''Prenez Garde'' is a 1961 novel by

Terence de Vere White Terence de Vere White (29 April 1912 – 17 June 1994) was an Irish lawyer, writer and editor. Life Career Born in Dublin, de Vere White studied at Trinity College, Dublin where he qualified as a solicitor. He later became a partner in a ...

. ''Prenez Garde'' is about a nine-year-old boy who lives in a middle-class

Irish Irish may refer to: Common meanings * Someone or something of, from, or related to: ** Ireland, an island situated off the north-western coast of continental Europe ***Éire, Irish language name for the isle ** Northern Ireland, a constituent unit ...

family. However, due to the conflict throughout Ireland, life is not as simple as it once was. He is an only child and has a fetish for older woman. His parents worry about their boy being exposed to the outside world and so he has never been to school and learns from a beautiful, if not fully qualified, governess. Of course, living where they do at the time, makes it difficult for them to protect him from talk of the

IRA Ira or IRA may refer to: *Ira (name), a Hebrew, Sanskrit, Russian or Finnish language personal name *Ira (surname), a rare Estonian and some other language family name *Iran, UNDP code IRA Law *Indian Reorganization Act of 1934, US, on status of ...

and the

Black and Tans Black is a color which results from the absence or complete absorption of visible light. It is an achromatic color, without hue, like white and grey. It is often used symbolically or figuratively to represent darkness. Black and white have ...

. So, in an effort to avoid this talk whenever they discuss such matters, they lapse into French. Unfortunately, this doesn't quite work and in the boy's desire to learn more, he ends up in relying more and more on unreliable and dangerous sources.

Notes

1961 novels Novels set in Ireland Victor Gollancz Ltd books {{1960s-novel-stub