The Names Upon The Harp: Irish Myths And Legends
Told at feasts and gatherings by bards and storytellers, and handed down  from generation to generation for centuries, Irish myths and legends are full of  bold heroes, dastardly villains, fierce battles, and passionate romances. In  this thrilling collection, Marie Heaney provides a sampling of one of the  world's greatest literary traditions. She divides the stories into the three  cycles scholars have established for Irish literature: the Mythological cycle,  the Ulster cycle, and the Fenian cycle, providing a brief introduction to each.  From the "Children of Lir," in which a king's four children are turned into  swans by an angry stepmother, to "Bricriu's Feast," the bloody tale in which the  champion of Ulster is determined, to "Oisin in the Land of Youth," about a man  who is lured to the Land of Youth, only to return to his homeland centuries  later and become withered and ancient, these stories are riveting. Patrick James  Lynch's sweeping, dramatic illustrations reflect the glorious, beautiful,  horrifying, or sometimes downright gory nature of the myths and legends of  Ireland. If the nine tales themselves don't give readers delicious fodder for  nightmares, the pictures will! For the truly insatiable, a section with further  reading, source notes, and a pronunciation guide is provided. (Ages 9 and older)--Emilie Coulter