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Bog Child
DIGGING FOR PEAT in the mountain with his Uncle Tally, Fergus finds the body of a child, and it looks like she’s been murdered. As Fergus tries to make sense of the mad world around him—his brother on hunger-strike in prison, his growing feelings for Cora, his parents arguing over the Troubles, and him in it up to the neck, blackmailed into acting as courier to God knows what—a little voice comes to him in his dreams, and the mystery of the bog child unfurls.
Bog Child is an astonishing novel exploring the sacrifices made in the name of peace, and the unflinching strength of the human spirit.
Bog Child is an astonishing novel exploring the sacrifices made in the name of peace, and the unflinching strength of the human spirit.
336 pages, Hardcover
First published February 7, 2008
101 people are currently reading
5,762 people want to read
About the author
Siobhan Dowd
25books383followersSiobhan Dowd was born to Irish parents and brought up in London. She spent much of her youth visiting the family cottage in Aglish, County Waterford and later the family home in Wicklow Town.
She attended a Catholic grammar school in south London and then gained a degree in Classics at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University. After a short stint in publishing, she joined the writer's organization PEN, initially as a researcher for its Writers in Prison Committee.
She went on to be Program Director of PEN American Center's Freedom-to-Write Committee in New York City. Her work here included founding and leading the Rushdie Defense Committee USA and traveling to Indonesia and Guatemala to investigate local human rights conditions for writers. During her seven-year spell in New York, Siobhan was named one of the "top 100 Irish-Americans" by Irish-America Magazine and AerLingus, for her global anti-censorship work.
On her return to the UK, Siobhan co-founded English PEN's readers and writers programme, which takes authors into schools in socially deprived areas, as well as prisons, young offender's institutions and community projects.
During 2004, Siobhan served as Deputy Commissioner for Children's Rights in Oxfordshire, working with local government to ensure that statutory services affecting children's lives conform with UN protocols.
Siobhan has an MA with Distinction in Gender and Ethnic Studies at Greenwich University, has authored short stories, columns and articles, and edited two anthologies.
In May 2007, Siobhan was named one of "25 authors of the future" by Waterstones Books as part of the latter's 25th anniversary celebrations.
Siobhan died on 21st August 2007 aged 47. She had been receiving treatment for advanced breast cancer for 3 years, and did not go gentle into that good night.
She attended a Catholic grammar school in south London and then gained a degree in Classics at Lady Margaret Hall, Oxford University. After a short stint in publishing, she joined the writer's organization PEN, initially as a researcher for its Writers in Prison Committee.
She went on to be Program Director of PEN American Center's Freedom-to-Write Committee in New York City. Her work here included founding and leading the Rushdie Defense Committee USA and traveling to Indonesia and Guatemala to investigate local human rights conditions for writers. During her seven-year spell in New York, Siobhan was named one of the "top 100 Irish-Americans" by Irish-America Magazine and AerLingus, for her global anti-censorship work.
On her return to the UK, Siobhan co-founded English PEN's readers and writers programme, which takes authors into schools in socially deprived areas, as well as prisons, young offender's institutions and community projects.
During 2004, Siobhan served as Deputy Commissioner for Children's Rights in Oxfordshire, working with local government to ensure that statutory services affecting children's lives conform with UN protocols.
Siobhan has an MA with Distinction in Gender and Ethnic Studies at Greenwich University, has authored short stories, columns and articles, and edited two anthologies.
In May 2007, Siobhan was named one of "25 authors of the future" by Waterstones Books as part of the latter's 25th anniversary celebrations.
Siobhan died on 21st August 2007 aged 47. She had been receiving treatment for advanced breast cancer for 3 years, and did not go gentle into that good night.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 650 reviews
May 21, 2013
Ah Jesus. This really is a beautiful, heart-wrenching story. My one piece of advice? If you do the audio thing, then that's how to do this one. is the perfect reader, her soft lilt a gorgeous accompaniment not just to the lyrical prose that will make you shudder when it's read aloud, but delivering on the Irish accent transporting you to a very particular time and place.
It should have been the Irish history content of this novel that brought it to my attention (more on that later), but it wasn't. It was its author - Siobhan (pronounced She-von) Dowd. I discovered Ms. Dowd the summer of 2011 when I read . That book shattered me on a cellular level. The author of A Monster Calls - Patrick Ness - describes his collaboration with Dowd this way:
She had the characters, a detailed premise, and a beginning. What she didn't have, unfortunately, was time.Dowd was diagnosed with breast cancer and succumbed to her disease in 2007 at the age of 47. Ness courageously took on the project and the completed novel is both exquisite and a lasting tribute to its progenitor.
So I went looking for something else to read by this woman and came across Bog Child. There was a time in my life when I was marinating in a stew of Irish history. I took an interest in it at University and it became my declared major. My BA Honors essay was on the IRA's guerrilla tactics during the . By the time I hit grad school I was practically obsessed. I knew my next step was an even bigger research project and a trip to Ireland, hence my Master's thesis which if you're ever really desperate for reading material or have a love of the subject yourself.
Even though my subject area was late 19th, early 20th century Irish history, it was unavoidable that I would become consumed by the on-going Troubles that exploded again in Northern Ireland in the 1960's. I eventually did get myself to Ireland on a work/study visa in the fall of 2000 lasting until April 2001, which by pure coincidence coincided with the 20th anniversary of the .
I witnessed a candlelight vigil along and listened to (and the sister of ) speak at a public gathering. It was an emotional affair, but at the same time I remember feeling removed from the entire experience. It felt too raw and personal for me to be looking on like that, a Canadian girl who was only seven years old when ten young Irishmen starved themselves to death in political protest.
It's easy for anyone on the outside of any event to have opinions of it one way or the other -- whether those young men really knew what they were doing, or were just desperate and confused by dehumanizing prison conditions, or whether they had been brainwashed and/or intimidated to "the cause". Some consider their actions a waste and abhorrent, while others see their deaths as an important political event worthy of commemoration as we do for soldiers who die in battle. For me, it isn't the Strikers I think about (as sad and frustrating as their stories are), but their families. How excruciating and traumatic must the whole process have been to watch a son die slow like that.
The worst part? It's within your power to take them off the Strike, against their will, so that the doctors hook them up to an IV saving them from certain death. How does any parent make that choice? It seems easy, right? Of course you would save them. It would be mad to let them die. But ten families made that choice. Other families did not, and ended their son's hunger strike. I've always wondered how each family survived the very different choice they made. Is there bitterness? Doubts? What about the men taken off the Strike by their families...did they forgive them? Did they suffer from survivor's guilt for living when others died in their place? Or was it relief? Relief that they were saved from themselves and the insanity that had taken hold of the times. For a cinematic portrayal of what the families faced I recommend .
I haven't thought about Irish history in any shape or form in years. I left grad school in 2005 and I was done with all of it. I had been supersaturated, I had overdosed on it. No more! I cried. Then this book.
In Bog Child, the late Siobhan Dowd is not romanticizing the Hunger Strike. It's not a political book, for or against the Strikers. It's just a simple story of an eighteen year old boy facing manhood. His final exams are in full swing and his dreams of becoming a doctor have never been so close, yet so out of reach. He's falling in love for the first time. He's getting pressured from the local IRA goon to run packets across the guarded border. But most devastating and confusing of all, his older brother Joey is on Hunger Strike in Maze Prison and it's tearing his family apart.
Fergus stole and then broke my heart. All he wants to do is the right thing, but in a messed up world during a messed up time what the right thing is isn't always clear. It's not all doom and gloom. There's light and laughter and hope in these pages too, and an abiding love for the affirmation of life and all the joy and pain that living brings.
November 27, 2024
Книгата на Шавон Доуд "Блатно дете" се оказа много приятна изненада за мен!
Авторката отлично е преплела двете времеви линии в разказа, а героите са създадени майсторски - пълнокръвни и истински. Съзряването и преминаването в света на възрастните никога не е лесен процес, а на младия Фъргъс му се налага да порасне много бързо, през това лято на размирната 1981 година.
Харесвам Ирландия, посетих за втори път Дъблин миналата година и съм очарован от града и хората му.
Интересно ми бе да науча повече за проблемите между севера и юга в края на XX век. Най-безумни винаги са ми били конфликтите на религиозна основа, често те са най-брутални и жестоки. Надявам се, че след "Брекзит" Великобритания ще се разпадне и към европейското ни семейство ще се присъединят отново обединена Ирландия и свободни Шотландия и Уелс!
Ето и няколко снимки по една от темите в книгата, направих ги при посещението на националния археолгическя музей в столицата на Ейре:
Bog people of Ireland
Без малко да ги пропусна, вероятно заради малките посетители са прикрити с паравани без обозначения и само любопитството ми ме накара да надникна зад тях.
На дланта му ясно се виждат защитни прорезни рани!
P.S. За съжаление, Шавон Доуд е починала много млада, през 2007 година. Ще потърся за прочит и други нейни книги.
Тази книга купих през пролетта, за да подкрепя издателство "Artline Studios" - справили са се чудесно с превода и оформлението ѝ!
