One
wouldn't think that an Iron Age maiden, an archaeological discovery
and Northern Ireland's infamous "Troubles" could be combined into a
successful, even riveting, work of fiction. But talented author
Siobhan Dowd does just that in BOG CHILD, a captivating novel that
intertwines two eras of history in the story of one young man's
coming of age.

Eighteen-year-old Fergus McCann is having a rough go of it. His
older brother Joe, the "soldier" of the family, is incarcerated as
a political prisoner because of his involvement with the
Provisional Irish Republican Army. His parents are sick with worry,
especially when Joe, inspired by the martyrdom of other
high-profile prisoners, begins a hunger strike protest in jail. His
younger sisters don't understand why everyone is so worried, or why
Joe just can’t get better and come home. As for Fergus, he
has the dual worries of preparing for his driver's exam and his A
levels. If he does well enough on his college prep exams, he'll be
able to get into a pre-med program in Scotland --- and escape the
violent Troubles in Northern Ireland once and for all.

The year is 1981, and IRA activity is at a peak. Fergus and his
family live right on the border between Ireland and Northern
Ireland, so close that he can cross the border into Ireland when he
goes for a long run or (as they do at the novel's opening) when he
and his uncle go to poach peat to sell for use as heating
fuel.

That's when Fergus makes a discovery that will change everything.
Peat moss has an uncanny ability to preserve whatever falls into
it. So when Fergus finds a young girl's body, he is at first
convinced that it's another IRA murder victim dumped in the bog.
But when an Irish archaeologist (accompanied by her fetching
daughter) confirms that the body instead belongs to a girl from the
year AD 80, Fergus's dreams grow haunted by the girl, nicknamed
Mel, whose story is so different from --- and yet startlingly
similar to --- his own.

Many young American readers will find not only Mel's story but also
Fergus's an eye-opening account of history. Dowd does a commendable
job of explaining the Troubles to her audience without ever dumbing
down the narrative for them. In fact, the writing throughout is
lyrical and complex enough to satisfy any reader, whatever their
age.

Fergus is a thoughtful, intelligent boy who takes issues of right
and wrong seriously. His primary moral crisis --- which culminates
in two surprising twists (one humorous, one tragic) --- is not an
easy one; nor is the difficult decision that faces the McCann
family near the end of the novel and threatens to tear them apart.
BOG CHILD handles the big questions --- about personal
responsibility, sacrifice, political action, love and borders ---
with appropriate gravity, respect and thoughtfulness. And, as
Fergus balances counting up the days of Joe's life-threatening
hunger strike with his own eagerness to embrace his future, it also
manages to sustain suspense from the very first page to the
last.

BOG CHILD, which has been short-listed for the Guardian Prize, is
the work of an author at the peak of her powers. I read, and loved,
Dowd's LONDON EYE MYSTERY last year; with her current book, Dowd
shows the true extent of her talent. I was saddened to hear that
this promising author died last summer after a long battle with
breast cancer. Literature for young people has lost such a gifted
writer; those who have been fortunate enough to discover her work
can be grateful that, in BOG CHILD and one additional novel to be
published next year, her voice lives on.

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