovered the legends and myths of Transylvania, he decided to bring them all together in a bilingual book for both Romanian and British children.

“There were these supernatural creatures, myths that came to people's lives in the early twentieth century. And these creatures are still part of their lives. But there is also a part that has disappeared and I think that, although I can’t collect the fairy tales as I expected, I will keep these stories of the people in the village,” John Row said.

The project is a little bit more difficult to achieve than the writer believed, as he doesn’t speak Romanian very well and the elders in the village don’t know English. However, he said he doesn’t want a professional translator, because he does not want to lose the meaning of old phrases.

From time to time, John Row is also invited to the school in Colibita. His experience helps him captivate the little ones. Throughout his career, he has written eight books and read stories for thousands of school children in the UK, Germany, France, Switzerland, Austria, the United States, or the United Arab Emirates.

Book review: A British writer’s take on life in a Transylvanian village

Irina Marica, irina.marica@romania-insider.com

(photo source: John Row on Facebook)