I Am of Irelaunde: A Novel of Patrick and Osian

by Juilene Osborne-McKnight

St. Patrick of Ireland has been enshrined in myth and history as a benign and beloved figure, a native Irish miracle worker who drove both the snakes and the Druids from his homeland and gently issued in the age of Christianity.Nothing could be further from the truth. Magonus Succatus Patricius ("Paidrig") was of Roman heritage; captured into slavery in Ireland at the age of sixteen, he escaped at the age of twenty-two. I Am of Irelaunde takes the forty-year-old Paidrig back to the site of his shame. He is full of anger, and is determined to bring Christianity to Ireland, even if he has to beat it into the "lazy, loathesome" Irish. But something happens to change Paidrig. Something shrouded in mystery and wonder. Long before Paidrig, Ireland had been guarded by a chivalric brotherhood of warriors known as the Fianna. Osian, a leading poet/warrior of the Fianna, has been dead for 200 years. He has come by magic to Paidrig to show him the wonder of Eire. And the stories that Paidrig hears open doors that will win Paidrig's heart and convert him into the champion of the people he once despised.At the Publisher's request, this title is being sold without Digital Rights Management Software (DRM) applied.

Genres: Historical Fiction, Ireland, Fantasy, Fiction, Irish Literature, Science Fiction Fantasy, Historical Romance

305 pages, Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 2000

About the author

Juilene Osborne-McKnight's newest book is Storyteller: Irish Myths, Legends and Folktales for Americans. Her nonfiction history The Story We Carry in our Bones: Irish History for Americans is now in its fifth printing. Both are available at Barnes & Noble, on amazon.com and from Pelican Publishing. She is also the author of four novels from MacMillan: I am of Irelaunde, Daughter of Ireland, Bright Sword of Ireland and Song of Ireland, available on amazon.com and barnes and noble.com.

Reviews

[Emelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

This has to be one of the most beautiful books I have read. I Am of Irelaunde: A Novel of Patrick and Osian is a feast of words. Juilene Oborne-McKnight paints a stunning portrait of the time of St. Patrick with magnificent prose. She takes us back to the time of Patrick, returning to Ireland at forty years of age. Back to the land of his enslavement.

Once back in Ireland, Patrick struggles to understand why his God, the Three-in-One, has instructed him to return as a missionary to Ireland, a land which he despises and whose people he does not understand nor wants to. As he tries to convert the people of Ireland to Christianity Patrick is met with stiff resistance, finding it harder and harder to draw the people away from their folklore and Gods. Often in fits of anger Patrick rails against everyone he meets who does not convert and soon estranges himself from the very people he has come to save. But Fate being as it is Patrick, who refuses to go by his Irish name of Padraig, soon meets Osian, the son of Fionn Mac Cumail of the Fianna who has been dead some 200 years !

As the book evolves Osian recalls to Patrick tales from the age of the Fianna. And it is through these tales, sprinkled throughout the book, that Osian takes Patrick and the reader, back to the age of Fionn and his warriors, third century A.D. As we walk along side Patrick we meet Druids among the misty hills and valleys of Ireland, we fight side by side with Fionn and his warriors, we experience the beauty and mystery of Ireland and come to love it as Osian does. It is with these stories and with the love Osian shows Patrick, that Patrick finally accepts that he is the Irish Padraig, God’s chosen one in Ireland, and he learns to love, accept and cherish that land and its people.

I find it hard to put in words just how magnificently beautiful this book is. Juilene Oborne-McKnight is an accomplished folklorist and storyteller and I personally think she used a bit of magic in taking stories that have been passed down orally for generations and putting them into words, giving us one of the best books I have ever read. Truly.
The stories Osian tells to Patrick remind me of the stories my Great-grandmother told me when I was young. Being Scot/Irish and coming from a family of some grand storytellers, this book took me back to some of the same places I adventured to when I would listen to my Great-grandmother, and also my Grandfather, tell me stories of Fionn Mac Cumail and his Fianna, the Milesians who battled and defeated the Tuatha De Danann, of Lugh the Silverhand and his marvelous armor and weapons, and of all the great heroes and Gods that have made Ireland the magical place it is.

