Skellig is both a name and all-encompassing title filled with hidden meanings.

Almond rejects the label of fantasy for his work, finding it closer to the magical realism of Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Magical realism takes an ordinary slice of reality and infuses it with the supernatural. Other examples of magical realism are Charles de Lint's Newford series and Orson Scott Card's Tales of Alvin Maker.

Almond delivers the magic in Michael's reality with a seemingly limitless amount of flight and bird imagery. From the name of the road Michael's new home is on, Falconer, to Mina's endless discussions of the colors of the local birds, the owls, and the archaeopteryx, to Skellig's appearance and eventual flight, to the final three feathers Skellig leaves for the children, the literary motif is subtle yet solid, imbuing the novel with continuity and presence.