"The Tales of John Kneebone" is a collection of stories. It is not a mere anthology, but a family of stores about a particular time, place and character. The time is the mid-18th century, the place is Cornwall and the person is John Kneebone. John Kneebone was a one-legged ne'er-do-well. He had many colorful adventures, and was a master of making up colourful stories about those adventures, both real and imaginary and a mixture of the two. The stories here are all stories that Kneebone told, with an eye to wheedling a drink or a coin out of his audience, in answer to the question "How did you lose your leg? "These stories were collected by someone who knew him well, a local worthy named John Wearne, who was a Churchwarden and Overseer of the Poor in Wendron, Cornwall. In his official capacity, he often transported Kneebone to court and to gaol. Wearne also encountered Kneebone in many other situations in which he was wont to hear Kneebone spinning a tale. Wearne repeats to us some of these tales, with thoughts and insights of his own.This collection began as an idea based on a small pamphlet telling the history of Wendron Parish, Conrwall - a real place - and in it were mentioned and described John Wearne and John Kneebone, both real people. Naturally, the stories here are from the vivid imaginations of a variety of authors, writing especially for this project. It is gratifying that so many talented people were intrigued by this idea and joined in. Cornwall is, in the wide world, both little known and widely misunderstood (paradoxically enough) . Far from being merely a rustic vacation-spot for wealthy Londoners, Cornwall has a rich and unique history and heritage all its own, and a claim to be its own country, independent of any larger, more powerful neighbor. Unfortunately, the media and the entertainment industry have, for a long time, presented a view of Cornwall that is misleading. In the stories in this book, fiction and entertainment though they aim to be, you will find glimpses of the real Cornwall back in the days when Mining and Fishing were King, and the Cornish identity was strong and proud. We hope that you will enjoy these stories. Some are comic, some fantastic, some spooky and some swashbuckling. All are suitable for all audiences. This book was great fun to write and prepare, and we believe that it will be great fun to read.
