Patricia Lynch (4 June 1894– 1 September 1972) was an Irish

children's A child ( : children) is a human being between the stages of birth and puberty, or between the developmental period of infancy and puberty. The legal definition of ''child'' generally refers to a minor, otherwise known as a person young ...

writer and a journalist. She was the author of some 48 novels and 200 short stories. She is best known for blending Irish rural life and

fantasy fiction Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and dra ...

as in ''The Turf-Cutter's Donkey'' which was illustrated by Jack B. Yeats.

Biography

Patricia Nora Lynch was born in

Cork Cork or CORK may refer to: Materials * Cork (material), an impermeable buoyant plant product ** Cork (plug), a cylindrical or conical object used to seal a container ***Wine cork Places Ireland * Cork (city) ** Metropolitan Cork, also known as G ...

, Ireland on 4 June 1894 to Thomas and Nora Lynch (née Lynch), both of Cork. Her parents were first cousins. She had one brother, Henry Patrick and two sisters, Laura and Winifred. Much of the detail of Lynch's early life comes from her autobiographical ''A storyteller's childhood,'' and some doubts about its reliability have been raised. Her father was described as a "stockbroker" on Lynch's wedding certificate, but he is known to have pursued a number of careers, including journalism. As a result of her father's death she received her education at schools in Ireland, England, Scotland and Belgium. She became a journalist and in 1916 was sent to Dublin by

Sylvia Pankhurst Estelle Sylvia Pankhurst (5 May 1882 – 27 September 1960) was a campaigning English feminist and socialist. Committed to organising working-class women in London's East End, and unwilling in 1914 to enter into a wartime political truce with t ...

to report on the Easter Rising for ''The Workers' Dreadnought''. Although a committed Irish nationalist, she retained a London accent to the end of her life.Young, Phil. ''Patricia Lynch, Storyteller'' Dublin: Liberties press, 2005. She made and remained friends with several notable nationalists including

Maud Gonne Maud Gonne MacBride ( ga, Maud Nic Ghoinn Bean Mhic Giolla Bhríghde; 21 December 1866 – 27 April 1953) was an English-born Irish republican revolutionary, suffragette and actress. Of Anglo-Irish descent, she was won over to Irish nationalism ...

and

Constance Markievicz Constance Georgine Markievicz ( pl, Markiewicz ; ' Gore-Booth; 4 February 1868 – 15 July 1927), also known as Countess Markievicz and Madame Markievicz, was an Irish politician, revolutionary, nationalist, suffragist, socialist, and the firs ...

. She was an activist in achieving votes for women. In 1948 Irish Playwright

Teresa Deevy Teresa Deevy (21 January 1894 – 19 January 1963) was an Irish dramatist and writer, who was deaf from the age of 19. Best known for her works for theatre, she was also a short story writer, and writer for radio. Early life Teresa Deevy w ...

published an essay on Lynch entitled "Patricia Lynch: A Study". Lynch married socialist historian R. M. Fox in Dublin on 31 October 1922 and they settled in

Glasnevin Glasnevin (, also known as ''Glas Naedhe'', meaning "stream of O'Naeidhe" after a local stream and an ancient chieftain) is a neighbourhood of Dublin, Ireland, situated on the River Tolka. While primarily residential, Glasnevin is also home t ...

. She died in

Monkstown, County Dublin Monkstown (), historically known as ''Carrickbrennan'' ( gle, Carraig Bhraonáin), is a suburb in south Dublin, located in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Ireland. It is on the coast, between Blackrock and Dún Laoghaire. The lands of the Carrickb ...

on 1 September 1972 and is buried in

Glasnevin Cemetery Glasnevin Cemetery ( ga, Reilig Ghlas Naíon) is a large cemetery in Glasnevin, Dublin, Ireland which opened in 1832. It holds the graves and memorials of several notable figures, and has a museum. Location The cemetery is located in Glasne ...

with her husband. Her semi-autobiographical ''A Story-Teller's Childhood'' was published in 1947.

Journalism

Patricia Lynch worked as a freelance journalist in her late teens and early twenties. Her article "Scenes from the rebellion", written for a suffragette paper, '' The Workers' Dreadnought'' gave an eye-witness account of the events of the

1916 Easter Rising The Easter Rising ( ga, Éirí Amach na Cásca), also known as the Easter Rebellion, was an armed insurrection in Ireland during Easter Week in April 1916. The Rising was launched by Irish republicans against British rule in Ireland with the ...

in Dublin. She was politically-active, and spoke at suffrage rallies. She was friends with

Hanna Sheehy-Skeffington Johanna Mary Sheehy Skeffington (née Sheehy; 24 May 1877 – 20 April 1946) was a suffragette and Irish nationalist. Along with her husband Francis Sheehy Skeffington, Margaret Cousins and James Cousins, she founded the Irish Women's Franchis ...

, and with the Fabian writer,

Edith Nesbit Edith Nesbit (married name Edith Bland; 15 August 1858 – 4 May 1924) was an English writer and poet, who published her books for children as E. Nesbit. She wrote or collaborated on more than 60 such books. She was also a political activist a ...

Writing

Patricia Lynch is best known for ''The Turf-Cutter's Donkey'', first published in 1934. It was originally serialised in

The Irish Press ''The Irish Press'' (Irish: ''Scéala Éireann'') was an Irish national daily newspaper published by Irish Press plc between 5 September 1931 and 25 May 1995. Foundation The paper's first issue was published on the eve of the 1931 All-Ireland ...

from 1931. It was translated into Irish by Maighréad Nic Mhaicín as ''Asal fhear na móna'' in 1944. She is co-author of ''Lisheen at the Valley Farm and other stories'' along with

and Helen Staunton where she wrote ''Strange People'' a story about a little girl called Meg and her friends.

Marcus Crouch Marcus Crouch (12 February 1913 – 24 April 1996) was an English librarian, and an influential commentator on and reviewer of children's books.Sheila Ray. "Obituary: Marcus Crouch", ''Children's Literature Abstracts'', Issues 92-95, Internation ...

in ''The Nesbit Tradition''Marcus Crouch, ''The Nesbit Tradition: The Children's Novel 1945–1970'' (1972) pp. 182–84. describes Lynch's work as "the richest and most heart-warming of family stories." He particularly mentions the fantasy ''The Grey Goose of Kilnevin'' and the "homely adventure" ''Fiddler's Quest''. Her works had many different illustrators, including the artists

John Butler Yeats John Butler Yeats (16 March 1839 – 3 February 1922) was an Irish people, Irish artist and the father of W. B. Yeats, Lily Yeats, Elizabeth Yeats, Elizabeth Corbett "Lolly" Yeats and Jack Butler Yeats. The National Gallery of Ireland holds a nu ...

''(The Turf-Cutter's Donkey)'' and

Sean Keating Sean, also spelled Seán or Séan in Irish English, is a male given name of Irish origin. It comes from the Irish versions of the Biblical Hebrew name ''Yohanan'' (), Seán (anglicized as '' Shaun/Shawn/ Shon'') and Séan (Ulster variant; anglic ...

''(The Grey Goose of Kilnevin)''.

Works

References

External links

*
Lynch talks about her writing
* *Patricia Lynch a
The Teresa Deevy Archive
{{DEFAULTSORT:Lynch, Patricia 1894 births 1972 deaths Irish children's writers Burials at Glasnevin Cemetery 20th-century Irish women writers People from Cork (city) 20th-century Irish writers Irish women children's writers