Tom O’Neill is one of a very close knit family of eleven brought up on a farm in County Carlow. His working life started in science teacher training in impoverished schools in South Africa and he is currently involved in computer based education as well as running a farm in Kilkenny. Restoring the ancient Killahara castle in Tipperary and helping his father publish a social history reconnected him to stories and beliefs that were still vibrant in his own childhood and prompted him to pull together the Fionn Mac Cumhaill tales he had made up to entertain his own children en route to school. These stories can be found in Tom\'s first children\'s book, Old Friends: The Lost Tales of Fionn Mac Cumhaill, published in 2010 by Little Island. Tom has also written a related book, Fionn and the Legend of the Blood Emeralds, which is available online.
