[3] This work is considered a classic of Irish children's literature, featuring a collection of interwoven magical stories that form a lengthy and complex narrative.

[4][5] When the careless King of Ireland's son goes out, His hound at his heel, His hawk on his wrist, A brave steed to carry him whither he list, The blue sky above him, The green grass below him He meets an eccentric old man who invites him to a game of chess with the winner choosing the stakes.

In the first segment, Fedelma, the Enchanter's Daughter, the oldest son of the King of Ireland loses a wager against his father's enemy and should find him in a year and a day's time.

[8] Although the book was written in America in the years before 1916, Colum was a close friend and colleague of some of those who led the Easter Rising.

The King of Ireland's Son was the ultimate calling-up of Irish mythology and legend, and, paired with James Stephens' Irish Fairy Tales, made many happy hours for children curled up before glowing turf fires to read by the light of Tilley lamps in the long winter evenings of the new Ireland.