Авторката отлично е преплела двете времеви линии в разказа, а героите са създадени майсторски - пълнокръвни и истински. Съзряването и преминаването в света на възрастните никога не е лесен процес, а на младия Фъргъс му се налага да порасне много бързо, през това лято на размирната 1981 година.
Харесвам Ирландия, посетих за втори път Дъблин миналата година и съм очарован от града и хората му.
Интересно ми бе да науча повече за проблемите между севера и юга в края на XX век. Най-безумни винаги са ми били конфликтите на религиозна основа, често те са най-брутални и жестоки. Надявам се, че след "Брекзит" Великобритания ще се разпадне и към европейското ни семейство ще се присъединят отново обединена Ирландия и свободни Шотландия и Уелс!
Ето и няколко снимки по една от темите в книгата, направих ги при посещението на националния археолгическя музей в столицата на Ейре:
Bog people of Ireland
Без малко да ги пропусна, вероятно заради малките посетители са прикрити с паравани без обозначения и само любопитството ми ме накара да надникна зад тях.
На дланта му ясно се виждат защитни прорезни рани!
P.S. За съжаление, Шавон Доуд е починала много млада, през 2007 година. Ще потърся за прочит и други нейни книги.
Тази книга купих през пролетта, за да подкрепя издателство "Artline Studios" - справили са се чудесно с превода и оформлението ѝ!
September 28, 2017
After I given many YA books low rating I been asked why I still read them? Answer is to fin books like. It's been worth going to lot of crap to find gems like this.
After A Monster call by Patrick Ness which was based on concept by Siobhan Dowd I was intrigued to read more from both authors. Ness was first and now that I'm finished with most of his stuff it's Dowd's turn.
About the book there isn't much to say (without revealing too much) except that this is YA coming of age story set in turbulent times in which main character is faced with some difficult moral and ethical decisions.It can be hard and hearthbreaking at times but ultimately wonderful and very well written.
After A Monster call by Patrick Ness which was based on concept by Siobhan Dowd I was intrigued to read more from both authors. Ness was first and now that I'm finished with most of his stuff it's Dowd's turn.
About the book there isn't much to say (without revealing too much) except that this is YA coming of age story set in turbulent times in which main character is faced with some difficult moral and ethical decisions.It can be hard and hearthbreaking at times but ultimately wonderful and very well written.
January 17, 2020
Eighteen-year-old Fergus is digging for peat in a bog along the border of Northern Ireland when he discovers a dead body. The small woman had been well preserved in the bog for thousands of years. Archeologists look for clues associated with her death.
Meanwhile, Fergus and his family are trying to cope with the knowledge that his older brother Joe, an imprisoned member of the Provisional IRA, is on a hunger strike. Bobby Sands and some other prisoners have died, and Joe is wasting away. Fergus wants to get good marks on his A Levels so he can go to medical school. He wants to save lives, and get away from the violence of the Troubles in County Fermanagh. Fergus is an engaging character who wants to do the right thing in a complex time.
This is a thoughtful coming-of-age book where dreams about the bog child's life alternate with 1981 in Northern Ireland. Although the book takes on some heavy subjects, there are also lots of light and humorous times with Fergus, his buddies, his family, and his first love. The well-written book is recommended for older teens and adults.
Meanwhile, Fergus and his family are trying to cope with the knowledge that his older brother Joe, an imprisoned member of the Provisional IRA, is on a hunger strike. Bobby Sands and some other prisoners have died, and Joe is wasting away. Fergus wants to get good marks on his A Levels so he can go to medical school. He wants to save lives, and get away from the violence of the Troubles in County Fermanagh. Fergus is an engaging character who wants to do the right thing in a complex time.
This is a thoughtful coming-of-age book where dreams about the bog child's life alternate with 1981 in Northern Ireland. Although the book takes on some heavy subjects, there are also lots of light and humorous times with Fergus, his buddies, his family, and his first love. The well-written book is recommended for older teens and adults.
January 23, 2015
This is yet another book that made me wish ŷ allowed 1/2 stars. I ultimately went with 3 instead of 4 because although I enjoyed it, and like some elements of the story very much, the writing is a bit simplistic and the plot is predictable at times.
Still, I'm very glad that I happened across this book in a used bookstore, because for once an impulse buy paid off (I usually have much better luck when I select books on ŷ than when I go by the blurbs on back covers). It has a powerful premise (parallel stories of a bog sacrifice in ancient Ireland, with the equally troubled IRA era in which the body is discovered) and a main character who is extremely likable and sympathetic. The themes of sacrifice and lost innocence are rendered with a tender, poignant hand, and predictable or not I found the story very affecting.
Still, I'm very glad that I happened across this book in a used bookstore, because for once an impulse buy paid off (I usually have much better luck when I select books on ŷ than when I go by the blurbs on back covers). It has a powerful premise (parallel stories of a bog sacrifice in ancient Ireland, with the equally troubled IRA era in which the body is discovered) and a main character who is extremely likable and sympathetic. The themes of sacrifice and lost innocence are rendered with a tender, poignant hand, and predictable or not I found the story very affecting.
March 12, 2017
Самата аз не очаквах толкова много да ми хареса този YA-роман! Историята е много добре написана и правдива, има и историко-мистични елементи, които не са водещи обаче.
Действието се развива в Северна Ирландия , по време на конфликта и терористичните акции на ИРА. Мисля, че това ми е първата книга, която чета за Ирландия от 80-те години на XX век и ми беше много интересна.
Главният герой ми беше много симпатичен. Имаше и някои комични моменти, на които съм се смяла с глас. Същевременно се засягат и много сериозни теми - за живота и смъртта и имаме ли право да решаваме за друг дали да живее или да се остави да умре за каузата, на която се е посветил, ако това е неговото желание...
Бих прочела и други книги от Шавон Доуд, ако бъдат издадени.
Оценка 3,5*, но слагам 4* , защото не ми е като за 3* :))
Действието се развива в Северна Ирландия , по време на конфликта и терористичните акции на ИРА. Мисля, че това ми е първата книга, която чета за Ирландия от 80-те години на XX век и ми беше много интересна.
Главният герой ми беше много симпатичен. Имаше и някои комични моменти, на които съм се смяла с глас. Същевременно се засягат и много сериозни теми - за живота и смъртта и имаме ли право да решаваме за друг дали да живее или да се остави да умре за каузата, на която се е посветил, ако това е неговото желание...
Бих прочела и други книги от Шавон Доуд, ако бъдат издадени.
Оценка 3,5*, но слагам 4* , защото не ми е като за 3* :))
June 24, 2017
So many compelling moments in this book, with Fergus an endearing and engaging protagonist. His curiosity, concern, intelligence, appreciation of people and refusal to let go of the complexity that allows him to see the "other" as deeply human combine with his shyness and humility to make him a character who is easy to care for (at least in my experience).
The storyline is not always satisfying and the plot a bit heavy handed at times. The whole bog child element I found more distracting than engaging at times. But this is a coming of age story I'm really grateful I chanced upon. I listened to the audiobook and I thought the reader was excellent.
The storyline is not always satisfying and the plot a bit heavy handed at times. The whole bog child element I found more distracting than engaging at times. But this is a coming of age story I'm really grateful I chanced upon. I listened to the audiobook and I thought the reader was excellent.
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July 9, 2020Шавон Доуд- "Блатно дете", изд. "Артлайн Студиос" 2016, прев. Александър Христов
Дочитам тази книга почти в полунощ, и по някакъв сстранен начин това ми се струва най-подходящото време да го направя. Макар всъщност да не бе планирано така - но и това й подхождаа, защото, повярвйте ми, "Блатно дете" е една от онези истории, в които нищо не върви по план. Но... нека преди да продължа със същинската част на този отзив, да кажа нещо друго.
Имах специални причини да посегна към тази книга.
Всъщност нейното прочитане е предпоследната /засега/ крачка от един дълъг път през ирландската музика, история и съвременна литература. Път, който започна с една песен и няколко имена. Имена от близкото минало. Имена на млаади хора, пожертвали живота си в името на постигането на елементарни човешки права и човешко достойнство.
Събития, предизвикали международен отзвук, но "удостоени" само с десетина изречения в двете книги по история на Ирландия, които прочетох, прееди да се захвана с художествената литература. Сякаш самите ирландци се срамуват от тези събития и ги "замитат" под килима.
Ето защо толкова исках да прочета "Блатно дете". Защото действието се развива именно през онази 1981 г. И защото в сюжета са вплетени онези събития. Защото знаех, че ще видя - и наистина ги видях - познати имена. Защото до този момент вече знаех за тези събития повече, отолкото ми се искаше. И не можех да повярвам, че ми е попаднала книга, в която става дума и за тях.
Разбира се, имах някои ссъмнения. Не заради авторката. Просто винаги ми се е струвало, че има нещо... не точно нередно, по-скоро някак своеволно, в начина, по който някой автор вплита действвителни събития в художествено произведение и ги "разкрасява" или променя за целите на сюжета. Тук обаче се е получило. Усещах напрежение при всяко от описанията на сцените в Лонг Кеш, а понеже по някакво странно съвпадение в деня, когато започнах да чета книгата, ми попадна филм, свързан със събитията, можех много ясно да си представя сградите, обстановката, белите коридори. Напрягах се заедно с Фъргъс при всяко пресичане на границата, съчувствах му за всички трудности, които преживява, боях се от последствията на непозволеното приятелство, което завърза.
