SATA
ENTRY TYPE:
WORK TITLE: Drop by Drop
WORK NOTES:
PSEUDONYM(S): Lewis, Shannon
BIRTHDATE: 12/3/1937
WEBSITE:
CITY: Dublin
STATE:
COUNTRY: Ireland
NATIONALITY: American
LAST VOLUME: SATA 297
http://us.macmillan.com/author/morganllywelyn http://historicalnovelsociety.org/reviews/cave-of-secrets/
RESEARCHER NOTES:
PERSONAL
Born Sally Snyder, December 3, 1937, in New York, NY; daughter of Joseph John and Henri Llywelyn Snyder; immigrated to Ireland, 1985; married Charles Winter (a professional pilot; surname legally changed to Llywelyn, 1981), January 1, 1957 (died March 25, 1985); children: John Joseph.
ADDRESS
CAREER
Writer. Fashion model and dance instructor in Dallas, TX, 1954-56; secretary in Denver, CO, 1956-59; riding instructor in Denver, 1959-61; horse trainer and riding instructor, 1961-76; writer, 1974—. Patron of animal shelters.
MEMBER:National League of American Penwomen, Authors League of America, Authors Guild, Fantasy and Science Fiction Writers Association, Gaelic Arts League, St. Brendan Society, Mensa, National Geographic Society, Irish Society of Pittsburgh.
AWARDS:Women’s U.S. equestrian high jump record, 1953; best novel award, National League of American Penwomen, 1983, for The Horse Goddess; Cultural Heritage Award, 1979, for Lion of Ireland; named Woman of the Year, Irish Heritage and Cultural Committee, 1986; Poetry in Prose Award, Galician Society of University of Santiago de Compostela, and Award of Merit, Celtic League, both 1984, both for Bard: The Odyssey of the Irish; Bisto Award for Excellence in Children’s Literature and Reading Association of Ireland Biennial Award for Best Book for Children, both 1992, both for Strongbow; Bisto Award for Excellence in Children’s Literature, 1993, for Brian Boru: Emperor of the Irish; Best Foreign Language Novel, Academie Celtique, for Druids; Irish-American Heritage Award, 1998, for 1916: A Novel of the Irish Rebellion; named Exceptional Celtic Woman of the Year, Celtic Women International, Ltd., 1999; Literary and Cultural Achievement Award, Nation’s Capital Feis.
WRITINGS
Work represented in anthologies, including Irish Magic, Pinnacle, 1995, and Irish Magic II, Kensington, 1997.
Lion of Ireland was filmed by Boruma Productions for release in 1986. Grania, She-King of the Irish Seas was adapted as a musical and produced in Chicago, IL, 2006. Several of Llywelyn’s novels have been optioned for film.
SIDELIGHTS
Born in the United States but now returned to the land of her Irish forbears, Morgan Llywelyn shares the rich history of the Celts and of Ireland in her novels for both children and adults. While her “Irish Century” novels and the novels Lion of Ireland: The Legend of Brian Boru and After Rome: A Novel of Celtic Britain are geared for adults, Llywelyn steeps younger generations in Irish history through the pages of her novels Brian Boru: Emperor of the Irish, Strongbow: The Story of Richard and Aoife, and Cave of Secrets. She also ranges into mythology in her collaborative novel Etruscans: Beloved of the Gods, while fantasy elements are incorporated into The Elementals and her two-volume “Arcana” series, the latter a collaboration with Michael Scott that chronicles a boy’s efforts to battle the forces of chaos in a medievalesque world. “By writing real history in a fictional style I hope to make it familiar and interesting territory, full of lessons that are applicable today,” Llywelyn once commented.
The Celts were early Indo-Europeans who populated much of Western Europe, Spain, and the British Isles, and bringing Celtic history to life has been the main thrust of Llywelyn’s writing career. Her fascination with her Celtic heritage inspired her first novel, The Wind from Hastings, which is based on Prince Griffith Llewellyn of Wales and his influence on the Battle of Hastings in 1066. She also fictionalizes historical characters in The Horse Goddess and Lion of Ireland. Based on the life of a Celtic priestess and horsewoman, The Horse Goddess follows Epona’s rise to the level of a goddess after she shows her people how to tame and use horses for both transportation and agriculture.