I would suggest that you read more novels by Juilene Oborne-McKnight, not just this one which is actually her first. Her other books are Daughter of Ireland, Bright Sword of Ireland, Song of Ireland, and The Story We Carry in Our Bones; Irish History for Americans.
She has also published more than 200 articles, essays, and poems and her play Wild Swans of Ireland. As a traditional storyteller, she performs and sings in English and Irish at hundreds of festivals and events throughout the United States and Ireland so if you ever get a chance to see her, please do so.

[Fonch · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ladies and gentlemen WARNING ⚠️ THIS NOVEL CONTAINS A SEX SCENE BETWEEN A MIDDLE-AGED WOMAN AND A 15-YEAR-OLD BOY.

Ladies and gentlemen before I go to sleep the sleep of the righteous such, and as I promised you I will try to review a new book. The first thing I must say is that this is not part of this year's @goodreads challenge. My intention is to write a review of my favorite books, and this is one of them.
A long time ago my mother was subscribed to the @circulodelectores of the @editorialplaneta group although in reality it was my father, my sister, and I who bought the books instead of my mother. At that time the magazine Círculo de Lectores had a wide range of very rich and varied books (it was necessary to buy one to maintain the subscription), and my mother stayed for years. But the person picking up the orders retired, and his substitute didn't care whether we ordered books, or not. In fact, it seemed to bother her that we asked for books. In addition, the books were getting worse, and they were not difficult books to get in any bookstore. That is why we cease to be members. But among the many books we asked for a collection of historical novels curiously the best were those that were set in the Ancient Age "Escipión" by Ross Leckie https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... https://www.goodreads.com/series/9672... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... (who wrote a trilogy on Carthage). There was one of my sister's favorite novels @maggiesendra "Memoirs of Cleopatra" by Margaret George https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show..., and another that she also liked, and I was also "The Beacon at Alexandria" by Gillian Bradshaw. https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... (thank God it had nothing to do with Hypatia) about a woman physician in fourth-century Rome, who knew St. Athanasius, and Peter of Alexandria, and ended with the defeat of Adrianopolis (378). Gillian Bradshaw also wrote "Hawk May" about Sir Gawain https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1..., but it was not as good as "The Lighthouse of Alexandria". The other novels in the collection were a disaster "The Lord of the Cathars" by Hanney Alders https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... (which attempts to copy the Templars' formula in "Non Nobis/The Treasure of the Templars" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... with very good tastes, and very bad crusaders. There I began to see the duster to this Gnostic writer, and modernist. With "Non Nobis" I swallowed, and sneaked in with this impossible). Even worse was "Otoño Azteca" by Gary Jennings https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... (the second part of a Hispanic trilogy, and indigenist. In the first "Aztec" https://www.goodreads.com/series/4946... the story of the only Indian burned by the Inquisition the apostate, and renegade Juan Damasceno, is told. Jennings stands out for his Hispanophobia, anti-Catholicism, and for putting a lot of sex in his novels the latter does not have to be bad. Tremendously overrated author. In fact, he's one of the worst writers I've ever read. He had other novels about Marco Polo, and Theodoric the Amalo) a pure case of Anti-Spanish Black Legend in the style of Lew Wallace's "The Fair God" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2..., and the story of Prescott where the Spaniards are put as bad, and the Aztecs sacrifice, and as foreign as the Spaniards are oppressed. But does anyone really believe that the Spaniards could have conquered Mexico without the help of the other oppressed Mexican tribes, and sacrificed by these people? Edgar Mass's "The Dream of Philip II" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/7... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... was also very weak, and so was Max Gallo's biography of Napoleon https://www.goodreads.com/series/8762... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... that I did not finish reading it in its entirety, and that it inspired Napoleon's miniseries of Great Stories.
Of all these books cited a "Celtic Legend / I AM OF IRELAUNDE A NOVEL OF PATRICK AND OSIAN " was the one I liked the most told the story of Osian the bard, and son of Fionn McCumhaill of how he met St. Patrick, and took the opportunity to tell him the exploits of his father. Actually, this cycle was told by James McPherson https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/9... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show..., who despite having the admiration of Napoleon https://www.goodreads.com/author/show..., and Goethe https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... (this cycle of poems was a best seller for the time). He fell out with Dr. Samuel Johnson https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... and was soon accused that his Osian cycle was a forgery, and a fraud. Wikipedia said it may have been inspired by some Gaelic legends.
This novel confronts the Ireland represented by Osian, and the Christian incarnated by the future Saint Patrick (Patricius Magonus Suchattus). That he is discontented, because he still holds a grudge against the Irish, who in his youth made him a prisoner (in fact, he does not hide his disdain, and discontent with his faithful, and cannot bear to be called Padraig), and only when he hears the divine voice does he reluctantly decide to convert them. But seeing how he treats his Irish converts you see that the wound is not closed. In addition, he keeps a sin in his heart, because he did something that was not right, when he was a prisoner of the Irish (I will not say what it was so as not to blow up the plot), but it was a license of the author. When I read it I didn't care, but now I would feel worse, and I would consider it in bad taste. However, Juilenne Osborne-McKnight does not fall into a negative comparison of Christianity by idealizing Celtic paganism. The figures of both Osian and St. Patrick are treated with great respect. It is very interesting how we approach the figure of Fionn McCumhaill a legendary figure