Clever Tom and the Leprechaun by Linda Shute, 1988.

This picture book is based on an Irish folktale, The Field of Boliauns.

Tom Fitzpatrick thinks that his fortune is made when he is lucky enough to catch sight of a leprechaun one day.  If a person can manage to catch hold of a leprechaun and frighten him, the leprechaun will hand over his gold.  Tom thinks of himself as a clever man, so he doesn’t see how he could fail.

Tom does capture the leprechaun, and the leprechaun does promise to show him where his treasure is buried.  The leprechaun directs Tom to a field of boliauns (a kind of weed, also known as ragwort or ragweed) and points out the plant which marks the place where he buried his treasure.

Tom needs to get a shovel to dig for the treasure, but he worries about whether he’ll correctly remember the spot when he gets back.  He takes off one of his red garters and ties it on the plant so he’ll be able to find it again, making the leprechaun promise not to touch it while he’s gone.

The leprechaun promises not to touch the garter, but Clever Tom isn’t quite as clever as the leprechaun.  When Tom gets back to the field with his shovel, he’s in for an unpleasant surprise.

Clever Tom might not have his fortune made after all, but he has a great story to tell to the younger generation.

In the back of the book, there is a section with more information about the folk tale, Irish legends and leprechauns, and Irish culture and history.  One of the things I found interesting was the explanation that the leprechaun in the picture book is wearing a red coat because that’s how they are described in Irish folklore.  It’s usually the Trooping fairies who are described as wearing green, like we often see leprechauns depicted in St. Patrick’s Day decorations.  The stories of buried gold left by leprechauns may also may also be based on treasure hoards left by Viking raiders during the Early Middle Ages.  The leprechaun in this story also has ale made from heather, which is something that only Danish Vikings were said to know how to make.