Brian Boru, a tenth-century Irish king whose life has become legend, united his disjointed kingdom against the Norsemen and ensured his people a temporary prosperity. In portraying Brian as someone able to avoid the reckless and bloodthirsty ways of his ancestors, Lion of Ireland became a best seller in Ireland in addition to earning Llewellyn many fans in North America. Writing in the Washington Post, Maude McDaniel praised the novel as an “authentic tale about a genuine hero of a kind alien to today’s rock-hard young and all but forgotten by modern adults.”
Llywelyn’s novel Pride of Lions serves as a sequel to Lion of Ireland. Brian Boru has met his death in battle, leaving his fifteen-year-old son Donough to aspire to the throne. As Donough faces competition from his brother Teigue, his kingship is also threatened by his manipulative and untrustworthy mother. According to a Publishers Weekly contributor, in Pride of Lions “Llywelyn tells a strong story distinguished by its psychological depth and by [her] knowledge of ancient Irish history.”
In Druids and The Greener Shore: A Novel of the Druids of Hibernia, companion novels, Llewelyn chronicles Caesar’s Gallic Wars from the viewpoint of the losers—the Celts. Set mostly in Gaul (the area now known as France), Druids centers on Ainvar, a young orphan training to be a druid, a member of the educated class. When Ainvar becomes chief druid to the Celtic prince Vercingetorix, the two strive to build a united front among the warring Celtic tribes so that they will be strong enough to repulse an invading Roman force. In The Greener Shore Ainvar escapes the Roman legions and makes it to Ireland, where he establishes a new Celtic society. Sybil Steinberg, writing in Publishers Weekly, credited Llywelyn for “imaginatively and vividly” portraying druid rituals and daily life in Druids, while Booklist critic Patricia Monaghan praised The Greener Shore as a “highly readable tale [that] offers unforgettable women characters.”
After Rome takes places as the Roman Empire begins to fall and follows the Celts on the isle of Britannia. The Romans now abandon their occupation of the island and return to their homeland, leaving the Celts to rebuild their shattered society. Cousins Dinas and Cadogan serve as their clan’s leaders, and focus switches between them as they work to unite the island people. Dinas travels the realm to bring native Britons together, while Cadogan remains at home and rebuilds the village’s infrastructure. The cousins’ adventures conclude with an open-ended denouement that hints at the possibility of a sequel.
Reviewing After Rome , Booklist correspondent Flanagan stated that “the masterful Llywelyn moves across the Irish Sea,” and a Kirkus Reviews contributor wrote that the novel “is full of the rich ‘stuff’ of this historical period.” On the Historical Novel Society website, a reviewer commended After Rome, declaring that “Llywelyn deftly captures the instability and brutality of life in post-Roman Britain in this wonderful book.”
Llywelyn entertains middle-grade readers in Cave of Secrets , which is set in seventeenth-century Ireland and introduces thirteen-year-old Tom Flynn. Tom’s father, a hard-working farmer, lavishes his daughters with gifts while alternately ignoring and abusing his son. Meanwhile, his sickly mother spends most of her time in bed. Leaving his home in West Cork, Tom flees to the caves at Roaringwater Bay, where he meets fellow teen outcast Donal, who believes that his father is actually a king. Donal, Donal’s younger sister Maura, and Tom remain united when their respective parents become embroiled in a political scandal. Donna Miller, writing in Voice of Youth Advocates, noted of Cave of Secrets that “Llywelyn knows of the country and historical timeframe that she describes, and this, coupled with her writing skills, make this an appealing tale for a broad audience.”