Но "Блатно дете" има повече от една сюжетна линия. И трябва да кажа, че историята за /на/ Мел е също толкова добре развита. Трудно е всщност да се каже колко са сюжетните линии - защото се разказва историята за откриването на Мел, но и самата Мел "разказва" своята история. И нейната история се преплита с преживяванията на Фъргъс.. щях да кажа "по странен начин", но всъщност се получава толкова естествено, че дори би могло да се каже, че историите им не се преплиитат, а се сливат.
Мислех, че вплитането на любовна история сред всичко останало ще ме подразни. Но всъщност ми хареса да чета за отношенията между Кора и Фърлгъс. Толкова... нежно и топло беше всичко. Като едно късче нормаалност среед цялото насилие в Севера.
Беше тъжно, но и реалистично да чета как случващото се с Джо раздееля семейството. Как много хора всъщност не разбират "за какво е всичко това". И колко сам може всъщност да бъде човек, когато се бори за елементарни права, а за някого отстрани това изглежда маловажно и не вижда значението зад него.
На два или три пъти настръхвах от тревожно предчувствие. Последният път завърши с неверие, стъписване, чувство за абсурд.
Краят на книгата... Самият край ми се видя някак насилено оптимистичен. Но пък, от друга страна, трябваше да има и нещо хубаво след цялата мъка.
Това, което ме изненада, бяха разкритията преди края. Това не го очаквах. Но пък... отсега нататък май винаги ще изпитвам подозрение към миризмата на коледни фойерверки и бадеми. Знае ли човек...
През март "През Барикадите" на Джоун Лингард ме "запозна" с началото на британската окупация на Северна Ирландия. Сега "Блатно дете" ми показа други ключови събития. Няма да правя сравнения коя ми даде по-добра представа. По-скоро съединих впечатленията си от двете и наред с другото прочетено и видяно мога да кажа, че доста неща ми станаха ясни.
"Блатно дете" е добре написана книга, която засяга интересни теми и дава добра отправна точка, ако човек иска да продължи да "дълбае" в описаните исторически събития. За мен напълно си заслужаваше. Мисля, че не бихте съжалявали за такава "книжна среща".
Дочитам тази книга почти в полунощ, и по някакъв сстранен начин това ми се струва най-подходящото време да го направя. Макар всъщност да не бе планирано така - но и това й подхождаа, защото, повярвйте ми, "Блатно дете" е една от онези истории, в които нищо не върви по план. Но... нека преди да продължа със същинската част на този отзив, да кажа нещо друго.
Имах специални причини да посегна към тази книга.
Всъщност нейното прочитане е предпоследната /засега/ крачка от един дълъг път през ирландската музика, история и съвременна литература. Път, който започна с една песен и няколко имена. Имена от близкото минало. Имена на млаади хора, пожертвали живота си в името на постигането на елементарни човешки права и човешко достойнство.
Събития, предизвикали международен отзвук, но "удостоени" само с десетина изречения в двете книги по история на Ирландия, които прочетох, прееди да се захвана с художествената литература. Сякаш самите ирландци се срамуват от тези събития и ги "замитат" под килима.
Ето защо толкова исках да прочета "Блатно дете". Защото действието се развива именно през онази 1981 г. И защото в сюжета са вплетени онези събития. Защото знаех, че ще видя - и наистина ги видях - познати имена. Защото до този момент вече знаех за тези събития повече, отолкото ми се искаше. И не можех да повярвам, че ми е попаднала книга, в която става дума и за тях.
Разбира се, имах някои ссъмнения. Не заради авторката. Просто винаги ми се е струвало, че има нещо... не точно нередно, по-скоро някак своеволно, в начина, по който някой автор вплита действвителни събития в художествено произведение и ги "разкрасява" или променя за целите на сюжета. Тук обаче се е получило. Усещах напрежение при всяко от описанията на сцените в Лонг Кеш, а понеже по някакво странно съвпадение в деня, когато започнах да чета книгата, ми попадна филм, свързан със събитията, можех много ясно да си представя сградите, обстановката, белите коридори. Напрягах се заедно с Фъргъс при всяко пресичане на границата, съчувствах му за всички трудности, които преживява, боях се от последствията на непозволеното приятелство, което завърза.
Но "Блатно дете" има повече от една сюжетна линия. И трябва да кажа, че историята за /на/ Мел е също толкова добре развита. Трудно е всщност да се каже колко са сюжетните линии - защото се разказва историята за откриването на Мел, но и самата Мел "разказва" своята история. И нейната история се преплита с преживяванията на Фъргъс.. щях да кажа "по странен начин", но всъщност се получава толкова естествено, че дори би могло да се каже, че историите им не се преплиитат, а се сливат.
Мислех, че вплитането на любовна история сред всичко останало ще ме подразни. Но всъщност ми хареса да чета за отношенията между Кора и Фърлгъс. Толкова... нежно и топло беше всичко. Като едно късче нормаалност среед цялото насилие в Севера.
Беше тъжно, но и реалистично да чета как случващото се с Джо раздееля семейството. Как много хора всъщност не разбират "за какво е всичко това". И колко сам може всъщност да бъде човек, когато се бори за елементарни права, а за някого отстрани това изглежда маловажно и не вижда значението зад него.
На два или три пъти настръхвах от тревожно предчувствие. Последният път завърши с неверие, стъписване, чувство за абсурд.
Краят на книгата... Самият край ми се видя някак насилено оптимистичен. Но пък, от друга страна, трябваше да има и нещо хубаво след цялата мъка.
Това, което ме изненада, бяха разкритията преди края. Това не го очаквах. Но пък... отсега нататък май винаги ще изпитвам подозрение към миризмата на коледни фойерверки и бадеми. Знае ли човек...
През март "През Барикадите" на Джоун Лингард ме "запозна" с началото на британската окупация на Северна Ирландия. Сега "Блатно дете" ми показа други ключови събития. Няма да правя сравнения коя ми даде по-добра представа. По-скоро съединих впечатленията си от двете и наред с другото прочетено и видяно мога да кажа, че доста неща ми станаха ясни.
"Блатно дете" е добре написана книга, която засяга интересни теми и дава добра отправна точка, ако човек иска да продължи да "дълбае" в описаните исторически събития. За мен напълно си заслужаваше. Мисля, че не бихте съжалявали за такава "книжна среща".
April 7, 2017
It was a wonderful read. Fergus will be one of my favorite characters for years to come.
in recent years I haven't read any book on Ireland, and I am very vague about Irish history. I just know that they were under the British for a long time.
I came upon this book when I read A Monster Calls as a part of the group BOTM read (this book too wouldn't have been in my radar otherwise) and Patrick Ness, the author , in his foreword a suggested that the reader should try out books by Siobhan Doud, whose brainchild the book was, but unfortunately couldn't execute the idea due to her illness and subsequent demise.
So a few.of us scourged the lists and decided to do a buddy read of the Bog Child, supposedly one of her best works.
I chose this for the intriguing title-
And am glad that I did so.
Fergus an 18 year old boy has a loving family . He's got an elderly brother Joe, who's in British prison at the beginning of the story (set in 1981), who later goes on a hunger strike. Also, two cute and naughty younger sisters, and a loving mom and dad. Uncle Tally, his mentor completes the extended family. it all starts when he discovers a dead body of a child in the bog, and then things escalate.
Along with the iron age story (the body has actually been there for the past 2000 years or so) , Doud combines the modern Irish political unrest to create this beautiful masterpiece with a strong young adult hero.
I was immersed in Fergus' world, and didn't want to come out. Would have loved to continue with him and see how he turns out as an adult.
Recommended to all those who love history, politics, cultural facts and a good story told well.
in recent years I haven't read any book on Ireland, and I am very vague about Irish history. I just know that they were under the British for a long time.
I came upon this book when I read A Monster Calls as a part of the group BOTM read (this book too wouldn't have been in my radar otherwise) and Patrick Ness, the author , in his foreword a suggested that the reader should try out books by Siobhan Doud, whose brainchild the book was, but unfortunately couldn't execute the idea due to her illness and subsequent demise.
So a few.of us scourged the lists and decided to do a buddy read of the Bog Child, supposedly one of her best works.
I chose this for the intriguing title-
And am glad that I did so.
Fergus an 18 year old boy has a loving family . He's got an elderly brother Joe, who's in British prison at the beginning of the story (set in 1981), who later goes on a hunger strike. Also, two cute and naughty younger sisters, and a loving mom and dad. Uncle Tally, his mentor completes the extended family. it all starts when he discovers a dead body of a child in the bog, and then things escalate.
Along with the iron age story (the body has actually been there for the past 2000 years or so) , Doud combines the modern Irish political unrest to create this beautiful masterpiece with a strong young adult hero.
