The Book of the Howlat

by James Robertson, Richard Holland (Contributor), Kate Lieper (Illustrator)

Originally written in the 1440s by Richard Holland, a Scottish cleric who was chaplain to Archibald Douglas, Earl of Moray, The Book of the Howlat is one of the great poetic gems of fifteenth-century Scots. Believing himself to be ugly, a young owl (howlat) decides to speak to the most handsome bird of all, the peacock, and ask his help so that Nature can change him. But the peacock isn't sure this should be done - after all, Nature doesn't usually make mistakes - and summons a council of birds to make a decision. A huge feast takes place, and Nature herself appears and orders all the birds present to give the owl one of their feathers. But the result is not what they expect. The howlat's initial joy turns to unbearable arrogance at his new-found beauty, and drastic action must be taken ...

Genres: Picture Books

32 pages, Paperback

First published September 12, 2016

About the author

James Robertson (born 1958) is a Scottish writer who grew up in Bridge of Allan, Stirlingshire. He is the author of several short story and poetry collections, and has published four novels: The Fanatic, Joseph Knight, The Testament of Gideon Mack, and And the Land Lay Still. Joseph Knight was named both the Scottish Arts Council Book of the Year and the Saltire Society Book of the Year in 2003/04. The Testament of Gideon Mack was long-listed for the 2006 Man Booker Prize. And the Land Lay Still was awarded the Saltire Society Book of the Year Award in 2010. Robertson has also established an independent publishing imprint called Kettillonia, which produces occasional pamphlets and books of poetry and short prose, and he is a co-founder and the general editor of the Scots language imprint Itchy Coo, which produces books in Scots for children and young people. He lives in rural Angus.

Reviews

[Barbara · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book is a retelling of a 15th Century Scottish poem about a young owlet (the Howlat of the title), who is so disgusted with his appearance that he visits a peacock and asks the peacock to make him beautiful. The peacock calls a council of all the birds plus Nature. Nature requests that each of the birds give the owlet one of their feathers. The owlet becomes magnificent to view, but then looks down at all the other birds with contempt. Nature steps in and insists that the owlet return the borrowed feathers to the other birds. All this clearly took a considerable amount of time, for when it is finished, the owlet finds that he has grown into a beautiful owl! The moral of the story is that to be truly happy, you need to be patient and true to your own nature.
This is a quick and easy read, retold by James Robertson and beautifully illustrated by Kate Leiper.

[Lucinda Hare · Rating 5 out of 5]

Beautiful for all ages...