Brendan

Having loved Morgan Llywelyn's early works such as "The Horse Goddess" and "Lion of Ireland," I was excited to find this book at my local brick-and-mortar store. Irish history, the navigation of unknown seas, the rise to sainthood of a common man. . .the blurb on the jacket called to me. This is a fictionalized biography of Saint Brendan. Llywelyn is at her best in the early chapters, as she describes Brendan's growth, a little boy learning about the world in fosterage. Brendan comes to love the contemplative life. He loves the mentoring of the Sisters, especially Ita. Even as a child he feels a deep connection to the singing sun and the natural world, constantly questioning and challenging the ways of the world, the meaning of God. He says, "In this happy nursery I grew from babe to boy." As the book goes on, he is passed on to the tutelage of Erc. Erc, who could have been a Druid, became a Bishop of the new Church instead. Brendan learns more of Christianity and the idea of God as Father. The reader meets Brendan's natural family, his sister and mother. Brendan grows and changes and worries about his adolescent night dreams. He influences a wide set of young monks and tribal warriors, each with an odd name (the author worked from the medieval story, "The Life of Saint Brendan). Interspersed with his growing up are short chapters of Brendan's various sailings, visiting unfamiliar places and subjected to dangers of every sort, finding visions and miracles. The most compelling of his struggles is the creation of his relationship with a foundling raven. Llywelyn's book is ultimately a statement of faith and the belief in the use of self-discipline to achieve things we had not believed we would be capable of achieving. The philosophy is clear. The miracles may leave the reader skeptical. This book has a different tone and purpose than some of Llywelyn's previous works. It is a gracefully written account of finding the essence of a soul.