I was immersed in Fergus' world, and didn't want to come out. Would have loved to continue with him and see how he turns out as an adult.
Recommended to all those who love history, politics, cultural facts and a good story told well.
September 10, 2022
Well, because the Children's Literature Group is doing a Carnegie Medal Winners theme (and because the list of the award recipients is naturally absolutely extensive and exhaustive) I am of course also feeling rather rushed regarding my available reading time at present (and likely for the foreseeable future). And when I am feeling said type of perusal stress, in particular for any given novel I am starting, like in this case Siobhan Dowd's Bog Child (which was awarded the Carnegie Medal for 2009 and which I found a digital copy of on Open Library), the book in question totally needs to right away, it needs to immediately textually grip and delightfully enchant me, it basically requires a beginning, a textual start that is readable, relatable and is also not potentially bewildering or baffling in any way. As sorry, I simply do not want to deal with the latter (with a perchance confusing story beginning) whilst under (even if indeed totally self imposed) reading stress (and just to be clear, just to be totally and utterly truthful here, even when perusing only for pleasure and with all the time in the world available for and to me, a bad, a subpar, an unclear story starting point, yes, this more often than not really makes me profoundly annoyed, frustrated and often majorly wanting to stop reading).
And sadly, frustratingly, Siobhan Dowd's opening pages for Bog Child, in my humble opinion, they are annoyingly presumptive and textually assume and also expect A PRETTY HUGE AMOUNT of prior knowledge and education (both recent and historical) regarding the so-called Troubles, regarding the IRA and sectarian violence from readers, to the extent that I really do personally feel as though Dowd just throws her potential readers into the deep end so to speak and then expects them to swim (and indeed, that the author, that Siobhan Dowd also uses a lot of political and cultural acronyms with which especially many North American readers would not be familiar is equally and problematically frustrating). But even though I originally was going to continue on with Bog Child and to simply grin and put up with what I most definitely consider a much too little information and backstory start, well, because I honestly have never at all enjoyed stories for children or young adults where there is either not a sufficient amount of backstory provided at the beginning or where the author assumes too much (and that for me, Bog Child most certainly does this, and even with me knowing a bit about the IRA and the issues plaguing Northern Ireland), yes, the beginning of Siobhan Dowd's text kind of makes me feel both annoyingly lost and really massively frustrated, so that I have finally decided to not continue on with Bog Child for the time being, to only grant two stars for what I have read thus far (but to also consider upping my rating if I ever decide to try Bog Child again and end up enjoying Sioban's Dowd's story as a whole more than I have the beginning).
And sadly, frustratingly, Siobhan Dowd's opening pages for Bog Child, in my humble opinion, they are annoyingly presumptive and textually assume and also expect A PRETTY HUGE AMOUNT of prior knowledge and education (both recent and historical) regarding the so-called Troubles, regarding the IRA and sectarian violence from readers, to the extent that I really do personally feel as though Dowd just throws her potential readers into the deep end so to speak and then expects them to swim (and indeed, that the author, that Siobhan Dowd also uses a lot of political and cultural acronyms with which especially many North American readers would not be familiar is equally and problematically frustrating). But even though I originally was going to continue on with Bog Child and to simply grin and put up with what I most definitely consider a much too little information and backstory start, well, because I honestly have never at all enjoyed stories for children or young adults where there is either not a sufficient amount of backstory provided at the beginning or where the author assumes too much (and that for me, Bog Child most certainly does this, and even with me knowing a bit about the IRA and the issues plaguing Northern Ireland), yes, the beginning of Siobhan Dowd's text kind of makes me feel both annoyingly lost and really massively frustrated, so that I have finally decided to not continue on with Bog Child for the time being, to only grant two stars for what I have read thus far (but to also consider upping my rating if I ever decide to try Bog Child again and end up enjoying Sioban's Dowd's story as a whole more than I have the beginning).
April 10, 2017
I came across Siobhan Dowd while reading A Monster Calls by Patrik Ness. I learned that the storyline was originally drafted by Siobhan, however before she could complete it, she lost her life to cancer. Since both these authors shared the same publishing house, Ness was approached to continue and give the storyline shape and bring it to life (to which he very humbly agreed).
We had a group discussion on it and some of us expressed our interest in reading some books by Siobhan, and mutually agreed on reading Bog Child as our first.
And I'm uber glad that we did. I think this was my first read based on Irish culture and politics around the 1980s and I was so intrigued.
The story starts with a young boy named Fergus who, along with his uncle, finds a semi-visible dead body. It also revolves around his family and the situation they go through as a result of his elder brother's decision - which I think is remarkable. I was really in awe of their strength and conviction.
Fergus has a lot to deal with and does it amazingly well. He has his exams to pass, be strong for his family, solve the mystery of the dead body, peculiar errands to run for someone, understand their country's political situation, and a girl to love and eventually let go of. Siobhan made me fall completely in love with him and his family.
The story remains riveting throughout despite the multiple twists and plots. Siobhan did a great job in giving a platform to each of the characters with their own stories shining through in one way or the other, without taking away the light from Fergus and the main plot.
I was so intrigued to know more about their political situation during the time in question that I went on a researching spree - I read articles and watched some documentaries. I learned a lot of The Troubles, Nothern Ireland and Brits, IRA, Bobby Sands and so much more! I might even purchase A Day In my Life written by Bobby Sands which I suppose was during his imprisonment.
Not only this, Siobhan made me rekindle with John Lennon's music and story. You'll know what I'm talking about when you read The Bog Child, which I strongly recommend!
And when you do, I'd love to know what you think about it, so please let me know :)
We had a group discussion on it and some of us expressed our interest in reading some books by Siobhan, and mutually agreed on reading Bog Child as our first.
And I'm uber glad that we did. I think this was my first read based on Irish culture and politics around the 1980s and I was so intrigued.
The story starts with a young boy named Fergus who, along with his uncle, finds a semi-visible dead body. It also revolves around his family and the situation they go through as a result of his elder brother's decision - which I think is remarkable. I was really in awe of their strength and conviction.
Fergus has a lot to deal with and does it amazingly well. He has his exams to pass, be strong for his family, solve the mystery of the dead body, peculiar errands to run for someone, understand their country's political situation, and a girl to love and eventually let go of. Siobhan made me fall completely in love with him and his family.
The story remains riveting throughout despite the multiple twists and plots. Siobhan did a great job in giving a platform to each of the characters with their own stories shining through in one way or the other, without taking away the light from Fergus and the main plot.
I was so intrigued to know more about their political situation during the time in question that I went on a researching spree - I read articles and watched some documentaries. I learned a lot of The Troubles, Nothern Ireland and Brits, IRA, Bobby Sands and so much more! I might even purchase A Day In my Life written by Bobby Sands which I suppose was during his imprisonment.
Not only this, Siobhan made me rekindle with John Lennon's music and story. You'll know what I'm talking about when you read The Bog Child, which I strongly recommend!
And when you do, I'd love to know what you think about it, so please let me know :)
August 9, 2011
A personal favourite of mine. I found the book in my high school library and was impelled to read it due to the interesting premise. I have a very strong historical calling, and historical fiction is a nice slip between reality and fantasy.
Fergus is a graduating high school student who crosses the border with his Uncle Tally to swipe some peat in the early morning hours and stumbles upon the body of what appears to be a young girl of seven or eight. At his insistence, his uncle goes back to the police to inform them of the body. While the elder is gone, Fergus begins having some strange dreams about the said girl in the bog. That is simply part of the story however.
Fergus lives in Dublin in 1981, a time when the PIRA (Provisionary Irish Republican Army) is setting up riots and their volunteers are arrested and then commanded to go under a hunger strike. Fergus� brother is one such volunteer who, when he follows the rest of his militiamen, throws his entire family into turmoil. Add this up with his upcoming exams, the mystery of the bog child, his infatuation with Cora, the daughter of an archeologist, befriending a British soldier named Owain, and being blackmailed to run suspicious trips across the border, Fergus is on shaky ground.
The story is by far not fast paced, it is a lazy feeling, slow-going story that takes its readers on this stroll, but skillfully knows how to shift the mood. Ever when the scene is going at a virtual snail’s pace, it can build up such tension that it can become almost unbearable. The humour is lighthearted and innocent for the most part, which give it a different feel. It isn’t childish humour, but nor is it dirty and “mature�. It is a refreshing change to the corrupting literature that is being published today, solely for the purpose of a cheap laugh. The author can manipulate your emotions by the changing atmosphere of the words and it is so skillfully done that you go along right with it.
Now, by all means, the book doesn’t have a vast vocabulary, nor is it something that some adults would call “mature� in its literary style. The author comes off as treading a thin line between too adult to be understood, and too immature to be enjoyed, sadly leaning towards the immature side on more than one occasion. Also, I personally could have gone without Cora. She was a spoiled, hateful, manipulative little brat and I wanted to stab her on every occasion, being the typical stuck-up teenage girl. I hated her even more when she became the permanent love interest for Fergus who could have honestly done better.
