British Iron Age / Celts – Children’s Historical Fiction

There is very little historical fiction on the Iron Age before the coming of the Romans.

• Sun Horse, Moon Horse by Rosemary Sutcliff
  Unusually this is set in Iron Age before the Romans. Although the story is concerned with inter-tribal warfare, the drama comes less from this, and more from the tension between the practical world of the warrior and and the spiritual world of the artist.
  Lubrin Dhu is the third son of the chief, and sees the world differently to others, through artist’s eyes. This is a bittersweet, story of friendship, duty and sacrifice in a tribal culture devoted to the horse.
  It is written in Rosemary Sutcliff’s signature poetic style. It is a shorter story than many of her books, and as a result makes a good introduction to Rosemary Sutcliff’s work for those unused to her style – descriptive language and long sentences.

Many of the stories from this period are viewed through Irish and Welsh mythology – the surviving tales written down in medieval times.

The Ulster Cycle:

• The Hound Of Ulster by Rosemary Sutcliff
• The Hound of Ulster (White Wolves: Stories from Different Cultures) by Malachy Doyle
• The Love Story of Diarmaid and Grainne by Liam Mac Uistin
• The Táin: Ireland’s Epic Adventure by Liam Mac Uistin (Author), Donald Teskey (Illustrator)

Cornish Mythology:

• Tristan and Iseult by Rosemary Sutcliff

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