As published in the Gazette, a publication of the Gulf Coast Writers Association, January 2025
Imagine a Celtic Karate Kid in a Percy Jackson adventure. The result is Hounded, a contemporary coming-of-age novel inspired by the legendary Irish warrior, hero, and demigod Cú Chulainn [koo KULL-an].
Written for a middle-grade audience, Hounded tells the story of Tony Setanta, a 13-year-old nerd bullied by his onetime friend Ferdy Daman. To escape his tormentor, Tony changes his name to Colin and flees to the protection of his grandaunt, Alba Scathach [SKA-ha]. Hounded by visions of a lizard-like character threatening the boy, Alba teaches Colin to be a Celtic warrior through discipline, magic, and the Irish martial art bataireacht [BA-ta-rokt]—shillelagh fighting.
The original premise for the book, however, had nothing to do with bataireacht, shillelaghs, or magic. While visiting a friend, I raided his bookshelf and stumbled upon Red Branch. Written by Morgan Llywelyn, it novelizes the legend of Cú Chulainn.
***
Born Sétanta, Cú Chulainn ran away as a young boy to join King MacNessa’s renowned Red Branch warrior-training school.
One night, the swordsmith Culann invited the king and his warriors to dinner. Sétanta was late; his absence went unnoticed until Culann released his beloved guard dog Cú (Irish for hound) to protect the property.
“Where’s Sétanta?” the king shouted when howling filled the night. Everyone rushed outside thinking Cú had killed the boy. Instead, the boy had killed the dog. Humble and contrite, Sétanta offered to take the guard dog’s place until a replacement could be bred. Hence, he became the “Cú of Culann,” or Cú Chulainn.
Cú Chulainn went on to study under Scáthach, the fabled Scottish warrioress and martial arts teacher. There, he met the Ulster warrior Ferdiad Daman. They became brothers-in-arms. Each had a special weapon: Scáthach gave Cú Chulainn the Gáe Bulg, a barbed spear that always inflicted death; and Ferdiad developed horned skin that no weapon could pierce.
In the legendary Cattle Raid of Coley, the two warriors fought to the death. Shortly after killing Ferdiad, Cú Chulainn himself was slain. Before dying, he bound himself to a stone so he could die on his feet, in true warrior fashion.
***
“Don’t you think it’s time for some contemporary Celtic hero stories?” I asked my friend as we sat around a fire. I mulled the possibilities.
I envisioned Tony Setanta meeting Ferdy Daman in prison where Scáthach, a guard, taught martial arts. Hounded’s evolution into a middle-grade adventure is a testament to the power of allowing a story to tell itself.
For example, while delving into Irish martial arts, I found Maxime Chouinard, a master of Antrim Bata, a traditional style of bataireacht, who encouraged me to use his research.
The same serendipity struck when I happened upon Tecosca Cormaic (Instructions of Cormac Mac Airt). It’s an Old Irish wisdom text in which the legendary high king taught, among other practices, that being a listener in woods and a gazer at stars (two of my favorite pastimes) train the young to become old and wise. These lessons, and Aesop’s fable on the “The Oak and the Reed,” provided a thematic structure to Hounded.
In The Cattle Raid at Cooley, Thomas Kinsella described Cú Chulainn’s battle rage so vividly that it inspired Bill Green to illustrate Colin’s progression in Hounded from nerd to warrior.
What emerged is the second book in the Companion Moon series—far, far from a prison drama. Packed with action, humor, and contemporary themes, Hounded draws on mythological characters, conflicts, and warrior training to show that it takes more than fighting skills to become a warrior. Hounded not only explores the transformational power of discipline and friendship, but also the cathartic energy of letting a story tell itself.
Hounded could revolutionize your life, too.
Available at pattimwalsh.com, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Annette’s BookNook,
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