My favourite character was Owain. Between the stress and the worry and the mystery of the Bog Child, the scenes with the red-headed border guard were always a refreshing relief. It also showed a nice foil of the Irish mentality of the British reality. He had not aspired to go into the military, but he had no choice. He was just as immature as any other teenager, treating his own authority (for the most part) as a paper dragon. He could even become serious, showing a well rounded character in a total of three scenes.
And finally, the twist at the end was brilliant. I soaked it up like a sponge savouring the bitter taste. It was so refreshing, not leaving with a happily-ever-after, but with a sliver of a silver lining around a dark cloud. It had a very hopeful ending that didn’t leave the reader in utter depression, but didn’t make it unrealistically satisfying, which is something I respect greatly in this piece. I admit I cried on a number of occasions, once from sadness, once from pity, and once from laughter.
Despite its flaws, I thoroughly enjoyed this book to the point I checked it out again, even after reading. I don’t usually reread books seeing as I can memorize them on the first time around, but this book was too enjoyable to pass up. I even recommend this to all my friends.
Fergus is a graduating high school student who crosses the border with his Uncle Tally to swipe some peat in the early morning hours and stumbles upon the body of what appears to be a young girl of seven or eight. At his insistence, his uncle goes back to the police to inform them of the body. While the elder is gone, Fergus begins having some strange dreams about the said girl in the bog. That is simply part of the story however.
Fergus lives in Dublin in 1981, a time when the PIRA (Provisionary Irish Republican Army) is setting up riots and their volunteers are arrested and then commanded to go under a hunger strike. Fergus� brother is one such volunteer who, when he follows the rest of his militiamen, throws his entire family into turmoil. Add this up with his upcoming exams, the mystery of the bog child, his infatuation with Cora, the daughter of an archeologist, befriending a British soldier named Owain, and being blackmailed to run suspicious trips across the border, Fergus is on shaky ground.
The story is by far not fast paced, it is a lazy feeling, slow-going story that takes its readers on this stroll, but skillfully knows how to shift the mood. Ever when the scene is going at a virtual snail’s pace, it can build up such tension that it can become almost unbearable. The humour is lighthearted and innocent for the most part, which give it a different feel. It isn’t childish humour, but nor is it dirty and “mature�. It is a refreshing change to the corrupting literature that is being published today, solely for the purpose of a cheap laugh. The author can manipulate your emotions by the changing atmosphere of the words and it is so skillfully done that you go along right with it.
Now, by all means, the book doesn’t have a vast vocabulary, nor is it something that some adults would call “mature� in its literary style. The author comes off as treading a thin line between too adult to be understood, and too immature to be enjoyed, sadly leaning towards the immature side on more than one occasion. Also, I personally could have gone without Cora. She was a spoiled, hateful, manipulative little brat and I wanted to stab her on every occasion, being the typical stuck-up teenage girl. I hated her even more when she became the permanent love interest for Fergus who could have honestly done better.
My favourite character was Owain. Between the stress and the worry and the mystery of the Bog Child, the scenes with the red-headed border guard were always a refreshing relief. It also showed a nice foil of the Irish mentality of the British reality. He had not aspired to go into the military, but he had no choice. He was just as immature as any other teenager, treating his own authority (for the most part) as a paper dragon. He could even become serious, showing a well rounded character in a total of three scenes.
And finally, the twist at the end was brilliant. I soaked it up like a sponge savouring the bitter taste. It was so refreshing, not leaving with a happily-ever-after, but with a sliver of a silver lining around a dark cloud. It had a very hopeful ending that didn’t leave the reader in utter depression, but didn’t make it unrealistically satisfying, which is something I respect greatly in this piece. I admit I cried on a number of occasions, once from sadness, once from pity, and once from laughter.
Despite its flaws, I thoroughly enjoyed this book to the point I checked it out again, even after reading. I don’t usually reread books seeing as I can memorize them on the first time around, but this book was too enjoyable to pass up. I even recommend this to all my friends.
July 13, 2018
A charming YA novel. It combined two things that I love to read about—Ireland and those archaeological wonders, the bog bodies. Fergus, the main character, is out early one morning surreptitiously digging peat with his Uncle Tally when they discover the peat-stained body of a young girl. When it is determined that she is an Iron Age body, not a modern murder victim, Fergus is encouraged by the archaeologist in charge of the dig to stay interested & involved. As she has a charming daughter, Fergus is only too happy to assist them.
There are some interesting juxtapositions—Fergus� brother is on hunger strike in prison and Cora, the archaeologist’s daughter, is struggling with an eating disorder. [As an aside, I remember listening to the news regularly in 1981 to hear about the fates of those Irish hunger strikers, especially Bobby Sands.] Fergus is a runner and is pressured into moving envelopes during his runs which presumably have something to do with IRA explosions, but he has also befriended a young Welshman stationed at the village to guard against such things. Both are seeking escape, Fergus from rural Ireland and the young solider from the coal mines of Wales. During all these pushes and pulls, between family and community, law and anarchy, Fergus must pass his final exams with at least three B marks in order to enter University at the end of the summer, to achieve his way out.
We also get some flashbacks to the life of the Bog Child, with some choices of her own to make. I went to a museum display of Bog Bodies that visited my city years ago—there was a large photo of Tollund Man who was found in Denmark and my sister & I both thought that he looked very much like our Danish grandfather, also from Jutland. What a link to the past!
There are some interesting juxtapositions—Fergus� brother is on hunger strike in prison and Cora, the archaeologist’s daughter, is struggling with an eating disorder. [As an aside, I remember listening to the news regularly in 1981 to hear about the fates of those Irish hunger strikers, especially Bobby Sands.] Fergus is a runner and is pressured into moving envelopes during his runs which presumably have something to do with IRA explosions, but he has also befriended a young Welshman stationed at the village to guard against such things. Both are seeking escape, Fergus from rural Ireland and the young solider from the coal mines of Wales. During all these pushes and pulls, between family and community, law and anarchy, Fergus must pass his final exams with at least three B marks in order to enter University at the end of the summer, to achieve his way out.
We also get some flashbacks to the life of the Bog Child, with some choices of her own to make. I went to a museum display of Bog Bodies that visited my city years ago—there was a large photo of Tollund Man who was found in Denmark and my sister & I both thought that he looked very much like our Danish grandfather, also from Jutland. What a link to the past!
July 14, 2022
(2022)I first read this book more than ten years ago. At the time I knew next to nothing about the Troubles. This book was a catalyst to other books, articles, documentaries etc that have helped my understanding and knowledge of this subject grow. I decided it was time for a re-read of the book that first ignited my interest.
(2011)I really enjoyed the setting of Ireland during the Troubles and hunger strikes of the early 1980s. A great deal of the story was gripping, tense and interesting. Fergus is a great character that really stayed constant and true throughout the story-which I appreciated. It was a book I had a difficult time putting down.
But...there were a few things that bothered me. Mostly there were some believability issues. For example, Fergus, while intelligent, made a connection to the year the bog child died that none of the highly trained scientists/archeologists/historians etc did. Seems at least one of them would have made the connection.
(2011)I really enjoyed the setting of Ireland during the Troubles and hunger strikes of the early 1980s. A great deal of the story was gripping, tense and interesting. Fergus is a great character that really stayed constant and true throughout the story-which I appreciated. It was a book I had a difficult time putting down.
But...there were a few things that bothered me. Mostly there were some believability issues. For example, Fergus, while intelligent, made a connection to the year the bog child died that none of the highly trained scientists/archeologists/historians etc did. Seems at least one of them would have made the connection.
January 19, 2017
„Блатн� дете� (изд. „Студи� Арт Лайн�) е една от няколкото книги на британската писателка Шавон Доуд, които излизат след нейната трагична смърт от рак на гърдата през 2007. Доуд майсторски преплита сюжетни линии и времеви периоди, разказвайки ни история, която с лекота успява да надскочи границите на жанровото. „Блатнот� дете� е отчасти мистерия и детективски трилър, отчасти историческа драма, отчасти поглед към особеностите на културата и живота в Ирландия, отчасти история за съзряването... Това необичайно съчетание е поднесено с повече реализъм и и емоционален заряд, от колкото доста биха очаквали от книга, насочена към подрастващите. Аз лично я намирам за достатъчно интригуваща и смела, за да задоволи вкуса и на по-зрели и възрастни читатели. Прочетете ревюто на "Книжни Криле":
August 12, 2020
This was a superb bit of writing! When I was a teenager there was very little in the way of books aimed specifically at that age group, now there are some fantastic books that cross over the boundary and are great for adults too. Bog Child is about the body of a young girl found in a peat bog in Ireland by an eighteen-year-old boy called Fergus. Fergus is out cutting turf to sell with his uncle Tally when they see the body. The investigation into the identity of the child and how she came to be in the bog runs through the book parallel to the story of Fergus' own life in a town just over the border in the North of Ireland in 1980/81 during 'The Troubles'. I was taken back in my mind to the time when this was all happening, not just in Ireland but also here in England, how your heart missed a beat when a voice would come onto the television saying' we interrupt this program...) you would straight away think 'oh what now' and say a silent, selfish prayer, 'not someone I know'.
