About Me
Brendan McDonald is a Children’s Book Author who grew up on a family farm in south Laois near the Carlow & Kildare border. He attended local National School in Killeen, Co Laois where he first found his love for reading and story-telling. Having gone to secondary school in Knockbeg College he went on to study in The University of Limerick before becoming a Solicitor. Brendan now works with IDA Ireland.
Brendan loves reading to his nieces and nephews and wanted to write in a rhyming style – ensuring as many sentences as possible rhyme and flow correctly in line with the illustrations. This helps get the reader hooked on the story from page one, and more importantly they will want to read it again and again! Brendan loves hearing feedback from mammy’s and daddy’s as they read the books to their kids!
Story Telling Inspiration
Elephant on the Farm was Brendan’s debut Children’s book and he took inspiration from growing up on the family farm - “I grew up on a mixed tillage, beef and sheep farm in Killeen, south Laois so being from a farming background I wanted the story to reflect some of the scenes that can be seen on a farm”. One of the scenes that came directly from the family farm is ‘Two tractors, a trailer, a big yellow bailer’ taken directly from two Massey Ferguson tractors (which are of course red!) a red trailer attached to one and a yellow bailer on the back of the other!
Giraffe in the Trees was inspired on Brendan’s many hikes around the beautiful Glendalough in Co Wicklow. The idea of a Giraffe blending into the trees and having a shower at the Waterfall came on one of his hikes! The Round Tower and lakes provided fantastic inspiration and Billy the Goat floating out on his boat came from looking down on the Upper Lake on top of the mountain.
Charity Partners
As Brendan has been very fortunate in his life and career he wants to give back hence 20% of net proceeds from the sale of both books are going to Charity – with 20% net sales from Elephant on the Farm being donated to Crumlin Hospital (Brendan’s godson Tommy spent a short time in Crumlin a couple of years ago and all is now well!) and 20% of net proceeds from Giraffe in the Trees will be donated to Debra Ireland, The Butterfly Skin Charity.
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