of Ireland at the height of King Arthur https://www.goodreads.com/author/show..., Beowulf https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5..., or Hrolf Kraki https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4... (It is interesting to compare this novel with Poul Anderson's rewriting of Hrolf Kraki https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... since as in this novel it is a pagan woman who told the story of Hrolf Kraki with the permission of the King, and the Bishop, because they thought that praising the virtues of their ancestors was good for the Christians of their kingdom. Christianity works as a water purifying element that maintains the best of paganism, and eliminates the bad of it). Fionn McCumhaill was quoted in Nelson DeMille's novel "The Cathedral" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... where an Irish terrorist group took the parishioners of St. Patrick's Cathedral hostage, and threatened to dynamite it, if their demands were not met. Through the poems of Osian we become familiar with the figure of his father, and St. Patrick helps him to understand Ireland, and to know the people he is going to convert (at first he does not want to listen to the stories of Osian, but an angel convinces him to do so). What I enjoyed most was the beginning when the orphan Fionn is instructed, and taken in by Brodhmall (a druid) who, although he actually calls her grandmother is not his grandmother but the sister of Cumhaill McTremoc (Fionn's father) who was defeated by King Conn, and killed by Goll McMorna. His mother Muirne is alive, but she is forbidden to speak to her son (as in the case of Ishiwakamaru, or Yoshitsune Minamoto), who learns from Brodmahll's knowledge instead the younger druid Liath will teach him to fight, hunt, and physical activities. Fionn is a boy who despite being 15 years old is blond, muscular measures two meters, and is very developed for his age does not know that his name is Fionn, and grows up with the name of Denma. Although after an incident with some boys in which he meets his loyal Caoilte McRonan (who will end up being his right hand), he fights with them, and then when he discovers the truth of his origins. Brodhmall realizes that the boy has matured, and has grown, and that he has already to set out on his way only away from Slieve Bloom, but Liath de Luachra considers that he is too young, and wants to keep him by his side, and will teach him a very valuable lesson. Just like the priestess of Isthar with the savage Enkidu in Gilgamesh https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/1... Liath will civilize Fionn, and thanks to her he will have his first sexual initiation, being Fionn's first relationship. Brodhmall "I know what you plan to teach my little warrior you think that by opening your thighs, and giving him pleasure you will be able to keep him, but you are wrong you will not be able to retain a 15-year-old boy who has been claimed by his destiny" (the importance of fate is the link with other sagas, and pre-Christian pagan cycles) although he does not object to teaching him love, and more than one person who loves him, but when Liath tells him that he will stay with them, he says to himself that although he grows old in Slieve Bloom, he is not so old as to know when a person has been called by his destiny. Of course this scene will motivate a discussion between St. Patrick, and Osian (at that time celibacy was not obligatory, but it is highly recommended to praise Jesus Christ, St. Paul of Tarsus https://www.goodreads.com/author/show..., and ratified in Councils. In fact, it is frowned upon for a priest to be married, or have sex.) Although the love scene between Fionn, and Liath is one of the most beautiful scenes I've ever read. Liath became one of my favorite fictional female characters, and this made me feel attracted to druids I think of the story of Baldurs Gates I, and Baldurs Gates II Shadows of Amn the romance between Jaheira, and Abdel Adrian, or the hero of Baldurs Gate whatever you want to call it https://www.goodreads.com/series/4190... . Four years later my character in Rebellion/Eternam fell in love with a druid, and I finally met love for the first, and only time in my life. That's why I feel so fond of this novel, and especially for this scene. Only for Liath this novel deserved to be reviewed (pity that the relationship was only utilitarian, and not loving. In fact, Liath will ask Fionn to look for a woman, but all in all this first relationship is the best of the three romances in this novel, and the one that marked me the most. Liath will do something very similar to what Chéri does by Colette https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/3... ). Later Fionn is claimed by his friend Caoilte McRonan, and begins his deed that surprisingly unlike does not culminate with the murder of Goll McMorna, but will reconcile with him, and make peace with him being one of his most loyal lieutenants. This shows the closeness of this way of acting with Christianity. Caoilte will fall in love with Aindir sent to spy on Fionn, but, although he wanted to abuse her. In the end he will fall in love. The one who pays the price is Goll McMorna's lieutenant Lia de Luachar (Alan), who steals some stones. Although the most beautiful romance is that of Liath with Fionn Juilenne Osborne-McKnight tells us how he meets his true love Sahbt a woman turned into a deer, and how he has Osian with her, but also how he loses her, and this leaves Fionn touched. Later and more mature will remarry Grainne, but as in the Arthurian cycle will be unfaithful to a Fenian named Diarmuid, and the King will commit the only ignoble act of his life to cast an ugly, or curse on Diarmuid who will die at the hands of a wild boar. But unlike other epic cycles, sin does not lead to destruction, but repentance and atonement can reverse those pernicious effects of sin. Although at first Osian is more sympathetic than St. Patrick, little by little the character fades, while St. Patrick matures, and reaffirms himself, and becomes the saint he will later be. The ending shows the new Christianity, and the old paganism. Osian, although he becomes friends with Patrick, falls into melancholy because he misses his own (he bears adversity worse than St. Patrick, and tends to fatalism Osian). I understand Osian's position in Eternam there was a friend of mine named Iruss of whom my friend Kunniotani had spoken to me very well I appreciated her very much, and admired her, but I had a feeling that no matter how much I appreciated her, and treated her well, she felt like she was like Osian because the people she was with were no longer there, And I think I missed them a lot, and I could never replace them.

