The Leaping Lepre of Letterfrack

By Christopher Goodrum

An ancient peace offering known as the Airgead, a symbol of peace and unity, is stolen. The queen of Letterfrack and the king of Claddaghduff accuse the other of the betrayal and theft, and the king of Claddaghduff threatens war unless the Airgead is returned.

Only three young teens know the truth. That a dark shadow has stolen the Airgead. A dark shadow only they can see. Riona of the Caughn clan, and Séamus and Dáira of the Lepre clan set out to find the dark shadow and retrieve the Airgead.

They embark on a journey and find themselves on a magical adventure that will test their bravery and their magic in the hope of stopping a war before it begins.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Christopher Goodrum
• Release date: Jun 26, 2016
• ISBN: 9781311547224

Christopher Goodrum

Christopher Goodrum writes on the go. That is how he would describe how he prefers to write. He still prefers the old way of writing: putting pen to paper, even in this age of laptops and tablets, Starting with comedic skits for talent shows at a young age, Goodrum quickly found his knack for humor and the art of screwball comedies. His later years transformed his work from skits to dramatic plays, having scripted, performed, and directed an one-act play for the senior class of his high school as well as scripted original dialogue for his high school's Broadway Revue show. All the while, he begun his adventures in writing novels and teleplays. After a few years, he shifted his focus on honing his craft in writing novels: particularly in the genres of science fiction and fantasy. Goodrum is an entertainer at heart. A self-proclaimed jack-of-all-trades in this field. He acted and directed; sung and danced; composed, recorded, and performed musical scores; played the piano; briefly tried stand-up; and learned the art of improvisation. He performed in numerous plays and musicals, both in high school and for San Joaquin County in California, performing in front of the state's capital; and performed in two theme parks, including Paramount's Great America (now, California's Great America) and the Disneyland Resort. Through it all, writing was the one thing that was always present.

Book preview

The Leaping Lepre of Letterfrack

Julianna Goodrum and Christopher Goodrum

The Leaping Lepre of Letterfrack

By Christopher Goodrum

Copyright 2015 Christopher Goodrum

Smashwords Edition

Smashwords Edition, License Notes

This ebook is licensed for your personal enjoyment only. This ebook may not be re-sold or given away to other people. If you would like to share this book with another person, please purchase an additional copy for each recipient. If you’re reading this book and did not purchase it, or it was not purchased for your use only, then please return to your favorite ebook retailer and purchase your own copy. Thank you for respecting the hard work of this author.

Preface

The Leaping Lepre of Letterfrack is a special kind of story. The origin is complicated. My father and I don’t really remember how it started, but we know with all our hearts it started as a joke. How it happened word-for-word, we can’t recall. What we do know is that the joke left us with three ideas: leprechaun clans going to war, one of the clans are nicknamed Lepres, and the alliteration of the work-in-progress title called, The Leaping Lepres.

After several discussions, we decided the plot, main characters, and the official title: The Leaping Lepre of Letterfrack. I am still very young and have much to learn, but I do know that writing a book with my father is very fun and that the creative process called writing a book, can take a while, maybe even years before completion. But, luckily, I have an experienced writer guiding me.

Julianna Goodrum

March 2015

The Leaping Lepre of Letterfrack has some interesting tidbits.

Firstly, there is a real place called Letterfrack. It’s not just for alliteration, although it did serve the title quite well in that regard.

Secondly, we thought it was best to stay true to Ireland by exploring some of their mythical creatures and folklore to find something that would fit the story, and not just have dark shadows or supernatural creatures that wouldn’t necessary be found in Ireland.

And lastly, in addition to creatures that were Irish in nature, we wanted the names of the characters to be as authentic to Ireland as possible as the names are rooted in Gaelic.

So, if you find the names difficult to pronounce, we have a guide to help you. And if that doesn’t work, you can call them whatever you like. That worked for me while trying to make it through J.R.R. Tolkien’s The Silmarillion.

This was a fun project for us. And while we haven’t spoken of it, yet, this may only be the beginning.

Christopher Goodrum

March 2015

Acknowledgements

This would not have been possible without the love, support, and craziness of our family. They may not understand our wit, but we entertain them just the same.

We also would like to thank all who encouraged us to read, all who inspired us to write, and all who believed in us long before we believed in ourselves; including Allen Grunerud, for encouraging Christopher to write plays and perform them in high school, and Julianna’s parents, for introducing her to the world of entertainment.

