Ailfí agus an Vaimpír

Ailfí agus an Vaimpír is an excellent work written by Orna Ní Choileáin, writer of Canary Wharf, a collection of short stories published in 2009.
I thoroughly enjoyed following Alfí and his vampire friend Marius on their journey to find a coffin! With some years now, literature based on vampires and their characteristics has become increasingly popular and it is fantastic that Ní Choileáin has made this genre available to readers of the Irish language too. A mixture of both Dracula and the Twilight series is what comes to mind when reading this story, although Ní Choileáin adds an amusing twist of her own.

A book highly appropriate for teenagers, modern terminology is often used, e.g. the iPad, Facebook and herbal tea! Ní Choileáin’s writing is rich in language yet also extremely reader friendly. An added glossary attached to the back of the book is both helpful and practical. Both the cover and blurb of the novel are immensely enticing, along with the overall style and print layout of the work.

As I mentioned before, Ní Choileáin brings an added sense of humour to this story and this is most definitely one of its strengths. Instead of the natural desire for blood which vampires are said to possess, this particular vampire would rather indulge in a packet of fig rolls. I thoroughly enjoyed the ending of the story – quite unpredictable. Most children love books that appear as a series, the excitement of waiting for the next part being central to the excitement. As a result, I was delighted to read that this series will be continued in the future. I must admit that I am looking forward to the next one already.