When I quarreled with a person, and even though I tried to fix things, and discovered that it was impossible I fell into that melancholy, and I understood Iruss, and to avoid a greater evil I made the decision to leave Eternam for the good of the community. So I can empathize with all the characters. St. Patrick became one of the most beloved saints even by non-Catholics, and began an evangelization that not only converted Ireland, but kept Christianity alive in Europe. This story reminded me of Stephen R. Lawhead's Pendragon novels https://www.goodreads.com/series/4148... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... without falling into the anti-Romanism/anti-Catholicism he also shares with Thomas Cahill https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2... (it should be remembered that Patrick is Gallo-Roman as well). The book of Kells spoken of in "Byzantium" was https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/4... born in Ireland, and was put together by St. Columba (I recommend a wonderful Catholic World Report article on St. Columba, or Collum), and his disciples. To understand Irish Christianity I recommend the wonderful book "The Travels of Mailoc" by Santiago Cantera Montenegro https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show.... Regarding Fionn, and Liath Morgan Llywellyn the author of the "Druid" https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/5... (the sex magic thing was an excuse, to be able to put the horns on your friend) wrote a novel about him, he also wrote a novel about the Irish privateer Grace O'Malley https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8.... I like the sweetness, and softness that emanates this novel, which has a lot of pink novel more based on romance than epic themes, and warlike as if Brian O'Sullivan will do. https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... https://www.goodreads.com/series/1625... https://www.goodreads.com/series/2334... That is why my grade is (5/5). Only for a woman as fiery as Liath deserves it. Lyon Sprague de Camp, and Pratt Fletcher said that the protagonist of the novel translated by @juan_manuel_de_prada https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... "Wizard's Apprentice" and "The Apprentice Becomes a Magician" https://www.goodreads.com/series/5049... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... https://www.goodreads.com/author/show... that the Irish women who seemed to the protagonist very sweet and therefore liked that world. Here you will find that atmosphere that the protagonist was looking for. That is why my grade is (5/5).

[Vicki Moutoux · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a fascinating story, partly factual, of the man who was eventually known as St. Patrick, of his slavery in Ireland, his escape, and his eventual return as a man of God. In this story, after his return Padraig encounters Osian, a man from 200 years before, who tells him of the true nature of Ireland and of its rich history in a series of stories. Osian tries to persuade Padraig to see more clearly just what the Irish people are truly like and to see how his own work in Ireland can best be done.