Beginning Llywelyn’s “Irish Century” series, 1916: A Novel of the Irish Rebellion focuses on the Easter Rebellion, in which Irish nationals tried unsuccessfully to overthrow British rule. After Ned Halloran survives the sinking of the ocean liner Titanic, he is swept up in a tide of patriotic fervor by his school’s headmaster, a political rebel. In 1921: The Great Novel of the Irish Civil War, Ned navigates the events between 1917 and 1922, although Llewellyn’s focus moves to his friend, journalist Henry Mooney. Told from the perspective of Ned’s daughter Ursula, 1949: A Novel of the Irish Free State ranges in time from the 1920s partition separating the Catholic Free State in the south from Protestant Northern Ireland to the 1949 establishment of the Irish Republic. In 1972: A Novel of Ireland’s Unfinished Revolution Llywelyn ranges from 1950 to Bloody Sunday in 1972 and the beginning of what became known as the “Troubles” as Ursula’s son Barry Halloran, a photographer, exchanges his camera for a gun after joining the Irish Republican Army. Closing the series, 1999: A Novel of the Celtic Tiger and the Search for Peace finds disarmament talks leading to reconciliation at the close of the twentieth century, chronicled by Barry in his work as a film journalist.
Writing in Booklist, Margaret Flanagan recommended 1916 as “first-rate historical fiction that will appeal to anyone with an interest in Ireland’s tragic past,” while a Publishers Weekly contributor praised it as “Llywelyn’s best work yet.” Appraising 1949 for Publishers Weekly, a contributor praised Llywelyn’s “well-realized characters and a vivid history [that] make for richly gratifying reading.” A Kirkus Reviews critic dubbed 1972 an historical page turner in which “the years whistle by with joy and gunpowder,” while in Booklist Brad Hooper cited the author’s “ability to create characters from a previous time who possess contemporary vibrancy and viability.” As a Publishers Weekly critic noted of 1999, Llywelyn “is meticulous in cataloguing the wartime atrocities committed by both sides,” and Flanagan concluded of the “Irish Century” saga that it “constitutes a masterful fictional overview of the trials and tribulations of … [modern] Ireland.”
Llywelyn’s love for the Celts has carried over into her personal life: As a young woman, she lived, Celtic-style, with her extended family in a 200-year-old former inn. Discussing her passion for the past, she told Christian Science Monitor interviewer Jane Spitzer: “Maybe somebody needs to be writing about Celtic history these days—about courage and heroes in a real sense, not about Arthur, who is mythological, but about the reality of courage and achievement.” “These are qualities inherent in every ethnic group,” she added, and the Celts are “so much a part of all we have and see in Europe and America today. The Celts are the free world.”
In 2015 Llywelyn published Only the Stones Survive. The Túatha Dé Danann are fairy-like beings who are in tune with nature. Their peace is interrupted by the invasion of the Gaels, the Children of Milesios, who are following their own legends about finding an island full of riches easy for the taking. As the Gaels begin slaughtering the population, young Joss must unite the survivors and bring them to safety away from the violence the Gaels have brought with them. In their moment of need, though, they find they have special powers.
Writing in Reviewer’s Bookwatch, Susan Bethany noted that “Llywelyn weaves Irish mythology, historical elements, and ancient places in the Irish landscape to create a riveting tale of migration, loss, and transformation in Only the Stones Survive.” Reviewing the novel in BookLoons, Hilary Williamson reasoned that “though the Túatha Dé Danann are almost too good to be true in this novel, it is one that I enjoyed very much and recommend to you as well.” Williamson added that it is “memorable and absorbing.” Writing in Open Letters Monthly, Steve Donoghue suggested that “the sect of her fans that prefers her more myth-shaded works will love Only the Stones Survive and want more stories of these ‘Children of the Light.’” In a review in the Historical Novel Society website, Kristen McQuinn remarked that “this beautiful novel is highly recommended for lovers of Irish mythology, magical realism, and those who hold out hope that they may themselves be descendants of the ancient noble blood.”
Llywelyn published Drop by Drop in 2018. “The Change” is an unidentified event that leads to the dissolving of everything plastic. Society is left to fend for itself without use of any plastic products, resulting in much chaos amid small islands of innovation. The story centers largely on the small town of Sycamore River, showing how some are handling the situation better than others. While some are seeking answers about how this catastrophe could happen, others look to the past for solutions to their immediate problems.
