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The Leprechaun Under the Bed

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The Leprechaun Under the Bed

Paperback(Reprint)

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Paperback(Reprint)
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Overview

"A leprechaun can be alone without being lonely," says Brian O'Shea.

And that's how Brian likes it— so when a big human man tries to build a cottage on top of Brian's underground home, the leprechaun does his best to scare the fellow away with his magical tricks.

But Sean McDonald refuses to be frightened off— and over time the two develop an unlikely friendship. After all, a leprechaun in the house is a fine piece of luck— and that luck comes in handy when news of Sean's good fortune attracts dangerous attention.

Cleverly told and brightly illustrated, this folktale friendship is a delightful tale for St. Patrick's day— or any day when you could use a little magic.

Product Details
About the Author

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780823441815
Publisher:	Holiday House
Publication date:	01/15/2019
Edition description:	Reprint
Pages:	32
Sales rank:	1,138,062
Product dimensions:	8.80(w) x 9.50(h) x 0.20(d)
Age Range:	4 - 8 Years

About the Author

Teresa Bateman is a school librarian, a storyteller and the author of many lively stories and poems for children. She has won both the Storytelling World Award and the Anne Izard Storyteller's Award. Her books include Red, White, Blue, and Uncle Who? and Keeper of Soles, an ALA Notable Children's Book. She lives in Tacoma, Washington.

Paul Meisel is the author and illustrator of See Me Run, a Theodor Seuss Geisel Honor Book, and See Me Dig, a Kirkus Reviews Best Book, and is the illustrator of many books for young people, including The Schmutzy Family by Madelyn Rosenberg, a Sydney Taylor Honor Book. He lives in Connecticut.

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Editorial Reviews

"The book celebrates friendship and conveys the rewards to be found in generosity toward others. Overall, this mix of magic and humor will delight young readers long past Saint Patricks Day."—Booklist

"Meisel's whimsical acrylic and watercolor illustrations add an additional layer of light-heartedness to the well-paced story."—Horn Book Guide

"'Tis a grand thing."—Kirkus Reviews

"This nicely told story with a sprinkling of enchantment is complemented with lively, simple illustrations depicting plain country life. Children will love this story and ask to hear it at any time of the year, but it is a wonderful choice for St. Patrick's Day."—School Library Journal

From the Publisher

The luck o’ the Irish—even if it comes from a begrudging leprechaun—is alive and well in Bateman’s original folktale set on the Emerald Isle. All is pleasant and peaceful in cobbler/leprechaun Brian O’Shea’s underground home, until a man named Sean MacDonald begins building a cottage overhead. Brian conjures headless ghosts and a banshee to stop Sean’s encroachment on his turf, to no avail (“It’s just like my sainted mother always told me,” Sean says. “The land of Ireland is full of magic and surprises”). Brian makes a trap door underneath Sean’s bed so he can pop into the cottage unseen, but Sean catches on soon enough, and the two come to an unspoken understanding that serves them both. Bateman (The Christmas Pups) sprinkles her humorous prose with traditional folklore tropes, but the end result feels pleasantly fresh. In his jaunty watercolor and acrylic paintings, Meisel (The Haunted Hamburger and Other Ghostly Stories) captures a timeless countryside dotted with stone walls, thatch roof cottages, and patches of green. Ages 4–8. (Mar.)

Publishers Weekly

K-Gr 2—Brian O'Shea loves his solitary life. He has built a home underground where he happily cobbles shoes. When a tall human, Sean McDonald, decides to build a cottage right above his home, the leprechaun is distressed. He tries to scare the intruder away with ghosts, but to no avail. Brian creates a front door under Sean's bed and begins to devise ways to disturb his sleep with hammering and thumping. Whenever Sean seems to move, the leprechaun whispers that it is only the cat making noises. That works until Sean realizes that he doesn't have a cat and must be blessed with a lucky wee friend. He leaves food for Brian and talks to him, and a comfortable alliance is made. When robbers break into Sean's home, the leprechaun's magic saves the day. This nicely told story with a sprinkling of enchantment is complemented with lively, simple illustrations depicting plain country life. Children will love this story and ask to hear it at any time of the year, but it is a wonderful choice for St. Patrick's Day.—Mary Hazelton, Elementary Schools in Warren & Waldoboro, ME

School Library Journal

Mischief ensues when Sean, a human, accidentally builds his cottage over the home of Brian, a leprechaun. Brian awakens Sean nightly with his cobbling. Before the man can find him, Brian lulls him back to sleep saying, "Now don't you be fretting your wee little head. It's only a cat under the bed." Good-natured Sean is not fooled, for "[h]is mother had always said that a leprechaun in the house was a fine piece of luck," and he begins leaving food for Brian. The use of dialect lends flavor to the tale while the gentle cadence makes clear that the prank, while a test, is not malicious. Acrylic and watercolor illustrations in primary colors have the innocent feeling of children's drawings and depict the growing alliance between the two. When hard times hit, Brian gives Sean first one, then another gold coin to buy food. Tongues wag about Sean's rumored wealth, and, in an up-tick to the pace, robbers threaten Sean in his home. When they hear a noise, Sean tells them, "It's only the cat under the bed." With a bit of leprechaun magic, Brian has become a wildcat--and the image practically leaps off the page! At the satisfying conclusion of this original tale, the robbers run away leaving Sean and Brian, now friends for life, in peace. 'Tis a grand thing. (Picture book. 4-8)

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