‘A Sheepdog Named Oscar’ up for Irish Book Award
There is no right way to grieve a sudden loss and no singular tunnel out of the avalanche of emotions that such a death hurtles at you. By the end of this deeply personal memoir, however, you sense that its author, Dara Waldron, has finally found a way through, by virtue of a sheepdog named Oscar.
Raised in Tuam, Co Galway, Dara – who attended Cistercian College Roscrea as a teenager and now resides with his family in Murroe, on the Limerick/Tipperary border – found himself plunged into an abyss of despair in 2016 following the shock death of his father in a road-traffic accident near Ballingarry. Dr John Waldron, a prominent GP whose progressive instincts blended together with an inner conservatism, was killed while travelling from a point-to-point meeting. He had a passion for horses and Dara acknowledges in the book that he died “doing what he always did”. That proves to be of little consolation, as the author struggles to quell the tidal wave of grief that sweeps over him.
The emergence of Oscar, a seemingly abandoned yet affectionate border collie found alone in a disused farmhouse in the Clare countryside, changes everything. There is more than a hint of serendipity to the circumstances that lead Dara and his family to the Kilkishen farmhouse where Oscar is living, and their first encounter produces an instant bond. Over time that bond grows, matures, blossoms and never really wavers. Not only does Oscar keep Dara afloat at a difficult and lonely time in his life, he effectively rescues him.
Candid, emotional and uplifting
Candid, emotional and at times thoroughly uplifting, the story revolves around Dara’s connection with Oscar but it also explores the author’s relationship with his father, which was close, but, by Dara’s own admission, “strained in the months before he died”. It is this honesty, this frankness, that makes the book feel so authentic. It is probably one of the many reasons that it shot to number 4 in the New York Times bestseller list upon its initial release in the US, and that it is now nominated for the An Post Non-Fiction Book of the Year award. However, within its 220 or so pages there are multiple dimensions. As well as being a beautifully written, intimate memoir, this is simultaneously a guidebook on the history, geography, heritage and folklore of Ireland’s midwest, focusing mainly on North Tipperary, Limerick and Clare, but also extending up to Dara’s native Tuam, out to Connemara, and as far as Mayo.
Nenagh Guardian readers will almost certainly recognise many of the locations and places Dara references. There are escapades into the Silvermines, treks up Clare Glens and strolls through the premises of Glenstal Abbey, next to which Dara and his family live. Killaloe is mentioned more than once, as is Lough Derg and the majestic view from the top of Moylussa. Memories are recollected vividly, Oscar featuring heavily in each, and the images Dara paints are sharp, intense and accurate. Accompanying those images are snippets of fascinating information regarding the history of the land and the folklore associated with it.
Blended into the text also are references to film and the arts, both contemporary and historical, and indeed the wider world of current affairs. And of course sheepdogs. Fittingly enough, you will close the book’s covers with a detailed knowledge of sheepdogs. Fabulously researched and superbly and bravely written, ‘A Sheepdog Named Oscar’ will brighten your outlook on life. Just ask anyone who has read it.
Devised as a film project
Given that Dara is an eminent film scholar and a lecturer in Limerick School of Art and Design at the Technological University of the Shannon, it may not surprise you to learn that this whole endeavour was originally devised as a film project. It was, Dara says, initially intended to form some sort of script, but it eventually evolved into a long-form memoir and there were numerous attempts to get it published – which seems to be an obligatory process for every successful author. When a rep from American bookseller Barnes & Noble fell in love with the book, it was the break Dara needed. ‘A Sheepdog Named Oscar’ was quickly chosen as their Book of the Month and its popularity exploded, long before it had ever hit an Irish shelf.
Speaking over the phone on a quiet Bank Holiday Monday, Dara, who is amicable and grounded, explains the process at length. It is relatively rare for an Irish author to crack America before their book is even released here, but that, he says, is just the way it happened. As the title suggests, his book is a tale of love and companionship, and that is the primary reason he wrote it. But there was also another element.
“So part of my reason for writing it was to try and celebrate the region I had moved to, largely around Glenstal and the Silvermines and very much East Clare as well,” he explains. “I just kind of thought the landscape hadn’t been given the same attention as say the west coast might be given, or even parts of Dublin.”
Dara describes “the healing capacity” of that landscape and alludes to the helpful map at the beginning of the book which allows readers to navigate the locations visually. The book, he adds, has done really well in Ireland, and he reveals that he is actually working on a follow-up at the moment.
Well-versed in everything from history to politics to literature past and present, Dara comes across as a man who could write a book on any subject. But he has chosen to document his own lived experience. And often, such books are the most powerful.