Farming life and all its noises and imagery are the focus of a new children’s audio book Fuaimeanna na Feirme, written by author Risteard MacLiam, founder of My Irish Books.

Written as Gaeilge, Fuaimeanna na Feirme offers a rich vocabulary for children of all ages and supports parents, educators and caregivers in introducing the wonders of farm life, as told through the medium of Irish.

The book, which is the third and final installment of the Soundscape series, features all aspects of farm life, from animals and machinery to workers and family in a multi-sensory experience that encourages curiosity and a love for reading.

Previous books in the series featured the sea (Fuaimeanna na Farraige) and seasons (Fuaimeanna na Séisúir) and Risteard is confident that Fuaimeanna na Feirme will be a big hit with readers.

Curiosity

“We started out with the audio cassettes of popular children’s books such as Winnie the Pooh and believed the audio soundtracks offered a huge enhancement to the reader’s experience, so we wanted to find a way of bringing that to Irish language story books,” explains Risteard who lives in Kells, Co Meath.

“We were hoping Fuaimeanna na Feirme would be our second book but delays were inevitable when we made the conscious decision to bring in our illustrator Anna Shabaltii, who is a print artist from Ukraine.

“Anna is based in Kiev and has worked under immense pressures, with relocations and power outages as the war continues over there, but we are thrilled with her work and the book overall.”

My Irish Books was founded with the mission of making reading more accessible to children and their parents, through technology and innovation.

Risteard believes the book can have a huge impact on families, particularly where children are attending Gaelscoileanna and their parents may not have the same level of Irish.

“The book offers a multi-sensory experience that encourages curiosity and a love for reading. It is perfect for nighttime reading, where parents wouldn’t necessarily be comfortable picking up an Irish language book to read to their children,” he explains.

“Parents can push the button for the pronunciation of words and that will give them the confidence to read the book to their children, for whom the audio further enhances the reading experience.”

Fuaimeanna na Feirme features soundscapes created by renowned Dublin musician Anna Jordan and is available in bookshops throughout the country, including Easons, Dubray, Irish language bookshops and independent book retailers. The book is also available to order from www.myirishbooks.ie.