Two graphic novels produced by the Cape Clear Island co-operative look like they are going to be the next big thing.
TWO graphic novels produced by the Cape Clear Island co-operative look like they are going to be the next big thing.
‘We are getting a fantastic response since the novels went on sale in our tourist office and craft shop,’ islander, Seamus Ó Drisceoil, told The Southern Star.
Although priced at just €1, the novels are selling like proverbial hot cakes and the plan is to reinvest the proceeds into the mainte-nance and development of the tourist office.
Seamus explained the appeal of the graphic novels saying: ‘They are an inspiring way of educating visitors about some aspects of the is-land’s fascinating history.’
The first graphic novel is the story of the Timoleague Chalice, which was rediscovered on Cape Clear Island in 1851. It had been lost for more than 200 years following the ransacking of Timoleague Abbey in 1649.
Seamus explained that there are in fact two chalices known as Timo-league Chalices: one is of these is in the Fitzgerald Museum in Cork, but the one found on Cape was returned to Timoleague Parish and remains in use to this day.
The second graphic novel, entitled The Greatest Film Never Made, was illustrated by artist Oisín Hughes, who recently moved to the island.
It is the story of the heroic rescue by the Cadogans and the Dalys of the Nestorian, a steamship that foundered on the western side of the island in 1917.
The novel, in comic strip style, features the incomplete poem by Pat the Poet of the Glen, which was finished by Seamus Ó Drisceoil.
It details how one sailor died during the rescue mission and how the survivors felt forever in debt to the courage of the islanders.
There are already plans in the works to produce a third highlighting the history of the Fastnet Lighthouse. Other ideas being considered include the rescue of the crew of the steamship Hazelsize in 1938, and the story of the famous Cape Clear Stone, which was carved by the first settlers on the island.
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