A Publishers Weekly contributor commented that the storyline “feels incomplete, and readers are left to wait for a conclusion or a climax–or anything–to happen.” A contributor to the Geeky Bibliophile blog concluded: “I found Drop by Drop to be a fascinating story, with a unique concept that was very enjoyable to read. It perfectly illustrates how heavily dependent we are on plastics and technologies in every area of our lives, and how lost society would be without all those creature comforts we’re so accustomed to having.” A contributor to For Winter Nights – a Bookish Blog observed that “there’s a message in here clearly as we’re shown what life can be like when plastic oozes out of our lives. How it can be catastrophic, apocalyptic even…. But there’s nothing preachy about the message. This is a thoroughly entertaining and absorbing read from start to finish.”
BIOCRIT
PERIODICALS
Blackbird, June 22, 1997, review of Strongbow: The Story of Richard and Aoife, p. 58.
Booklist, May 15, 1993, review of The Elementals, pp. 1678, 1682; October 15, 1993, Gary Young, review of Strongbow, p. 432; February 1, 1994, review of Finn Mac Cool, p. 979; February 15, 1995, Patricia Monaghan, review of Irish Magic, p. 1059; March 15, 1995, Sally Estes, review of Silverhand, p. 1313; March 1, 1996, review of Pride of Lions, pp. 1121, 1127; March 1, 1997, Patricia Monaghan, review of Irish Magic II, p. 1110; April 15, 1998, Margaret Flanagan, review of 1916: A Novel of the Irish Rebellion, p. 1428; May 1, 1998, review of Ireland: A Graphic History, p. 1511; March 15, 2001, Margaret Flanagan, review of 1921: The Great Novel of the Irish Civil War, p. 1354; February 15, 2005, Brad Hooper, review of 1972: A Novel of Ireland’s Unfinished Revolution, p. 1061; April 15, 2006, Patricia Monaghan, review of The Greener Shore: A Novel of the Druids of Hibernia, p. 33; February 1, 2008, Margaret Flanagan, review of 1999: A Novel of the Celtic Tiger and the Search for Peace, p. 24; February 15, 2010, Patricia Monaghan, review of Brendan, p. 32; February 15, 2013, Margaret Flanagan, review of After Rome: A Novel of Celtic Britain, p. 35.
Bulletin of the Center for Children’s Books, July 1, 2013, Kate Quealy-Gainer, review of Cave of Secrets, p. 518.
Christian Science Monitor, December 2, 1983, Jane Stewart Spitzer, reviews of Lion of Ireland and The Horse Goddess, both p. B3; December 27, 1983, review of The Wind from Hastings, p. 20.
Kirkus Reviews, April 15, 1993, review of The Elementals, p. 493; February 1, 1994, review of Finn Mac Cool, p. 90; June 1, 1995, review of Brian Boru, p. 782; January 1, 1996, review of Pride of Lions, p. 16; April 1, 1996, review of Strongbow, p. 533; February 15, 1998, review of 1916, p. 216; March 15, 2000, review of Etruscans: Beloved of the Gods, p. 343; February 1, 2005, review of 1972, p. 149; December 15, 2012, review of After Rome; May 1, 2013, review of Cave of Secrets.
Kliatt, July 1, 1994, review of The Elementals, p. 16; May 1, 1997, review of Pride of Lions, p. 8; September 1, 2004, Ann Hart, review of 1949: A Novel of the Irish Free State, p. 23.
Library Journal, June 15, 1993, review of The Elementals, p. 104; July, 1996, review of Silverlight, p. 170; February 15, 1998, review of 1916, p. 170; March 15, 1999, Denise J. Stankovics, review of The Essential Library for Irish Americans, p. 70; April 15, 2000, Jackie Cassada, review of Etruscans, p. 126.
Locus, August 1, 1992, review of The Last Prince of Ireland, p. 54; February 1, 1993, review of Druids, p. 55; July, 1993, review of The Elementals, p. 44; April 1, 1994, reviews of Finn Mac Cool, p. 31, and Bard: The Odyssey of the Irish, p. 49.
