Along with the Chronicles of Narnia, the Prydain books were my first
real introduction to fantasy. I loved these books as a child! I wanted to be Princess Eilonwy and longed to
live in Prydain. I cheered Taran’s every
success, and I cried every time I read the ending of The High King. My early love
for the tales has never died. To my
mind, the Chronicles of Prydain remain one of the best MG fantasy series ever
written.
While each of the stories is an adventure in itself, and several of
them are quest tales (The Black Cauldron and
Taran Wanderer in particular), the
overall story arc is that of the Hero’s Journey: the coming of age of Taran,
orphan and Assistant Pig-keeper. Taran
starts out as an impetuous boy, eager for battle, for glory and adventure. His rashness and his pride get him into
trouble on more than one occasion, and he and Eilonwy bicker frequently,
usually when Taran assumes a superior or dictatorial tone because she’s “just”
a girl. As time and the books go on,
however, Taran slowly matures, acquiring the marks of a true hero: wisdom,
humility, persistence, patience, leadership, respect for his fellow men and women, and strength
of character.
Taran is accompanied along much of his journey by a series of companions,
each with their own strengths and weaknesses – and their identifying
characteristics. Tomboy Eilonwy, with
her predilection for unlikely similes; the bard Fflewddur Fflam and his
constantly snapping harp strings; and fiercely loyal Gurgi all have a special
place in my heart.
Alexander drew on Welsh myths and legends in creating Prydain and some
of its inhabitants, particularly Gwydion, the bard Taliesin, King Math, and the
series’ chief villain, Arawn Death-Lord,
King of Annuvin. He also drew on
other myths; older readers will spot the Wyrd sisters or Fates in the persons
of Orddu, Orwen, and Orgoch, while Dalben the enchanter reminds me not a little
of Gandalf and the Merlin of T. H. White’s The
Sword in the Stone. Alexander weaves
them all into an original and captivating land and story which deservedly take
their place beside the tales of Narnia and Middle-Earth.
If you somehow managed to miss the Prydain books when you were growing
up, run, don’t walk, to your nearest library or bookstore and get them
now! If you prefer audiobooks, James
Langton does an excellent job with the narration, voices, and accents for all
five books. However, purists may note that he slightly mispronounces several of the Welsh names.
Series rating: 5
stars
Categories: MG fantasy
Categories: MG fantasy
Series: The Chronicles of Prydain, books 1-5
Publisher:
Square Fish (Macmillan) (print and
e-books); Listening Library (audio)
Book source: all-in-one
book club volume from my collection; audiobooks borrowed from the library
The Chronicles of Prydain in order (links will take you to the Goodreads page):
And here's a link to a downloadable map of Prydain from publisher Macmillan. (I was lucky to find the link; it's not on Macmillan's Prydain page.) 
LOVED your review! You know I love the Chronicles of Prydain! They were such great books and I still remember my teacher reading them to me back when I was in grade 4. It's just one of those series that has always stuck with me and was probably the first high fantasy novel I've ever read. Lloyd Alexander was a master story teller and I'm still convinced I might name my kids Taran and Eilonwy one day. Have you read his West Mark series yet?
ReplyDelete- Kimberly @ Turning the Pages
Our daughter was Eilonwy (more or less) for Halloween one year. When I was young, I thought I would name a child Eilonwy, too... but when it came time to name her, we went with something a little less obscure (and easier for non-Welsh-speakers to pronounce.)
DeleteI haven't read the Westmark series yet, and I really, really should. Thank you for the reminder!