Spellbound: Tales of Enchantment from Ancient Ireland
This original book is described as a collection of ‘seven magical stories from Ancient Ireland, told for younger children by the Irish Children’s Laureate, with beautiful colour illustrations.’
The language used is, as expected, skilful so that the words flow smoothly as the tales are explained in an absorbing way, drawing in the young listener as the stories unfold. They would have no doubt originally have been passed down the generations by word of mouth. Now, captured in print, they have a chance to live again for years to come. They vary in length and complexity, providing some quite challenging stories for young children to understand, including intricate relationships, plots and themes as they often span time in years.
The hierarchy of the culture of Ireland’s heritage is shown with its High King and other monarchs mentioned, which gives the feel of the ancient eras around the telling of the legends. To support the reader who will read these tales of a bygone age to today’s young audience, the book has been beautifully illustrated by Olwyn Whelan.