Publishers Weekly, December 21, 1990, review of Druids, p. 46; March 9, 1992, review of The Last Prince of Ireland, p. 48; April 26, 1993, review of The Elementals, p. 61; February 28, 1994, review of Finn Mac Cool, p. 74; March 13, 1995, review of Silverhand, p. 64; February 5, 1996, review of Pride of Lions, p. 77; February 10, 1997, review of Irish Magic II, p. 69; February 16, 1998, review of 1916, p. 204; April 24, 2000, review of Etruscans, p. 66; January 15, 2001, review of 1921, p. 51; March 3, 2003, review of 1949, p. 54; February 13, 2006, review of The Greener Shore, p. 66; December 3, 2007, review of 1999, p. 51; December 21, 2009, review of Brendan, p. 39; May 7, 2018, review of Drop by Drop, p. 52.
Reviewer’s Bookwatch, February 1, 2016, Susan Bethany, review of Only the Stones Survive.
School Librarian, May 1, 1995, review of Ireland, p. 81.
School Library Journal, December 1, 1994, review of Finn Mac Cool, p. 144.
Voice of Youth Advocates, December 1, 1993, review of The Elementals, p. 311; December 1, 1995, review of Brian Boru, p. 304; August 1, 1996, review of Strongbow, p. 157; June 1, 2013, Donna Miller, review of Cave of Secrets, p. 62.
Washington Post, February 21, 1980, Maude McDaniel, review of Lion of Ireland.
ONLINE
BookLoons, http://www.bookloons.com/ (September 16, 2018), Hilary Williamson, review of Only the Stones Survive.
For Winter Nights – a Bookish Blog, https://forwinternights.wordpress.com/ (July 5, 2018), review of Drop by Drop.
Geeky Bibliophile, https://thegeekybibliophile.wordpress.com/ (May 25, 2018), review of Drop by Drop.
Historical Novel Society website, http://historicalnovelsociety.org/ (January 29, 2014), review of After Rome; (February 1, 2016), Kristen McQuinn, review of Only the Stones Survive.
O’Brien Books website, http://www.obrien.ie/ (January 29, 2007), “Morgan Llywelyn Describes the Adventure of Writing Historical Fiction.”
Open Letters Monthly, https://www.openlettersmonthly.com/ (January 6, 2016), Steve Donoghue, review of Only the Stones Survive.
Morgan Llywelyn is the New York Times bestselling author of Lion of Ireland and many other novels chronicling the Celts and Ireland, from earliest times to the present day. She has won numerous literary awards, was named Exceptional Celtic Woman of the Year, is a founding member of the Irish Writers' Centre, and is a past chairman of the Irish Writers' Union. Her critically acclaimed novels of both history and mythology have been translated into many languages.
Morgan Llywelyn
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This article is about the Irish author. For the retired senior British Army officer, see Morgan Llewellyn.
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Morgan Llywelyn
Born
Sally Snyder
December 3, 1937 (age 80)
New York City, U.S.
Occupation
Writer
Nationality
Irish, American
Period
1978-
Genre
Historical fantasy, historical fiction
Subject
Irish history
Morgan Llywelyn (born December 3, 1937) is an American-Irish historical fantasy, historical fiction, and historical non-fiction writer. Her fiction has received several awards and has sold more than 40 million copies, and she herself is recipient of the 1999 Exceptional Celtic Woman of the Year Award from Celtic Women International.
