Nenagh native’s Dolla-inspired books

A Nenagh native has written a series of fantasy books inspired by the townland of Foilnamuck, Dolla.

Colin Clifford was born in Nenagh in 1943 and lived at St Patrick's Terrace. Moving on to live and work in several different countries – including Brazil – over the decades since, he was in his retirement encouraged by friends to start writing fantasy books for children.

Colin had a book published earlier this year called ‘The Magic Village of Foilnamuck’. It follows the adventures of a Master Wizard and his apprentice grandson, Hedgie O'Hog, as they guide a family of hedgehogs from their doomed planet Zurkon in giant magic balloons, their destination a land called Foilnamuck on the planet Earth.

“My inspiration for the book came from a few different sources,” said Colin, who now resides in Wales. “Firstly, the name ‘Foilnamuck’ has always stuck in my mind since I heard it mentioned by people in Nenagh years ago.

“Secondly, I read an article about the plight of hedgehogs in the modern world, so I needed a place for them to live and decided that Planet Zurkon was ideal. But then they had to move and no better place to come to was Foilnamuck. After that, you just need a crazy brain!”

Colin added that when he and his sister Patricia were children, their mother would say to them: “Not now, I'm in Foilnamuck,” whenever she did not want to be disturbed. “I suppose it was her way of asking for peace and quiet,” he said.

Colin's “co-conspirator” in writing books is his adopted daughter Rosani, with whom he visited Nenagh last August when she was over from Rio de Janeiro with her family. The visit inspired his next book - ‘The Wizards of Foilnamuck’ - which should be out by the time you are reading this.

Writing under his Gaelic name - Cóilín Ó Clúmháin - Colin's books are available online from Amazon.