We visited Ireland in July of 2019. Each part of the journey was more beautiful than the last, but perhaps our favorite part of our visit was our day trip out to the massive Slieve Leagues! Upon arriving, our driver hopped out of the car to open a small gate, then hopped back in, drove us through, then hopped back out to secure the gate behind us. When I asked him why not leave it open for the other cars, he said it was to keep the sheep in. Well this stayed with me- as I adored seeing the sheep all along our journey. But I began to wonder about the gate, and what might come of a sheep that happened to wander through it and get lost? I wrote the outline for the book on the flight back to Texas!
Maisie McGillicuddy's Sheep Got Muddy is about a little girl and her sheep, who (you guessed it) wanders out of an unlocked gate and finds himself unwittingly being kidnapped. As he begins his journey to find his way back home, Maisie sets out on a journey of her own, to find him. The two find themselves at many of our favorite, iconic places all around the Emerald Isle and there's a map in the back so readers can follow along and see just where they've been.
I found the most talented illustrator, Darya Beklemesheva, who works in a collage style and has captured the beauty of Ireland perfectly!
Looking forward to the day I can go back in person, but until it's possible, I've got the book as a beautiful (and fun!) reminder!
https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B08LNFVS2Shttps://www.amazon.com/dp/B08LNFVS2S