Contents
1
Biography
2
Bibliography
2.1
Novels and short fiction collections
3
Awards
4
References
5
External links
Biography[edit]
Llywelyn was born Sally Snyder in New York in 1937. In her teens, Llywelyn moved to the Dallas area, where she developed a love of horses. By the age of 16, Llywelyn was competing in professional horse shows across the United States. By age 18, she modeled for Neiman Marcus and Arthur Murray. After 15 years of experience as a horse trainer and instructor, she tried out for and narrowly missed making the 1976 United States Olympic Team in Dressage. She was instead shortlisted, missing the cut off score by .05 percent.[1]
With her mother's encouragement and a successfully published article on horse training, she refocused her efforts in tracing the Llywelyn family history and eventually made a career out of writing historical novels that allowed the exploration of her Celtic roots.[2] In reference to this career change, Llywelyn had this to say:
"I have a strong strain of Welsh on my mother's side, which does indeed go back to Llywelyn ap Iorwerth. And Llywelyn the Great! (We have the proven genealogy from the College of Heralds.) She was very proud of her royal Welsh connection. That is why she was so interested in genealogy in the first place, and inspired me to get involved as well ... leading in turn to THE WIND FROM HASTINGS. But both my parents were predominantly Irish – my father totally so – and I spent half the years of my childhood here. So I have always been much more interested in Ireland and its history and legends."[1]
Llywelyn has received several awards for her works. She received the Novel of the Year Award from the National League of American Penwomen for her novel, The Horse Goddess, as well as the Woman of the Year Award from the Irish-American Heritage Committee for Bard: The Odyssey of the Irish. The latter award was presented to her by Ed Koch, then-mayor of New York City.[2]
Although Llywelyn's grandparents have their roots in Ireland, it was only after the death of her parents and her husband in 1985 that she relocated to Ireland. Llywelyn now lives outside Dublin and has become an Irish citizen.[2]
In 1990, Llywelyn began her focus on writing books geared for younger readers. These works started with Brian Boru: Emperor of the Irish, for which she won an Irish Children's Book Trust Bisto Award in 1991, and includes other titles, such as Strongbow: The Story of Richard and Aoife, for which she won a Bisto Award in the Historical Fiction category, 1993 and the Reading Association of Ireland Award, 1993, and Star Dancer which departed from her usual Celtic topic and was centered on her experiences with Dressage. Further works include The Vikings in Ireland, an exploration of when the Norsemen arrived in Ireland and Pirate Queen, a younger reader's version of the story of Grace O'Malley, told through letters from Granuaile to her beloved son.[2]
Bibliography[edit]
Novels and short fiction collections[edit]
1978 The Wind from Hastings
1980 Lion of Ireland
1983 The Horse Goddess
1984 Bard: The Odyssey of the Irish
1984 Personal Habits
1986 Grania: She-King of the Irish Seas
1987 Xerxes
1989 The Isles of the Blest
1989 Red Branch
1990 Brian Boru: Emperor of the Irish
1989 On Raven's Wing
1991 Druids
1992 The Last Prince of Ireland: A Novel
1992 O'Sullivan's March
1993 The Elementals
1993 Star Dancer
1994 Finn Mac Cool
1995 Cold Places
1995 Ireland: A Graphic History (with Michael Scott)
1995 Silverhand (Arcana, Book 1; with Michael Scott)
1996 19 Railway Street (with Michael Scott)
1996 The Vikings in Ireland
1996 Strongbow: The Story of Richard & Aoife
1996 Silverlight (Arcana, Book 2; with Michael Scott)
1996 Pride of Lions
1998 1916, A Novel Of the Irish Rebellion
1999 The Essential Library for Irish Americans
2000 Etruscans (with Michael Scott)
2000 A Pocket History of Irish Rebels
2000 The Earth Is Made Of Stardust
2001 1921, The War for Independence
2001 Granuaile, The Pirate Queen
2003 1949, The Irish Republic
2005 1972, A Novel of Ireland's Unfinished Revolution
2006 The Greener Shore: A Novel of the Druids of Hibernia
2006 Pirate Queen
2006 The Young Rebels
2006 The History of Irish Rebels
2006 The Vikings in Ireland
2008 1999 - A Novel of the Celtic Tiger and the Search for Peace
2010 Brendan - The Remarkable Life and Voyage of Brendan of Clonfert
2013 After Rome
2014 1014: Brian Boru & the Battle for Ireland
2016 Only the Stones Survive
Awards[edit]
Year
Title
Award
Wind From Hastings
Alternate Main Selection, Doubleday Book Club
Used as a history text by Little Rock High School, Little Rock, Arkansas
Lion of Ireland
New York Times Bestseller
Time Magazine Bestseller
Cultural Heritage Award, Washington, D.C.
Award of Merit, Texas Booksellers Assoc.
Literary Guild Selection
The Horse Goddess
Best Novel, Biennial Award, League of American Pen women
Best Novel for Young Ad, American Library Association
Historical Novel of the Year, RT Times awards
Book-of-the-Month Club Selection
Bard: The Odyssey Of The Irish
Poetry in Prose Award, Galician Society, University of Santiago de Compostela
Award of Merit, The Celtic League
Xeres: Past & Present : Non-fiction Biography
Part of The World Leaders Series
Commissioned by City College of New York, with introduction by Arthur M. Schlesinger, Jr..
