The Hounds of the Morrigan
 Cover of the original 1985 edition, as well as the 1999 reprint by HarperTrophy | |
| Author | Pat O'Shea |
|---|---|
| Country | United Kingdom |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Fantasy novel, Celtic Mythology |
| Publisher | Oxford University Press |
Publication date | 1985 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 688 pp |
| ISBN | 0-06-447205-1 |
| OCLC | 39875090 |
| LC Class | PZ7.O83 Ho 1999 |
The Hounds of the Morrigan is a novel by Irish writer Pat O'Shea. It was published in 1985, having taken O'Shea ten years to complete. The novel centers on the adventures of 10-year-old Pidge and his younger sister, Brigit. Many characters in the book are culled straight from Celtic mythology. The book is intended for younger readers.
Plot summary
Pidge buys a book entitled A Book of Patrick's Writing and discovers that the book he bought is actually a prison for the evil serpent Olc-Glas.
The Morrigan wants the book so that she can absorb the evil of Olc-Glas and take over the world.
Characters from Celtic myth who appear in the novel
- Queen Maeve, her husband, Ailill, and their seven sons, the Maines
- Cathbad
- The goddess Brigid
- Angus Og
- The Morrigan, a triple goddess, and her two counterparts:
- Saint Patrick
- The Dagda
- Cúchulainn
Reviews
A review that was originally published in the University of Chicago's ‘’The Bulletin of the Center for Children's Books’’ states that, "The prose is rather relentlessly ornamented, but the images are always concrete and, like the narrative, have vigorous strength."[1]
Sequel
There is a sequel, which never was finished.[2]
Footnotes
- ↑ Sutherland, Zena; Betsy Hearne; Roger Sutton (1991). The Best in Children's Books, 1985-1990. University of Chicago Press. p. 80. ISBN 0-226-78064-3.
- ↑ David Fickling (23 June 2007). "Obituary: Pat O'Shea". the Wayback Machine. Archived from the original on 1 August 2013. Retrieved 18 September 2013.
The few brilliant chapters of the unfinished sequel are almost worth publishing alone...
References
- O'Shea, Pat; The Hounds of the Morrigan; Holiday House, Inc, First American Edition 1986