[Andreas Schmidt · Rating 1 out of 5]

Perché mi ostino a comprare queste stronzate?
Questo romanzo ha innumerevoli difetti, non ultimi sono quelli strutturali e intrinseci all'ambientazione della trama. Ma procediamo con ordine. La storia narra di un'Irlanda del V secolo, in cui "Ossian" poeta del re "Fionn Mac Cumhail" (che da quanto ho capito fa il Re Artù irlandese) con velata allusione dell'autrice torna dal regno dei morti per narrare le gesta cavalleresche dei cavalieri di Fianna (l'esercito del re). La narrazione si svolge in prevalenza nel monastero, in cui Ossian arriva e trova rifugio. Qui il cantastorie inizia a narrare di un'epoca trascorsa. L'espediente narrativo del flashback ripetuto di per sé non è male, non è usato da molti (forse c'è un perché). Il problema che ho notato in molte autrici donne, è che tendono alla sdolcinatezza. A parte il fatto poi che la Osborne-McKnight non è in grado di scrivere romanzi. Anzitutto essendo un'Irlanda del V secolo, l'autrice ne parla come fossimo in età contemporanea (basta solo che si metta a parlare di DNA e microorganismi) - Matthew Pearl ne Il Circolo Dante è riuscito a riprodurre l'epoca ottocentesca in maniera quasi perfetta, non vedo perché gli altri scrittori debbano esserne esentati "perché di second'ordine". I dialoghi scricchiolano, sono scritti malissimo, un esempio (pag 94, ed. Piemme): "Sai parlare?" mi chiese la donna. Mi tornò la voce. "Ma certo che so parlare. Sono abba Magone Succato Patrizio di Sabhal Padraig" Mi sembrai uno stupido spocchioso. "Bene, Succato" ribatté. Mi sembrò che lo facesse appositamente di scegliere il mio nome di battesimo. "Il tuo amico non era morto. Viaggiava con la mente. Come vedi è tornato". Da queste righe si capisce quanto "cigolino" i dialoghi (e quello che ci sta in mezzo) quando li si legge. La donna che parla è una guaritrice, una druida, ma anche così mi pare abbastanza illogico che parli come una lobotomizzata. Sdolcinatezza femminile (pag. 202, ed. Piemme): ... La donna gli prese il braccio. Lo sollevò con cautela e posizionò le mani. All'improvviso tirò e l'osso fece un rumore agghiacciante. ... Io capisco che il romanzo sia in prima persona, pertanto chi vede l'azione rimane agghiacciato. Ma c'è modo e modo di scriverlo. Perché un osso dovrebbe fare un rumore agghiacciante? Qualunque rumore che ti mette i brividi è agghiacciante, allora metà dei rumori correlati ad azioni reali sono agghiaccianti. Io ci vedo 3 modi per scriverlo: 1) "la guaritrice sistemò l'osso" - nessuna descrizione, troppo informale, da referto medico. 2) "... all'improvviso tirò e sentii un rumore secco - o qualcosa di un po' più raffinato. 3) come fa l'autrice. Io preferisco il punto 2. E infine il commento finale dell'autrice: "Per quanto mi riguarda la linea tra questo mondo e l'altro mondo si fa sempre meno distinta più divento vecchia. Come direbbe Patrizio, ogni cosa è possibile grazie al Verbo. E io gli credo. frase incompresibile in gaelico Benedici, o Dio, il lavoro. Quindi, in sostanza, perché devo leggermi le cose scritte male di una bigotta grottescamente cristiana? Non ho niente contro la fede, ho qualcosa da ridire nel modo grottesco in cui l'autrice la schiaffa in un testo. E questa è pure una storica ... bah.

[Arja · Rating 2 out of 5]

2.5.
Probabilmente letto in inglese si alza a 3 stelle, la traduzione in mio possesso è abbastanza sgraziata.
Nota di colore e di demerito per chi ha scritto la sinossi in quarta di copertina, scambiando Britannia con Bretagna.
Sono combattuta al riguardo, l'atmosfera è resa bene, le storie di Fionn anche, si nota una ricerca e una grande volontà di trasmettere l'ambientazione.
Le vicende però sono narrate con distacco, non c'è molta tensione narrativa, non sono rimasta ancorata alla pagina o stupita dagli eventi che succedono.
Mi aspettavo di più, francamente, magari in lingua originale migliora la questione. Ma in italiano, un gran potere descrittivo e poca sostanza.

