The Once and Future Celt

Author Bill Watkins wishes that life in Ireland was as simple as people think it is. "The Once and Future Celt" is his reflections on growing up in the Celtic culture. Frank, honest, and hilarious, Bill's anecdotal stories range from his encounters with gypsies, whose culture has shocking similarities to his own, to trying to make it in Birmingham during a time where the economy was so bad that the most appealing job prospect was washing dishes in a local University. "The Once and Future Celt" is a strong choice for anyone who enjoys real-life, down-to-earth storytelling.

Even if you haven't read either of Bill Watkin's first two books (and if you haven't, you should!) The Once and Future Celt stands alone as an absorbing and entertaining memoir....a young man's adventures as he seeks to find the place his rich celtic heritage has in the world he is fast growing up in. The book is peopled with an array of fascinating, touching, and very often humorous characters and situations, filled with snatches of traditional poetry and song, and bits of history brought to life by the hand of a true storyteller. Armchair travellers will delight in the colorful people and places these books introduce us to, and -- who knows -- maybe some will decide to strap on their own backpacks and take to the road in search of their own adventures!

This book is the final book in a trilogy of memoirs that Bill Watkins has written about his youth and coming of age as a Celt. The whimsy in a title that refers back to "The Once and Future King," King Arthur, is an indication of the intellectual humor that permeates the books. Watkins himself was born in Birmingham, England of an Irish mother and a Welsh father. Both parents were storytellers as well as speakers of their native languages. Watkins learned a lot of both as a child and then continued on in a search for self that would make him a Druid or wise man. This particular book begins with Watkins sustaining a severe cut on his foot that is tended to and healed with the aid of a Gypsy (Romany) shuvani healer and her niece, Riena. As he is healing, he stays with the Gypsy caravan and finds himself discovering many connections between the Romany traditions and those of the ancient Celts. This is an intriguing book. Bill Watkins gathers and shares knowledge of poetry, folk tales, folk music, and folk wisdom that he has gathered while traveling throughout Scotland, Ireland, Wales, and England and with the British merchant marines. He intersperses poetry, song, philosophy and lots of humor with wonderful descriptions of the people he meets as he rambles about, returns home and then moves on again. As he finds out more about Celtic traditions he also finds out more about himself and how he might fit into the present day world. He is driven in part by the request of his father to work to keep the Celtic traditions from being lost. Part of his quest is to find ways to fulfill that mission. It's a book that perhaps not everyone would enjoy, but I liked it a lot. I'm now interested in reading his earlier books too. Armchair Interviews says: Most interesting, especially if this region of the world interests you.

They say that the third part of a triolgy is often the weakest part of the whole, not in this hillarious, but thought-provoking book. I loved it every bit as much as Celtic Childhood and Scotland is not for the Squeamish, and what is more amazing is, the more I learned about Bill and his adventures, the more I learned about myself. Great read!