Red Branch
Selection of Quality Paperback Book Club
Brian Boru: Emperor Of The Irish
Winner of Bisto Award for Excellence in Children's Literature
Druids
Best Foreign Language Novel, Academie Celtique
1991
The Last Prince of Ireland
History book Club International selection
1993
Strongbow: The Story of Richard and Aoife
Winner of Bisto Award for Excellence in Children's Literature
Winner of Reading Association of Ireland Biennial Award for Best Book for Children
Finn Mac Cool
Selection of Quality Paperback Book Club
1996
Cold Places
100 Best Books for Children, Britain
Pride of Lions
Literary Guild Selection
1916: A Novel Of The Irish Rebellion
Barnes & Noble national bestseller list
Irish-American Heritage Award
Historian and novelist Morgan Llywelyn was born in New York City, but after the death of her husband and parents in 1985 returned to Ireland to take up citizenship in the land of her grandparents and make her permanent home there.
After making the shortlist for the United States Olympic Team in Dressage in 1975, but not making the team itself, she turned to writing historical novels exploring her Celtic roots. The most successful of these was Lion of Ireland - The Legend of Brian Boru, which was published in 1980 and has sold into the millions of copies.
She received the Novel of the Year Award from the National League of American Penwomen for her novel The Horse Goddess as well as the Woman of the Year Award from the Irish-American Heritage Committee for Bard: The Odyssey of the Irish. The latter award was presented to her by Ed Koch, then-mayor of New York City.
Morgan is also the author of A Pocket History of Irish Rebels for the O'Brien Pocket Books Series.
In 1990 Morgan Llywelyn turned to writing for the young reader, with the publication of Brian Boru, Emperor of the Irish, a biography in the novelistic style, by The O'Brien Press, Dublin. For this book she won an Irish Children's Book Trust Bisto Award in 1991. Her second book for the young reader is Strongbow, The Story of Richard and Aoife (The O'Brien Press) 1992, for which she won a Bisto Award in the Historical Fiction category, 1993 and the Reading Association of Ireland Award, 1993. Her third novel for young readers, entitled Star Dancer, (The O'Brien Press) was drawn from her experience of the world of showjumping and dressage. She has also written The Vikings in Ireland, an exploration of what actually happened when the Norsemen landed in Ireland.
Morgan's latest book for children is Pirate Queen, the story of Grace O'Malley, told partly through letters from Granuaile to her beloved son. It is a thrilling tale of adventure that brings this unorthodox and inspiring historical figure to life.
Drop by Drop: Step by Step, Book 1
Publishers Weekly. 265.19 (May 7, 2018): p52+.
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2018 PWxyz, LLC
http://www.publishersweekly.com/
Full Text:
Drop by Drop: Step by Step, Book 1
Morgan Llywelyn. Tor, $25.99 (320p) ISBN 9780-7653-8866-7
The catalyst of this unsatisfying near-future narrative, the first SF novel from fantasist Llywelyn (Lion of Ireland), is an unidentified event--referred to as "the Change"--that causes plastic items to dissolve. The post-plastics era of uncertainty is mirrored in the small town of Sycamore River, situated somewhere in the U.S. Llywelyn attempts to show how the residents' lives are affected by the Change, but the narrative doesn't always ring true. Jack Reese, a world traveler with unusual skills who feels the need to get to the bottom of every crisis, starts to think about settling down. Unhappy real estate agent Nell Bennett is more worried about her marriage falling apart than her house doing the same. Industrial chemist Gerry Delmonico only briefly complains about losing his job before happily becoming the town's horse-and-buggy driver. Many others simply go on with business as usual. The intense focus on Sycamore River's relatively affluent and resourceful residents limits the story's scope, and the dialogue drags, partly because the characters are discussing complex scientific concepts and partly because everyone sounds the same. The story feels incomplete, and readers are left to wait for a conclusion or a climax--or anything--to happen. (June)
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
"Drop by Drop: Step by Step, Book 1." Publishers Weekly, 7 May 2018, p. 52+. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A538858691/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=9f2ec66e. Accessed 6 Aug. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A538858691
Only the Stones Survive
Susan Bethany
Reviewer's Bookwatch. (Feb. 2016):
Copyright: COPYRIGHT 2016 Midwest Book Review
http://www.midwestbookreview.com
Full Text:
Only the Stones Survive
Morgan Llywelyn
Forge
c/o Tor/Forge Books
175 Fifth Avenue, New York, NY 10010
www.tor-forge.com
9780765337924, $24.99, HC, 304pp, www.amazon.com
Synopsis: For centuries the Tuatha De Danann lived in peace on an island where time flowed more slowly and the seasons were gentle--until that peace was shattered by the arrival of invaders. The Gaels, the Children of Milesios, came looking for easy riches and conquest, following the story of an island to the west where their every desire could be granted. They had not anticipated that it would already be home to others, and against the advice of their druids, they begin to exterminate the Tuatha De Danann. After a happy and innocent childhood, Joss was on the cusp of becoming a man when the Gaels slaughtered the kings and queens of the Tuatha De Danann. Left without a mother and father, he must find a way to unite what is left of his people and lead them into hiding. But even broken and scattered, Joss and his people are not without strange powers.