Fergus' brother Joey is on the hunger strike in Long Kesh prison and his family visit him and watch him gradually waste away to skin and bone unable to move due to weakness. I feel that the theme running through the book is one of sacrifice, the awful sacrifice of the parents of the young men choosing to give up their lives for their principles, dying such a long and painful death which took great courage. The sacrifice of so many lives, military and civilian, innocent bystanders. And of course the sacrifice of the girl in the bog. Fergus does a lot of growing up during that summer, he takes his A level exams, he falls in love for the first time and he finds himself as a great support to his distraught mother and silently grieving father, eventually even trying to mend the rift caused by his brother's decision to starve himself to death. A moving and informative read.
Fergus' brother Joey is on the hunger strike in Long Kesh prison and his family visit him and watch him gradually waste away to skin and bone unable to move due to weakness. I feel that the theme running through the book is one of sacrifice, the awful sacrifice of the parents of the young men choosing to give up their lives for their principles, dying such a long and painful death which took great courage. The sacrifice of so many lives, military and civilian, innocent bystanders. And of course the sacrifice of the girl in the bog. Fergus does a lot of growing up during that summer, he takes his A level exams, he falls in love for the first time and he finds himself as a great support to his distraught mother and silently grieving father, eventually even trying to mend the rift caused by his brother's decision to starve himself to death. A moving and informative read.
September 6, 2019
Even ****1/2
One of the best read of this year, definitely the best of this Summer.
The life of a "normal" teen ager in his last year of school - with his usual teen agers cravings and happenings (love stories, friends, fear for the outcome of his exams) - together with the terrible happenings of his family - his brother in Jail as PROVO and on hunger strike - compared to the happenings of a dwarf girl of the iron age (iron age girl/iron lady!!!).
A plunge into the water of our recent past, in those "25 bloody years" that I remember so well with terror and that can be explained to the new generations in this way, with literature, with narration. We need it, especially with the Brexit in view!
"It’s what my father told me years ago and I’ve never forgotten.�
‘W?�
‘He said that we suffer more from the sins of
omission than the sins of commission.�"
One of the best read of this year, definitely the best of this Summer.
The life of a "normal" teen ager in his last year of school - with his usual teen agers cravings and happenings (love stories, friends, fear for the outcome of his exams) - together with the terrible happenings of his family - his brother in Jail as PROVO and on hunger strike - compared to the happenings of a dwarf girl of the iron age (iron age girl/iron lady!!!).
A plunge into the water of our recent past, in those "25 bloody years" that I remember so well with terror and that can be explained to the new generations in this way, with literature, with narration. We need it, especially with the Brexit in view!
"It’s what my father told me years ago and I’ve never forgotten.�
‘W?�
‘He said that we suffer more from the sins of
omission than the sins of commission.�"
June 18, 2016
I enjoyed the Irish history of the Troubles and the present day story. However, I found the bog child thread of the story awkward and rather trite. The need to draw these parallels between the two eras felt forced and way too heavy-handed. And really, Fergus suggests the Pompeii thing and the professional archeologists are like, why didn't we think of that brilliant explanation? That's realistic...
November 16, 2019
From BBC radio 4:
Episode 1 of 10
By Siobhan Dowd. Award-winning novel set on the Northern Irish border during the Troubles. Abridged by Sara Davies and read by Finnian Garbutt.
As he's out digging illegally for peat with his uncle, Fergus finds the body of a child, who seems to have been murdered. He tries to concentrate on revising for his A levels, as a means of escape from the 'insane' world around him: his brother on hunger-strike in prison, his growing feelings for Cora, his parents arguing over the Troubles, and being blackmailed into acting as a courier for the IRA . A voice comes to him in his dreams and the story of the bog child unfurls.
Set in the summer, 1980s, in Northern Ireland, this beautiful, subtle, intriguing and uplifting story, a 'radiant work', is one you’ll never forget. Its setting is a vital historical context for current Brexit confusion: a deeply appealing and timely story set around the complex politics of the Northern Irish border.
Mel...Catherine Cusack
Reader...Finnian Garbutt.
Producer...Mary Ward-Lowery
Episode 1 of 10
By Siobhan Dowd. Award-winning novel set on the Northern Irish border during the Troubles. Abridged by Sara Davies and read by Finnian Garbutt.
As he's out digging illegally for peat with his uncle, Fergus finds the body of a child, who seems to have been murdered. He tries to concentrate on revising for his A levels, as a means of escape from the 'insane' world around him: his brother on hunger-strike in prison, his growing feelings for Cora, his parents arguing over the Troubles, and being blackmailed into acting as a courier for the IRA . A voice comes to him in his dreams and the story of the bog child unfurls.
Set in the summer, 1980s, in Northern Ireland, this beautiful, subtle, intriguing and uplifting story, a 'radiant work', is one you’ll never forget. Its setting is a vital historical context for current Brexit confusion: a deeply appealing and timely story set around the complex politics of the Northern Irish border.
Mel...Catherine Cusack
Reader...Finnian Garbutt.
Producer...Mary Ward-Lowery
November 16, 2019
Description: As he's out digging illegally for peat with his uncle, Fergus finds the body of a child, who seems to have been murdered. He tries to concentrate on revising for his A levels, as a means of escape from the 'insane' world around him: his brother on hunger-strike in prison, his growing feelings for Cora, his parents arguing over the Troubles, and being blackmailed into acting as a courier for the IRA . A voice comes to him in his dreams and the story of the bog child unfurls.
Set in the summer, 1980s, in Northern Ireland, this beautiful, subtle, intriguing and uplifting story, a 'radiant work', is one you’ll never forget. Its setting is a vital historical context for current Brexit confusion: a deeply appealing and timely story set around the complex politics of the Northern Irish border.
Mel...Catherine Cusack
Reader...Finnian Garbutt.
Producer...Mary Ward-Lowery
November 30, 2008
Masterful! Dowd weaves multiple plot lines throughout this compelling story and there is never a moment when the pace falters or the story loses the way. Fergus McCan and his vague Uncle Tally cross the border that divides Ireland to dig peat at a construction site. They discover the body of what appears to be a child and the police of both side's authorities appear on the scene only to learn that the body is ancient. Mel, the young girl, appears at intervals in Fergus' dreams, slowly revealing her story as Fergus struggles with exams, family problems, a brother in prison who has joined the Bobbie Sands' hunger strike, and moral dilemmas of his own. The various stories are seamlessly interwoven, propelling the reader through the book. While the themes are serious and many of the situations grim, there is a wonderful hopeful optimistic feel to this story that despite sadness and strife, there is hope and much reason to treasure life. This is a wonderfully written book that utterly aborbed me.
October 18, 2009
1)I think a better understanding of the political turmoil in Ireland's history would have improved appreciation of this one. Sometimes I was just guessing. Most of what I know is just vague memories of news reports when I was a kid. And that Tom Clancy/Jack Ryan movie.
2)Though I did hear a lot about the LONG history of oppression in Ireland when I was there this summer.
2)I totally don't get the relevance of the bog child. This was mainly about Fergus. I mean, I guess he FOUND her while out with his uncle. Who is an important character in many ways to Fergus' life.
3)This got starred reviews in School Library Journal and Booklist. They talk (among other things) about the relationship between Fergus and Cora. Guess what. I didn't give a hoot about them. Maybe I've lost my sense of romance.
All in all, a little disappointed. I saw this in a bookstore in Dublin and almost bought it then just because the cover/blurb looked so good. Went back into the store ready to buy it, but then sort of lost where it was in the store and got something else. Not sorry, now.
2)Though I did hear a lot about the LONG history of oppression in Ireland when I was there this summer.
2)I totally don't get the relevance of the bog child. This was mainly about Fergus. I mean, I guess he FOUND her while out with his uncle. Who is an important character in many ways to Fergus' life.
3)This got starred reviews in School Library Journal and Booklist. They talk (among other things) about the relationship between Fergus and Cora. Guess what. I didn't give a hoot about them. Maybe I've lost my sense of romance.
All in all, a little disappointed. I saw this in a bookstore in Dublin and almost bought it then just because the cover/blurb looked so good. Went back into the store ready to buy it, but then sort of lost where it was in the store and got something else. Not sorry, now.
March 19, 2019
I liked this book for a few reasons:
1. it deals with bog bodies
2. it is set in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and much of the plot revolves around the violence and politics of that era, something that I've never come across in literature in America
3. it dealt with some romantic relationships but kept the annoying stuff to a minimum
4. it communicated both humor and pain very well
5. I didn't find it too predictable. Anytime anything happened, I was pleased to report that my first guesses weren't the ones that ended up being true
I don't think this was a very popular book in America, since I had a bit of trouble finding it, but if you can find it, I think it's an interesting book that is well written and very enjoyable
1. it deals with bog bodies
2. it is set in Northern Ireland during the Troubles and much of the plot revolves around the violence and politics of that era, something that I've never come across in literature in America
3. it dealt with some romantic relationships but kept the annoying stuff to a minimum
4. it communicated both humor and pain very well
5. I didn't find it too predictable. Anytime anything happened, I was pleased to report that my first guesses weren't the ones that ended up being true
I don't think this was a very popular book in America, since I had a bit of trouble finding it, but if you can find it, I think it's an interesting book that is well written and very enjoyable
August 26, 2016
Ovo ide u favorite . God , kako je ovo bilo lijepo
July 3, 2010
Dowd, Siobhan. (2008). Bog Child. New York: David Fickling Books.
