The Last of the High Kings
JJ has grown-up and has a family of his own, he's married to Aisling and has four children. All his children are special in their own way but Jenny has always lived by her own rules. She forgets to go to school a lot, doesn't like wearing shoes and spends a lot of time on the sto... read full description below.
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Full details for this title
| Interest Age |
12-15 years |
| Reading Age |
12-15 years |
| NBS Text |
Children's Fiction |
| ONIX Text |
Children/juvenile |
|
| Number of Pages |
368 |
| Dimensions |
Width: 131mm
Height: 195mm
Spine: 24mm |
| Weight |
250g |
|
| Dewey Code |
823.914 |
| Catalogue Code |
34137 |
Description of this Book
JJ has grown-up and has a family of his own: he's married to Aisling and has four children. All his children are special in their own way but Jenny has always lived by her own rules. She forgets to go to school a lot, doesn't like wearing shoes and spends a lot of time on the stone beacon on the mountainside, talking to the ghost who guards it and the puca - the big, white goat who is also something else entirely ...The ghost is Jenny's friend. He loves people and the knowledge that he has kept humanity safe by guarding the beacon for thousands of years, makes him proud, even though he knows that people have forgotten about him.But the puca has a plan: he wants Jenny to persuade the ghost that he doesn't need to guard the beacon any more. Because then the pucas will be able to return the world to what it was before humans upset the harmony of things. It looks as though that is what will happen, but old Mikey Cullan, who is also the last of the High Kings of Ireland, has a plan of his own...And JJ and Aisling have something that they must tell Jenny, something that will explain a lot of things and give Jenny a choice to make - a choice between the world of humans, the only world she has known, or the world of Tir na n'Og, the Land of Eternal Youth. And it's only after JJ takes Jenny and Donal to Tir na n'Og that she can decide...
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Awards & Reviews
| US Review |
J.J. Liddy of last year's The New Policeman now has a wife, a musical career that takes him away from home and four children. Son Donal's a musician too, but Jenny, the second child of the four, has never taken to music or even school and roams the countryside. Hazel is a typical teen; Aidan the toddler consumes all of his mother's attention. A magical puka in the form of a large wild goat has taken to accompanying Jenny near the beacon hill barrow, introduced in the prologue as a place of sacrifice in ancient times. Jenny's friendship with the barrow's ghost signals danger, although exactly what the threat is only gradually becomes apparent as Donal's elderly friend Mikey Cullen, self-styled Last of the High Kings, announces his intent to climb the hill. J.J. and his children must face the many magics loose in the universe with courage. The diversity of protagonists diffuses the narrative, resulting in an unexpectedly bland return to the Liddy clan; nevertheless, expect high demand from readers of the first. (Fantasy. 10-14) (Kirkus Reviews) |
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Author's Bio
Kate Thompson is one of the most exciting authors writing for young people today for she is a born storyteller, highly original and thought provoking in her ideas. She has travelled widely in the USA and India and studied law in London. After living in County Clare, she moved to Kinvara in County Galway and it was there that she discovered her passion for playing the fiddle. She is now an accomplished player and also has a great interest in restoring instruments. Kate is a multi-award winning author and the only author to win the Children's Books Ireland Bisto Book of the Year award four times.
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