Morgan Llywelyn weaves Irish mythology, historical elements, and ancient places in the Irish landscape to create a riveting tale of migration, loss, and transformation in Only the Stones Survive.
Critique: Once again Morgan Llywelyn demonstrates her complete mastery of the heroic fantasy genre with "Only the Stones Survive". A riveting use of Irish mythology, Irish history, and Irish locations makes "Only the Stones Survive" perhaps her best work to date. Indeed, for those who have never before experienced her gift for memorable storytelling, "Only the Stones Survive" will compel them to seek out all of her novels. Very highly recommended and certain to be an enduringly popular addition to community library collections, it should be noted for personal reading lists that "Only the Stones Survive" is also available in a Kindle edition ($12.99) and in a complete and unabridged MP3 CD format (Tantor Audio, 9781494566678, $29.99).
Susan Bethany
Reviewer
Source Citation (MLA 8th Edition)
Bethany, Susan. "Only the Stones Survive." Reviewer's Bookwatch, Feb. 2016. General OneFile, http://link.galegroup.com/apps/doc/A444913733/ITOF?u=schlager&sid=ITOF&xid=4b2d5fad. Accessed 6 Aug. 2018.
Gale Document Number: GALE|A444913733
Only the Stones Survive by Morgan Llywelyn
Order: USA Can
Forge, 2016 (2016)
Hardcover, CD, e-Book
Reviewed by Hilary Williamson
Here's a lovely, memorable and absorbing tale (a blend of fiction and fantasy) of the famed Túatha Dé Danann, the fairies of Irish legend, whose island of Ierne was one in which time flowed strangely and the seasons gently.
Only the Stones Survive opens on a battle in which the leaders and warriors of the Children of Light are slaughtered by the invading Milesians. One survivor crawls across the battlefield seeking his beloved wife and when he finds her, the 'cry he gave was enough to shatter the canceled stars.'
Then we are introduced to Elgolai na Starbird who grew up as Joss, only son of a noble family of the Túatha Dé Danann, whose clans were formed of a community of extended families. From an early age, Joss was taught by the Dagda, who (rather like Yoda) rarely gave straight answers. But his idyllic childhood ended abruptly with the coming of war.
Gaels bring it, Milesians led by six brother princes (including the druid Amergin) who fled the Iberian Peninsula in search of new lands. They are guided to Ierne by Phoenician Sakkar. Though the Túatha Dé Danann could have prevented their landing, Amergin's harp enchants them and compassion for the many children on the boats holds their hands.
There are early signs of the Túatha Dé Danann's talents, as when they heal Sakkar's crippled shoulder and use the Green Wave against the Gael's fleet. But they refuse to use their most powerful weapons, Earthkillers, horrors which would make them 'horrible too'. And so they die. All this triggers Joss's own growth and talent early.
Joss ends up leading 'a straggle of survivors' west, where descendants with 'dreams in their eyes' will repopulate the island. And he tells us that 'Not only the stones survive.' Though the Túatha Dé Danann are almost too good to be true in this novel, it is one that I enjoyed very much and recommend to you as well.