Raonaan and the mermaid A tale of old Ireland

This dreamy tale builds upon a medieval chronicle (as detailed in an informative afterword) to relate the story of Rónán ("roe-nawn"), a boy found unconscious on the beach by the monks of Bangor Abbey, Northern Ireland. When found, he is clasping a silver ring that he claims was given to him by a beautiful woman with golden hair who saved him from drowning. The woman foretold that Rónán would help her in return some day, and so it comes to pass. Cared for by the monks, the boy grows to become a master harpist whose music attracts "the princess turned mermaid" Líban years later, allowing him to free her from life adrift at sea. The peaceful ending involves a touch of early Christianity, but otherwise this tale focuses on the gift of generosity and the natural world around Ireland's chilly waters. Solano's pencil, watercolor, and digital-media art features soothing, earth-toned images of landscapes and characters and is a wonderful complement to McShane's poetic text. A great choice for St. Patrick's Day programs and bedtime reading.

A contemporary Irish seanchaí, or storyteller, uses a bit of historical text from 558 C.E.--the Annals of the Four Masters--to fashion a story about a wondrous creature from the sea. In this story, Brother Declan finds an unconscious boy on the rugged shore of Belfast Lough near Bangor Abbey, an early monastic community in Ireland. When the kind monks treat Rónán, he tells them of his rescue from the sea by "the lady with the golden hair." He explains that "she sang to me till we reached the shore," gave him the silver ring he was found clutching, marked with an L, and "told me that one day I would help her." As Rónán recovers, Brother Declan tells him ancient stories about selkies and singing mermaids, including Líban, who "roamed the lonesome seas" for three centuries. When the boy's health is fully restored, he works alongside the monks, but he is enchanted by music. Wise Brother Declan makes him a harp, and Rónán becomes a musician. Fishing one day, he plays his harp, and "a lonesome song came in reply." Líban surfaces and asks to be taken to the abbey, to be blessed by the abbot, who christens the mermaid Muirgen, "born of the sea." The painterly illustrations, with their natural browns, greens, and blues, are somber but fit well with the traditional tone of the story. All characters appear to be white. With this ode to music and mermaids, McShane deftly uses old stories to create a lyrical, satisfying new one. (author's note) Copyright (c) Kirkus Reviews, used with permission.