3 out of 4 stars
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The Great Whitey O'Gill Achieves the Luck of the Irish is a children's book by Irish author Courtney Shields for kids around seven to ten years of age. Whitey O'Gill is a Great White Shark who lives in the Pacific Ocean off the coast of Baja, California, with his parents Sean and Sharkleen and his siblings Marine and Finn. They were all named by Irish fisherman Paddy O'Sharkessy, who became very attached to the shark family while fishing for mackerel in the area. The family quickly grow accustomed to Paddy, their Irish names, and the folklore that goes with them. They think of Paddy as a leprechaun and enjoy his rosy cheeks and the way he winks at them. Whitey dreams about what it would be like for his family to live on the Atlantic Coast of Ireland. Then, one day, a storm separates him from his family, sending him far from home...
The copy of the book I read opens with a great illustration showing Whitey wearing a green leprechaun's top hat, surrounded by a few three-leaf clovers and the outlines of many fish in the background. The foreground shows two young girls sitting in a pot full of gold coins. Unfortunately, this is the only illustration in this copy of the book, but I guess Shields would include more in the same style when publishing the book. She certainly should; it is colourful, cartoonish, and very appealing. I feel kids would love it and be keen to see more of the same throughout the book.
The character names are clever and would appeal strongly to children, from Whitey and Sharkleen O'Gill to their fisherman friend Paddy O'Sharkessy. I enjoyed the ending of the book, which featured an uplifting moral message for children, and a betrayal of trust at one point which might act as a cautionary tale against implicitly trusting strangers. There were also a few excellent descriptive sentences. My two favourites were: "All the ocean residents spun as if they were ingredients added to a dark brew in a witch's cauldron," and: "They were gone in a flash, like a damselfish being gulped by a giant cod." Both were beautifully written and evoked strong images in my mind. I also liked the references to Irish culture strewn through the story.
I did find a few issues with the writing in this book, but I think all would be picked up and fixed by a professional editor. "Finn and Marine would giggle as their eyes drifted off to sleep" might be more accurate if written "as their eyes closed" or "as they drifted off to sleep". "Whitey caught fast glimpses of his sister..." includes a redundant expression; a glimpse is fast by nature so this doesn't need to be specified. There are a couple of overlong sentences (around forty words each) which I feel are too unwieldy for kids, and other odd extra words which could be trimmed throughout the book. The occasional omission of commas also makes it hard to follow at times: "Whitey looked behind him and saw one of the enormously wide gaping mouths that stretched out fifty times the size of his own mouth within inches of his tail!" Two commas would fix this: "...gaping mouths, fifty times the size of his own mouth, within inches..."
Overall, I liked this book. With a decent edit and some more illustrations (which I feel is a given in a children's book), I think it would be enjoyed by all kids in the seven to ten age range. It is a nice story with a decent moral message at the end. For this reason, I rate it 3 out of 4 stars, with one star subtracted for the errors.
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The Great Whitey O'Gill Achieves the Luck of the Irish
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when I get a little money I buy books; and if I have any left l buy food and clothes
