The autumn season is well and truly upon us, and we wanted to send you an update on the progress of Bradan Press’s new Autumn 2023 books. The great news is that all of our children’s books are at the printer right now! If all goes well they should be shipping to us on Monday, October 16 and arriving on Thursday or Friday, just in time to take with us to the Gaelic College Oidhche Shamhna Halloween Weekend. As soon as we get back from there, we’ll be shipping out your preorders!
The only exception is the Irish-language graphic novel An Rós Fiáin. It’s gorgeous, the lettering is progressing, and we’ll soon be moving into the proofreading phase. We’re running a little later with it than we hoped, so it’s now our goal to get copies shipped out in early-to-mid November (whether your orders were through the website or as Kickstarter pledge rewards). We’re still so unbelievably grateful for everyone’s support with this project, and we can’t wait to share it with you all!
Just in case you’ve missed our social media posts, here’s a list of our upcoming vending dates, followed by a recap of all the new Bradan Press titles you can expect to see soon!
Save the Date(s)
We hope to see you at one of our upcoming vending events, including a NEW South Shore date in late November! Keep an eye out, because we’ll be adding EVEN MORE in the next couple of weeks!
Fri-Sun, October 20-22 – Gaelic College / Colaisde na Gàidhlig, Halloween Gaelic Immersion Weekend, Oidhche Shamhna Ghàidhealach, with classes offered for Beginner, Intermediate, and Fluent Speakers levels. St. Ann’s, Cape Breton, NS
Friday, October 27 – Social Studies Teachers Association Conference, Halifax, NS
Fri-Sun, October 27-29 – Hal-Con, Nova Centre, Halifax, NS
Fri-Sun, November 3–5 – Christmas at the Forum, Halifax Forum Multipurpose Room, Halifax, NS
Fri-Sun, November 17–19 – Acadia Craft Expo, Acadia University Athletics Complex, Wolfville, NS
Sat, November 25 – Merry Witchmas, Chester Legion, Chester, NS
Fri-Sun, December 8-10 – Gaelic College / Colaisde na Gàidhlig, Christmas Gaelic Immersion Weekend, An Nollaig Ghàidhealach, with classes offered for Beginner, Intermediate, and Fluent Speakers levels. St. Ann’s, Cape Breton, NS
Sat, December 9 – The Fantastic Grown-Up Book Fair, Royal Canadian Legion Truro, 42 Brunswick St., Truro, NS
As the season goes along, will probably add more events–and possibly a sale!–so please bookmark this post for later!
Catastrophe at the Christmas Ceilidh
Kate the Highland dancer is back in the sequel to Disaster at the Highland Games! Now it’s December, and Kate is excited to perform her first solo in the Christmas ceilidh. But as she waits her turn backstage, Kate’s imagination starts to run wild. She pictures every possible mishap in vivid detail, from forgetting her choreography to knocking over the Christmas tree. Will she remember the advice of her dance teacher in time to prevent a Christmas ceilidh catastrophe? Whimsical watercolour illustrations by Nathasha Pilotte complement award-winning author Riel Nason’s rhyming verse with a reassuring message for every dance student. Preorder.
A’ Chearc Bheag Ruadh (The Little Red Hen in Scottish Gaelic)
Once there was a little red hen in a barnyard who spent most of her time looking for worms to feed her chicks. One day, she found a grain of wheat. She wanted to plant it in order to grow wheat and make bread, but would any of the other animals help her?
If you loved The Little Red Hen in English, or you enjoy vintage children’s books, you’ll appreciate having this charming story in Gaelic to help as you learn the language. From the translator of Na Trì Mathain (Goldilocks and the Three Bears) and Beatrix Potter’s Peter Rabbit tales. Accompanied by vintage American illustrations from 1918. Preorder.
Lugh and the Fortress of the Gods
With this new children’s book, we’re building on the success of the participation story style used in Fionn MacCool and the Salmon of Knowledge, and expanding further into books featuring the Irish language (Gaeilge):
When Lugh of the Long Arm grew up, he went to King Nuada’s fortress on the Hill of Tara to try to take his place with the other gods and goddesses. When Lugh arrived at the fortress, the guards wouldn’t let him in without a unique skill. Lugh had many skills—but would any of them be enough to get him into the Fortress of the Gods?
This Irish myth is retold as a participation story with action words and gestures, making it perfect for reading aloud. The book also helps introduce children to the Irish language, or Gaeilge. Three versions of the story are included: the first in English, the second in English with action words in Irish, and the third version entirely in Irish which is good for Irish-language learners. The actions are the same in all three versions, acting as a bridge from English to Irish. With engaging black-and-white illustrations by the illustrator of Fionn MacCool and the Salmon of Knowledge.
An Rós Fiáin
Speaking of expanding into Irish, we’re really excited that this project is now coming to fruition, after being on the horizon since 2018! We’re deeply grateful to our Kickstarter backers who are helping to make it happen!
An Rós Fiáin is an Irish-language graphic novel, the translation of the indie comic book series “Wild Rose” by award-winning Halifax author Nicola R. White. It’s Unlike our other Autumn 2023 titles, An Rós Fiáin is not a children’s book—it’s a spicy tale for readers aged 15 and up!
Set in rural Ireland and London in 1790, An Rós Fiáin reimagines a haunting Appalachian-Irish murder ballad as a tale of love and revenge. When Eliza Day is seduced and betrayed by a wealthy English lover, she soon finds out that the restrictive society in which she lives has no place for defiant women who break with convention. With the help of Adam Stone, a free Black man, Eliza has a chance to make a new life for herself after the loss of her innocence – but to do so, she will have to be braver than she could ever have imagined. Preorder.