Most importantly, we would like to thank our Heavenly Father for blessing us with this talent, and the opportunity to entertain.

Table of Contents

Preface

Ackowledgements

Pronunciation Guide

Chapter One

Chapter Two

Chapter Three

Chapter Four

Chapter Five

Chapter Six

Chapter Seven

About the Author

Connect with Christopher Goodrum

Also by Christopher Goodrum

For Kellie…because we can’t, in good conscience, dedicate this to Batman or Doctor Who.

Pronunciation Guide

Baoth: BEE

Brógán: BRO gawn

Clár: CLAIR

Dáira: DAW rah

Eithne: EN yeh

Lough: läk, or lock

Ríona: REE uh na

Séamus: Shay-mus

Sorcha: SUR a ka

Tomás: tuh MAWS

Tuathal: TOO uh hul

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The Leaping Lepre of Letterfrack

Chapter One

The name is Séamus…Séamus Ward. Aye, I know, it is incredibly Irish. I hail from the most beautiful and magical island in all the world: Ireland. We gave the world St. Patrick’s Day and the color green. Aye…green.

Legend has it that at the beginning of time, the world was without and void of color. A clump of earth, rock, and streams of water like a vein of gold coursing through a mine. As a wayward comet of white ice neared, the Great Maker drew it close to the sun allowing the light of the sun to pass through the ice. The ice scattered the sunlight into a spectrum of colors, pouring it onto the clump of earth and rock. The world began to take form. The streams of water widened and deepened into seas and oceans. The earth and rock formed land: mountains and valleys. The Great Maker gave us the bluest of oceans, the brownest of dirt, and the whitest of snow. But the earth was still brown.

Rather drab if you ask me.

As fortune would have it, Sorcha…the matriarch of all on my kind…stood alone of my blessed Ireland where the spectrum of color and light touched the earth. Born from the magical springs not long after the earth took shape, she was graced with magic by the Great Maker and gifted with a purse of gold. Sorcha stood before the spectrum and placed the purse of gold at its base. The gold became infused with the light. It glowed with a brilliant, golden radiance. Grass began to grow, spreading out from the purse. It was thick, tall, and green. Trees and flowers sprouted up from the ground, throughout the island, and then throughout the world. Brown bark and branches flourished into green leaves and moss. Brown roots stretched into green stems and pedals before blossoming into yellow tulips and red roses.

Sorcha and her purse of gold gave to the world grass, trees, and the color green. Given from the heart of Ireland.

You’re welcome!

I come from a long line of bards. Generation upon generation of storytellers. Telling tales of legends, heroics, fables, and the history of my people. Who are my people, you may be asking.

I am a Lepre. A magical and proud people of Letterfrack, Ireland. But not the Ireland you may have known or heard about. It doesn’t surprise me a wee bit that you never heard of Letterfrack, or my people. My brother, Lough, says it is because we were the first people of magic. That we slipped into folklore and myth. A forgotten people. I think it’s because we are not on Facebook.

Leiter fraic is a quint village located on the western shores of Ireland in County Galway near Ballinakill harbor. We have fishermen, farmers, and bakers; alchemists, tailors, and healers; a teacher, a constable, and a family of storytellers. Leiter fraic, or how it is commonly known as Letterfrack, is not that different from any other village my kin lives in throughout Ireland.

As a village, our trade is our livelihood and each village has their own trade that benefits another. Clifden masters the art of fishing, the people of Loughrea excels at hunting, and the village of Longford have skilled woodcarvers that make the finest furniture in Central Ireland. Letterfrack specializes in shoemaking. My people used to say that we have more cobblers than sheep. Looking back before the Great Union, that was more fact than hyperbole. If you weren’t holding a fishing net, a gardening hoe, or schoolbook, you were holding an awl and a hammer. If you weren’t baking bread or pie, you were stretching and aging leather. The wealth of Letterfrack is in its shoes.

It wasn’t always that way.

Centuries ago, there was a splitting of the Lepre Clan. Upon the passing of the king, his twin sons were given the kingdom to rule equally. However, the brothers were in disagreement on how to rule. One brother, Baoth, wanted to rule with a firm hand, eager to build up his kingdom with riches. He saw