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A poor peddler of Ballymena, a small village in County Antrim, Ireland (currently Northern Ireland), treats everyone who comes to his door with kindness and generosity in this Irish adaptation of a traditional English folktale. When the Great Famine strikes, the entire countryside is reduced to poverty, and the peddler to starvation. For three night Saint Patrick comes to the peddler in a dream, instructing him to travel to Dublin, and to stand on the bridge across the Liffey, for there he will hear something of benefit to him. Eventually giving in, the peddler does as he is told, and learns that he has had a fortune all along, buried underneath his old cauldron...

According to author Margaret Hodges' afterword, the story in Saint Patrick and the Peddler is actually taken from Joseph Jacobs' 1893 collection, More English Fairy Tales, where it was entitled The Pedlar of Swaffam. Hodges decided to transplant the story from England to Ireland, setting it in Ballymena because that is where some of her ancestors hail from, and combining it with the lore of Saint Patrick. Leaving aside the question of origins, the story itself is engaging, with a worthy and generous hero and a happy ending. The artwork from illustrator Paul Brett Johnson, done in acrylic paint, has a lovely impressionistic feeling to it, and beautifully captures the Irish countryside, and the play of light on the land. Recommended to young folklore enthusiasts, and to picture-book readers looking for stories for St. Patrick's Day. ( )

I'm sorry, for some reason this didn't work for me at all.  A simple and generous man gets his reward while still living, because he exemplifies so-called Christian kindness... (never mind that most faithful are not rewarded until they reach heaven but rather are often hastened on their path.)  I had more hope for Hodges, after enjoying her retelling of Saint George and the Dragon.  Illustrations make a big difference, too - I love Hyman's for that work, but Johnson's almost Impressionist daubs here fail. ( )

The wonderful acrylic paintings show the beauty of the Irish country side. My six year old son now wants to go to Ireland badly. This is a take of a poor peddler who is visited by St. Patrick in his dreams. He is led to Dublin to find the clue to his fortune. This was a very enjoyable book. It would be wonderful to read on St. Patrick's day or to incorporate into a study of Ireland

This is the story about a poor peddler in a small town in Ireland who has a recurring dream in which St Patrick tells him to go to Dublin. Once the peddler finally decides to follow St Patrick's advice, he is richly rewarded. My favorite part of this book was the wonderful illustrations - they were so realistic I felt like I was in Ireland!