Ariel Lawhon brings Irish legend Grace O'Malley to life in 'Pirate Queen'

In the author’s note of her new book, “Pirate Queen,” author Ariel Lawhon asks, "What if the story of your life was written by the people who despised you, who wanted nothing more than to blacken your name?"

So it was for Grace O'Malley, an Irish woman in the 16th century who commanded her own ships, led a powerful family clan, and survived imprisonment, a violent marriage, a shipboard birth and a number of battles to both claim and defend her property.

But the historical record of O'Malley's life in Irish history is puzzlingly scant. That’s why, as Lawhon writes, “it’s in the folklore that we find the real Grace.”

On this week’s Big Books and Bold Ideas, Lawhorn tells Kerri Miller how she brought Grace O’Malley to life, and why her story echoes to those of us today.

Guest:

• Ariel Lawhon is the author of, among other books, “Frozen River.” Her new novel is “Pirate Queen.”