[Carmen8094 · Rating 3 out of 5]

3,5

[Sarah Allen · Rating 4 out of 5]

I Am of Irelaunde was recommended by my dear late friend, Vicki Moutoux. Our book group is reading it for our July 2018 meeting. My sorrow that Vicki will not be with us, eyes dancing, smile flashing, is immense.
The book combines the myth of St. Patrick of Ireland with the myths of the druids and the Irish who were alive at that time and in the history before St. Patrick. The author is a masterful story teller and I very much enjoyed the stories she spun about the Irish customs, beliefs, practices and religion and how St. Patrick learned that his Christian beliefs were not better than but rather parallel to the indigenous Irish ways.
I was left wondering at the end of the book how his life went on which must be one mark of a great novel.

[Kathleen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Account of St. Patrick and fables of Osian and Osian's father, Fion Mac Cumhail (Finn MacCool). Lots of Irish placenames and surnames: feis (fesh) celebration, fidnemid (fid nem eth)sacred grove, samhain (sow ain), Sidha (shee) The Other - also called Tuatha De Danaan - secretive hidden people who loved music and beauty. They were humorous and mischevious and never aged. Tir Nan Og (tee n'an og) place where thee is not sickness or death. Also called the western isle or blessed isle. Crom Cruach - huge stone surrounded by small stones eprestative of the angry, greedy God. Faed Fiada (fade fee ada) a chant used as a protective prayer.

[Glen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a spirited attempt at fable-making, using the barest of historical bones (the little we know of St. Patrick, and the less we know of the Fenian bard Osian) and a heaping helping of imagination to flesh out the story. There are some lovely passages, and the attempt to fuse the mythology of ancient Eire with the mythology of early Christendom is ambitious, but the descriptions and characters are a little dull and two-dimensional. Good but not great.

[Gina · Rating 5 out of 5]

This books has stuck with me since I first read it. I've read it several times since. I think the interweaving of Patrick's story with Osian's story is brilliantly done. There is so much to take away from this book, and the ending - literally, the very last line - is stunning. It will always be one of my favorites!

[Molly · Rating 5 out of 5]

A rich telling of the legends of Ireland... it sweeps you away.

[Melanie · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is why I look book groups - I would not have picked this book but really enoyed it! Fun Irish tale!!

[Francesco · Rating 3 out of 5]

L'idea di avere San Patrizio e Ossian che interagiscono e rileggono i miti irlandesi da due punti di vista differenti è molto intrigante. La resa non è perfetta ma è comuque un buon romanzo.

[Cristin · Rating 2 out of 5]

Too much broken Irish dialogue for my tired eyes, but the story was intriguing.

[Joseph Arce · Rating 4 out of 5]

Es un buen libro, en particular tengo un especial interés por temas relacionados con Irlanda etc.... es un buen libro de como San Patricio logró evangelizar al pueblo Irlandés sin destruir su cultura existente pero sobre todo sin derramar sangre como si sucedió en otros lados como en México por ejemplo. Tiene muchas referencia culturales de las cuales no tengo conocimiento previo, que de haber conocido previamente seguro lo hubiese entendido mejor, sin embargo es un libro bello, deja ver la pasión del pueblo Irlandes por sus costumbres y cultura, sin embargo también su apertura para aceptar el cristianismo... la neta no soy bueno dando reseñas, pero el libro está chido y punto, de lectura suave, relajada y cool.

[Coleen Dailey · Rating 5 out of 5]

A fantastic story of St. Patrick and Osian of the Fenians. The Fenians were warriors who existed long before Patrick arrived and Osian is the son of Finn McCool (current spelling not traditional) who returns from the land of the Others to help Patrick become more Irish. A wonderful tale.

[Kate Zimmerbaum · Rating 4 out of 5]

Fun read; many stories from Irish mythology woven into a speculative tale of how St. Patrick might have tried to reconcile his Christian beliefs with Celtic practices and religion.

[Kate · Rating 1 out of 5]

Meh. Not how I would picture Patrick.

[Paola Ranzini · Rating 5 out of 5]

Ho adorato questo libro! Meraviglioso!

[Melissa A Comer · Rating 2 out of 5]

Fiction. Folklore. Legend. History. Myth. The author's clarifying " Historical Background " should proceed the Glossary. While well written, it is easy to get lost in this tale.