� 322 pages
� Intended audience: Upper middle and high school, ages 12 and up.
� Awards:
WINNER 2008 - Publishers Weekly Best Children's Book of the Year
WINNER 2008 - Kirkus Reviews Best Young Adult Books
WINNER 2008 - Amazon Best of the Year
NOMINEE 2008 - Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Young Adult Novel
� Reviews:
Children's Book Reviews. Review of book Bog Child. (2008, July). Publishers Weekly, 255(30), 73. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from ABI/INFORM Global database. (Document ID: 1522428401).
After briefly describing the plot, a staff writer from Publisher’s Weekly writes, “Dowd raises questions about moral choices within a compelling plot that is full of surprises, powerfully bringing home the impact of political conflict on innocent bystanders.�
Dobrez, Cindy. (2008, August). Bog Child. Review of book Bog Child. The Booklist, 104(22), 68. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from Research Library database. (Document ID: 1532709141).
Cindy Dobrez from The Booklist is also largely complimentary: “The history, which will likely be as unfamiliar to American teen readers as the story's dialect, may need fleshing out with additional sources, but the intriguing characters and their motivations and sacrifices will translate directly to contemporary readers. The plotlines are braided together into a strong story that is rich in language, setting, and theme.�
� Themes: Choices and consequence; Political protest and Terrorism; Archaeology; Dwarfism; Family
� Main Character: Fergus, a young man taking entrance exams for University
� Setting: Ireland in the 1980s
� Censorship: condoms and the pill, hunger strikes and violence, political protest and terrorism
� Plot (spoiler):
Fergus and his Uncle find a dead body in a peat bog. Thinking it is a young girl, they contact the authorities who determine that it’s a prehistoric body. As the story unfolds, it becomes clear that Fergus� older brother, Joe is imprisoned for political protest and the mother is worried that Joe will join the hunger strike in the prison. Fergus is in the midst of University examinations as well as worrying about his brother. Fergus turns to running to take his mind off his problems, but that attracts problems of its own. An old acquaintance of Fergus� approaches him about smuggling packets over the border for the local insurgent group. Since Fergus runs that route anyway, the acquaintance figures that a small load wouldn’t be a problem. And it would be in honor of Joe as well.
Fergus ultimately decides to deliver the packets, and does so for several weeks, during which he gets to know the archaeologists investigating the body from the bog. The daughter of one of the scientists begins to attract Fergus� romantic attentions, adding one more layer to his burgeoning problems. Through dreams, Fergus connects to the dead bog child, and the reader learns that she is not a young girl at all, but a dwarf from prehistoric times, condemned to death because of her physical appearance.
The story continues and Fergus� brother does indeed join the hunger strike. Fergus makes friends with one of the border patrol guard that he passes on his daily run. After learning of a bomb that killed several civilians, Fergus decides he can no longer smuggle these packets, opens one in front of the patrol guard and tries to turn himself in. His friend is baffled that Fergus would want to turn himself in over condoms and birth control pills; Fergus is not smuggling what he thought.
Fergus� brother’s condition gets worse, and when he becomes comatose, the family is forced to either respect Joe’s wishes and allow him to die, or hook him up to an IV drip and force him to live. The archaeologist’s daughter tells Fergus she is moving to America, and Fergus finds out he is accepted to University to become a doctor. The story builds to a plausible climax, and then the twist is thrown in when the reader learns that Fergus� uncle is a major player in the political protest and has built and planted bombs that have killed civilians. Fergus must come to terms with his terrorist uncle’s activities and death, and he makes a new beginning on the boat to England, to University.
� Strengths: Plausible, likeable main character who has to make hard choices and live with the consequences.
� Weaknesses: Maybe too many problems; hard to follow all the political acronyms if not familiar with Irish history (I’m not).
� Passage(s): “Fergus stared at the words. Death. Peace. Hate. Principle. Crime. It was as if an older, more seasoned Fergus from twenty years into the future had bent time and returned to the brain of his younger self to write this letter. Surely it was persuasive. Surely anyone would think twice on reading this …He dropped the pen and tore up the letter.� (118)
“He walked out of the toilets and down the corridor, seeing the boxes and the ticks, the grooves into the future and Joe on the narrow prison bed with the blankets over him, retching up nothing. Somewhere off in the distance, under the old Scots pine of the churchyard, a dark funeral party was huddled and� a coffin was being lowered.� (110)
“He looked down towards the plain, the place he’d lived all his life. The past rolled out before him. The family trips, the laughs, the squabbles� He saw the recent weeks: the packets, exam papers, the counting-off of days as Joe fasted. The condoms and pills, himself and Cora lying like two question marks, and Mel, the laughing, living Mel of his imaginings. And he saw the funeral party� And then he knew.� (314)
� Library Pomotion: A nice book from another country, would work well in a display or unit on world lit; could start some good discussion on political protest and the role of young people during political strife; archaeological aspect could jive well with other archaeological units or research.
� Personal Reflection: Without much familiarity of the situation in 1980s Ireland, the abbreviations and different factions were a little over my head. But the story came through loud and clear and Fergus was my kind of character. He experienced just enough strife over the situations he was in, he sometimes made bad choices and sometimes good ones, but he always came around to see what he should have done.
� 322 pages
� Intended audience: Upper middle and high school, ages 12 and up.
� Awards:
WINNER 2008 - Publishers Weekly Best Children's Book of the Year
WINNER 2008 - Kirkus Reviews Best Young Adult Books
WINNER 2008 - Amazon Best of the Year
NOMINEE 2008 - Edgar Allan Poe Award for Best Young Adult Novel
� Reviews:
Children's Book Reviews. Review of book Bog Child. (2008, July). Publishers Weekly, 255(30), 73. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from ABI/INFORM Global database. (Document ID: 1522428401).
After briefly describing the plot, a staff writer from Publisher’s Weekly writes, “Dowd raises questions about moral choices within a compelling plot that is full of surprises, powerfully bringing home the impact of political conflict on innocent bystanders.�
Dobrez, Cindy. (2008, August). Bog Child. Review of book Bog Child. The Booklist, 104(22), 68. Retrieved June 23, 2009, from Research Library database. (Document ID: 1532709141).
Cindy Dobrez from The Booklist is also largely complimentary: “The history, which will likely be as unfamiliar to American teen readers as the story's dialect, may need fleshing out with additional sources, but the intriguing characters and their motivations and sacrifices will translate directly to contemporary readers. The plotlines are braided together into a strong story that is rich in language, setting, and theme.�
� Themes: Choices and consequence; Political protest and Terrorism; Archaeology; Dwarfism; Family
� Main Character: Fergus, a young man taking entrance exams for University
� Setting: Ireland in the 1980s
� Censorship: condoms and the pill, hunger strikes and violence, political protest and terrorism
� Plot (spoiler):
Fergus and his Uncle find a dead body in a peat bog. Thinking it is a young girl, they contact the authorities who determine that it’s a prehistoric body. As the story unfolds, it becomes clear that Fergus� older brother, Joe is imprisoned for political protest and the mother is worried that Joe will join the hunger strike in the prison. Fergus is in the midst of University examinations as well as worrying about his brother. Fergus turns to running to take his mind off his problems, but that attracts problems of its own. An old acquaintance of Fergus� approaches him about smuggling packets over the border for the local insurgent group. Since Fergus runs that route anyway, the acquaintance figures that a small load wouldn’t be a problem. And it would be in honor of Joe as well.
Fergus ultimately decides to deliver the packets, and does so for several weeks, during which he gets to know the archaeologists investigating the body from the bog. The daughter of one of the scientists begins to attract Fergus� romantic attentions, adding one more layer to his burgeoning problems. Through dreams, Fergus connects to the dead bog child, and the reader learns that she is not a young girl at all, but a dwarf from prehistoric times, condemned to death because of her physical appearance.
The story continues and Fergus� brother does indeed join the hunger strike. Fergus makes friends with one of the border patrol guard that he passes on his daily run. After learning of a bomb that killed several civilians, Fergus decides he can no longer smuggle these packets, opens one in front of the patrol guard and tries to turn himself in. His friend is baffled that Fergus would want to turn himself in over condoms and birth control pills; Fergus is not smuggling what he thought.
Fergus� brother’s condition gets worse, and when he becomes comatose, the family is forced to either respect Joe’s wishes and allow him to die, or hook him up to an IV drip and force him to live. The archaeologist’s daughter tells Fergus she is moving to America, and Fergus finds out he is accepted to University to become a doctor. The story builds to a plausible climax, and then the twist is thrown in when the reader learns that Fergus� uncle is a major player in the political protest and has built and planted bombs that have killed civilians. Fergus must come to terms with his terrorist uncle’s activities and death, and he makes a new beginning on the boat to England, to University.