[Lynn Gaulin]

I didn’t finish the book. Not what I expected and not into mythological fiction

[Antonella · Rating 4 out of 5]

Legenda e storia si incontrano nella mitologia d'Irlanda.

[Dana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Enjoyable read! And timely

[NonnaBaigia · Rating 3 out of 5]

Il romanzo narra di un percorso interiore e di passaggio tra le credenze popolari e tradizionali dell'Antica Irlanda e l'avanzare inarrestabile del Cristianesimo, narrati e vissuti dai due personaggi principali: Padrig e Ossian. Una storia sicuramente molto avvincente e interessante, legata alla realtà dei fatti (a quanto pare i personaggi sono esistiti veramente, se non nella realtà, quanto meno nella storia antica dell'Irlanda).
Ammetto che i primi capitoli sono stati molto difficili ed ero lì lì per chiudere il libro e passare ad altro. Il racconto sembrava non avere un filo logico e forse la scrittrice voleva presentare troppo in fretta tutti i personaggi, per cui mi sono ritrovata a dover leggere e rileggere le frasi per capici qualcosa. Comunque la storia piano piano si apre alla curiosità del lettore e nel giro di una cinquantina di pagine ha iniziato a piacermi, fermo restando che, a parer mio, la scrittrice ha una prosa ancora un pochino acerba.
Tutto sommato consiglio di leggerlo, soprattutto a chi è appassionato di letteratura storica e di miti nordici, di cui il libro è pregno e in questo non mi resta altro che fare i complimenti per la ricerca storica fatta dalla Osborne-Mc Knight, che risulta essere molto ricca, soprattutto nei passaggi che descrivono l'era dei druidi.

[MSJLibrary · Rating 4 out of 5]

This novel presents, in alternating chapters, the story of St. Patrick’s ministry in 5th century Ireland and the storyteller Ossian’s tales of the fianna, ancient Celtic heroes who helped to stabilize and unite the island that became known as Ireland. Those who know St. Patrick only as the saint who drove the snakes from Ireland will be surprised to learn his background. When he was 14, Patrick was kidnapped from England and taken as a slave to Ireland. After six years of bondage, Patrick escaped to England and lived there until he responded to God’s summons to return to the land he had learned to hate. The author’s inclusion of Ossian’s fianna tales educates both the reader and Patrick, who gradually comes to love the island and its people.

[Biblio_micky · Rating 1 out of 5]

Non lo consiglio. Ho faticato davvero molto a finirlo, pur essendo una vera amante delle leggende celtiche e irlandesi. Ma qui diventa tutto troppo.
E chiaramente è scritto da una fervente cattolica.
Non ho la capacità di analizzare quanto scritto in maniera storica, ma ho avuto comunque la necessità di prendermi lunghissime pause tra un capitolo e un altro.
Insomma, alla fine non ce la si fa più con 'sto Padraig. Più che il santo patrono dell'Irlanda, qui appare come colui che ha distrutto le tradizioni irlandesi.
Se amate l'Irlanda, NON leggete questo libro.

[Kathi · Rating 4 out of 5]

9/10
A well told tale--or really, a compilation of well-told tales. Osian, son of Fionn Mac Cumhail, mysteriously arrives at the rough monastery of Padraig (St. Patrick), and through his compelling narrative of his father and the other Fenians, helps Padraig come to understand (and love) the people of Eire. A blending of early Christianity and late Druidism, full of Celtic flavors. It made me long to return to Ireland for a visit!

[Amanda · Rating 5 out of 5]

So far I have read up to page 75...and am loving every word! While some of the language is old school and there is some Irish vernacular used which can cause it to be a little difficult. However Professor McKnight did a fantastic job creating a glossary int he beginning so that helps with not only definitions but pronunciation as well.

[Megan · Rating 4 out of 5]

Took a break from this book early on, because I was enthralled with another series, but I very much enjoyed this piece of fiction. Very clever construction and use of legend within the narrative. Being a Catholic of Irish heritage,I thought it was a neat way to get hints of what could be my history.

[Jonelle · Rating 4 out of 5]

A story within a story: mix of Irish legend and tales embedded with the Christian legend/history of Patrick.

A good book to read if you're going to spend any time in Ireland--it captures a bit of the ancient history and the Irish love of story-telling.