� Strengths: Plausible, likeable main character who has to make hard choices and live with the consequences.
� Weaknesses: Maybe too many problems; hard to follow all the political acronyms if not familiar with Irish history (I’m not).
� Passage(s): “Fergus stared at the words. Death. Peace. Hate. Principle. Crime. It was as if an older, more seasoned Fergus from twenty years into the future had bent time and returned to the brain of his younger self to write this letter. Surely it was persuasive. Surely anyone would think twice on reading this …He dropped the pen and tore up the letter.� (118)
“He walked out of the toilets and down the corridor, seeing the boxes and the ticks, the grooves into the future and Joe on the narrow prison bed with the blankets over him, retching up nothing. Somewhere off in the distance, under the old Scots pine of the churchyard, a dark funeral party was huddled and� a coffin was being lowered.� (110)
“He looked down towards the plain, the place he’d lived all his life. The past rolled out before him. The family trips, the laughs, the squabbles� He saw the recent weeks: the packets, exam papers, the counting-off of days as Joe fasted. The condoms and pills, himself and Cora lying like two question marks, and Mel, the laughing, living Mel of his imaginings. And he saw the funeral party� And then he knew.� (314)
� Library Pomotion: A nice book from another country, would work well in a display or unit on world lit; could start some good discussion on political protest and the role of young people during political strife; archaeological aspect could jive well with other archaeological units or research.
� Personal Reflection: Without much familiarity of the situation in 1980s Ireland, the abbreviations and different factions were a little over my head. But the story came through loud and clear and Fergus was my kind of character. He experienced just enough strife over the situations he was in, he sometimes made bad choices and sometimes good ones, but he always came around to see what he should have done.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
February 21, 2020
Не смятам, че книгата реално ми даде нещо, както се казва. Пък и имаше нещо дебилно в нея, простете за силния израз (звучи като написана от или за бавноразвиващи се, въпреки че претендира за нещо ала Джон Грийн). Двете истории вътре изобщо не ми се преплитаха логично. Най-общо казано, не си заслужава прочита дори и на плажа. Явно очаквах твърде много.
April 22, 2019
Okay, riconosco di essere influenzata dal mio interesse per l'argomento.
Il romanzo è pregevole e solido (più della media secondo me) nello svolgimento della trama, la rappresentazione dei caratteri, la gestione temporale dell'azione, la variazione sul tema del romanzo di formazione, insomma quella coerenza di base che in genere le mie tre stelle stanno a indicare.
Ma la quarta stella è perché in questo romanzo ho trovato l'atmosfera che cerco nelle mie storie irlandesi, e un personaggio che mi ricorderò.
Il romanzo è pregevole e solido (più della media secondo me) nello svolgimento della trama, la rappresentazione dei caratteri, la gestione temporale dell'azione, la variazione sul tema del romanzo di formazione, insomma quella coerenza di base che in genere le mie tre stelle stanno a indicare.
Ma la quarta stella è perché in questo romanzo ho trovato l'atmosfera che cerco nelle mie storie irlandesi, e un personaggio che mi ricorderò.
June 11, 2015
Dowd is an author whose work I’ve been planning to read for a while. But being the sort of reader who seeks out stories based on the feeling they’re likely to evoke, the timing never quite seemed right. It was a conversation between work colleagues about the unrest in Ireland in the late 1970s which left me wanting to understand more about the conflict. Suddenly, it was the perfect time to read Bog Child, a stunning and evocative novel which is a late addition to my ‘favourites of 2014� list.
Fergus is a character you can’t help but care about. Not only is he dealing with the stress of final exams and the jitters of first crushes, he’s also been blackmailed into smuggling mysterious packages across the border and trying to keep secret the fact his brother has joined the hunger strike in prison. But while Fergus is dealing with a lot, Dowd never wallows in it. He stresses like a normal teenager, but laughs, cries and celebrates too. Quiet and unassuming, Fergus may just be one of my favourite characters.
While I was interested in learning more about Irish history, reading this did feel like jumping in the deep end at first. Dowd doesn’t explain the ins and outs of the conflict, and I did at times feel like I’d just stumbled on half the story. But I loved it. It felt authentic and real, as if I’d just stepped into Fergus� world. Truth be told, I prefer that approach to historical fiction over info dumping. Like all great storytellers, Dowd draws you into the tale regardless. But if you’re worried about going into the novel cold, even a quick google search will give you enough information about the hunger strikes and conflict of the time. On the topic of authenticity, I also adored the very real dialogue and beautiful writing. I’ve yet to go to Ireland, but I felt like I was standing on the very same windswept hill as Fergus.
My only slight problem with the novel is that I never felt fully connected to or invested in the bog child. The political conflicts between Ireland and England were, for me anyway, the far more interesting aspect of the novel. In saying that, I did really like the way Dowd intertwined the two stories. Personally, I would have loved to see even more of Owain, a British soldier from a small mining town in Wales whose only choice in ‘career� was heading down the pit or joining the army. I loved the conversations between Fergus and Owain, which perfectly illustrated of the frustrating senselessness of war.
In Bog Child, Dowd has created a story which wraps you up to the very end and characters you can’t help but care about. Powerful, poignant and compelling, Bog Child is a novel that leaves its mark.
This review and many more can be found at .
Fergus is a character you can’t help but care about. Not only is he dealing with the stress of final exams and the jitters of first crushes, he’s also been blackmailed into smuggling mysterious packages across the border and trying to keep secret the fact his brother has joined the hunger strike in prison. But while Fergus is dealing with a lot, Dowd never wallows in it. He stresses like a normal teenager, but laughs, cries and celebrates too. Quiet and unassuming, Fergus may just be one of my favourite characters.
While I was interested in learning more about Irish history, reading this did feel like jumping in the deep end at first. Dowd doesn’t explain the ins and outs of the conflict, and I did at times feel like I’d just stumbled on half the story. But I loved it. It felt authentic and real, as if I’d just stepped into Fergus� world. Truth be told, I prefer that approach to historical fiction over info dumping. Like all great storytellers, Dowd draws you into the tale regardless. But if you’re worried about going into the novel cold, even a quick google search will give you enough information about the hunger strikes and conflict of the time. On the topic of authenticity, I also adored the very real dialogue and beautiful writing. I’ve yet to go to Ireland, but I felt like I was standing on the very same windswept hill as Fergus.
My only slight problem with the novel is that I never felt fully connected to or invested in the bog child. The political conflicts between Ireland and England were, for me anyway, the far more interesting aspect of the novel. In saying that, I did really like the way Dowd intertwined the two stories. Personally, I would have loved to see even more of Owain, a British soldier from a small mining town in Wales whose only choice in ‘career� was heading down the pit or joining the army. I loved the conversations between Fergus and Owain, which perfectly illustrated of the frustrating senselessness of war.
In Bog Child, Dowd has created a story which wraps you up to the very end and characters you can’t help but care about. Powerful, poignant and compelling, Bog Child is a novel that leaves its mark.
This review and many more can be found at .
December 7, 2008
On a study break from preparing for his A-level exams, Fergus accompanies his uncle Tally on a peat-digging trip when they find the body in the bog. Police argue about which side of Ireland's north-south border the body is on and therefore who is responsible for handling this apparent murder case--but then the body is determined to be much older than any open murder case, possibly Iron Age. Fergus gets deeply involved in trying to unravel the mystery of who the girl was (as well as getting deeply involved with the archeologist's daughter, Cora), while trying desperately not to get involved with the other circumstances. The year is 1981, and Ireland is in the midst of the Troubles. Fergus's brother is on a hunger strike as a political prisoner, and his brother's friend coerces Fergus into ferrying small parcels back and forth across the border. This is a dramatic summer that will change everything.
The writing is sparsely beautiful; there is not a wasted word or plot thread here, and while the plot unfolds slowly, it is compelling and suspenseful from beginning to end. Major characters are richly developed; minor characters are developed enough to be distinct and realistic. There is a clear sense of the time and place, and this may be the only flaw in this excellent novel: the setting is so well-integrated into the plot that the reader would be helped by knowledge of Ireland's recent history, because many elements are not well-explained for those who have no background. Readers may puzzle over some of these details, but most can be understood in context, and any lingering questions can be addressed with minimal research. While the writing and some of the plot threads are accessible to bight middle-schoolers, this is a title that will do well in the hands of motivated high-school readers and adults.
The writing is sparsely beautiful; there is not a wasted word or plot thread here, and while the plot unfolds slowly, it is compelling and suspenseful from beginning to end. Major characters are richly developed; minor characters are developed enough to be distinct and realistic. There is a clear sense of the time and place, and this may be the only flaw in this excellent novel: the setting is so well-integrated into the plot that the reader would be helped by knowledge of Ireland's recent history, because many elements are not well-explained for those who have no background. Readers may puzzle over some of these details, but most can be understood in context, and any lingering questions can be addressed with minimal research. While the writing and some of the plot threads are accessible to bight middle-schoolers, this is a title that will do well in the hands of motivated high-school readers and adults.
February 17, 2017
Tutvustuse leiab blogist
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