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The Chronicles of Prydain
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The Chronicles of Prydain
The Chronicles of Prydain is a five-part series of children's high fantasy coming-of-age novels written by American author Lloyd Alexander and published by Henry Holt and Company. The series includes: The Book of Three (1964), The Black Cauldron (1965), The Castle of Llyr (1966), Taran Wanderer (1967), and The High King (1968). The Black Cauldron earned a 1966 Newbery Honor, and The High King won the 1969 Newbery Medal.
The five novels take place in Prydain, a fictional country ruled by a High King who oversees several minor kingdoms. The setting is based on Wales and inhabited by creatures and characters inspired by Welsh mythology and folklore. The series follows the protagonist Taran, a youth of unknown parentage living on a farm with an old enchanter named Dallben and a farmer named Coll. Taran, who dreams of being a great hero, is named "Assistant Pig-Keeper" and tasked with helping to care for and protect Hen Wen, a white oracular pig magically empowered with clairvoyance. Taran has a series of adventures wherein he helps protect the land of Prydain from various threats, chief among them the evil Arawn, whose forces include an undead army known as the Cauldron-Born. Throughout the novels, Taran's major companions are the Princess Eilonwy, the bard Fflewddur Fflam, the wild beast-man Gurgi, and the dwarf Doli. The heroes frequently work alongside the Fair Folk (a society of elves and similar beings) and the warriors known as the Sons of Don. Along with various battles against forces of evil, the novels focus on Taran's journey of maturity.
The Chronicles of Prydain were accompanied by an illustrated short story book in 1965 and another in 1967, and were followed by The Foundling and Other Tales of Prydain, a collection of six short stories published in 1973. The cover art for the novels and the interior art for the short story picture books was done by Evaline Ness. New illustrations for the 1973 anthology were done by Margot Zemach. The first two novels of The Chronicles of Prydain were loosely adapted into the 1985 Disney film The Black Cauldron and led to a video game of the same name produced by Sierra Entertainment.
During World War II, Lloyd Alexander received army combat intelligence training in Wales; he also became familiar with Welsh culture, geography, and language. He took particular interest in the country's castles and folklore, explaining later that he was "always interested in mythology". Alexander later described his experiences in Wales as "part of the raw material for the Prydain books".
The magical land Prydain's geography is loosely based on Wales. Ynys Môn, the Welsh name for the Isle of Anglesey, became the Isle of Mona. The word Prydain itself is the Welsh name of Britain, to which the word "Britain" is etymologically related.
The stories draw on themes, ideas, and culture inspired by Welsh folklore, particularly the stories collected in the Mabinogion. According to Alexander, nearly all of the proper names in Prydain are from Welsh myth or history, with the exceptions of Eilonwy and Taran. The author's note in the first novel, The Book of Three, points out the Prydain stories and characters are his own and not simply retellings of old folklore, adding that students of Welsh culture should be prepared to see familiar names such as Arawn and Gwydion attached to characters who act very differently from their mythological namesakes. In the author's note for The Castle of Lyr, Alexander said The Prydain Chronicles are meant to communicate "the feeling, not the fact, of the land of Wales and its legends". In the author's note for The High King, Alexander said of the series, "While it grew from Welsh legend, it has broadened into my attempt to make a land of fantasy relevant to the world of reality."
Originally, Alexander planned to write only one or two Prydain novels, "three at the very most". At one point, the plan was for a trilogy of books that would be entitled The Battle of the Trees, The Lion with the Steady Hand, and Little Gwion. By 1965, a four novel series was planned with new titles. The first novel, The Book of Three, was released by Holt and Company in 1964, followed by The Black Cauldron in 1965, and The Castle of Lyr in 1966. Originally, the fourth novel was meant to be titled The High King of Prydain. But as Alexander finished The Castle of Lyr, an editor remarked that it felt as if some material was missing between the third and fourth volumes. To act as a bridge between the two and show more of Taran's journey to maturity, Alexander started writing a new novel Taran Wanderer, finishing it one month after The Castle of Llyr was published in 1966. The new book Taran Wanderer was published in 1967. The next novel, entitled The High King, was published in 1968, concluding the now five-volume series. The High King included a map illustrated by Evaline Ness, who also did the cover art for the original novel editions.
While writing the series, Lloyd Alexander also published short stories taking place in Prydain, occurring before the events of the novels. This included Coll and His White Pig (1965) and The Truthful Harp (1967), both being 32-page picture books illustrated by Evaline Ness.
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The Chronicles of Prydain
The Chronicles of Prydain is a five-part series of children's high fantasy coming-of-age novels written by American author Lloyd Alexander and published by Henry Holt and Company. The series includes: The Book of Three (1964), The Black Cauldron (1965), The Castle of Llyr (1966), Taran Wanderer (1967), and The High King (1968). The Black Cauldron earned a 1966 Newbery Honor, and The High King won the 1969 Newbery Medal.
The five novels take place in Prydain, a fictional country ruled by a High King who oversees several minor kingdoms. The setting is based on Wales and inhabited by creatures and characters inspired by Welsh mythology and folklore. The series follows the protagonist Taran, a youth of unknown parentage living on a farm with an old enchanter named Dallben and a farmer named Coll. Taran, who dreams of being a great hero, is named "Assistant Pig-Keeper" and tasked with helping to care for and protect Hen Wen, a white oracular pig magically empowered with clairvoyance. Taran has a series of adventures wherein he helps protect the land of Prydain from various threats, chief among them the evil Arawn, whose forces include an undead army known as the Cauldron-Born. Throughout the novels, Taran's major companions are the Princess Eilonwy, the bard Fflewddur Fflam, the wild beast-man Gurgi, and the dwarf Doli. The heroes frequently work alongside the Fair Folk (a society of elves and similar beings) and the warriors known as the Sons of Don. Along with various battles against forces of evil, the novels focus on Taran's journey of maturity.
The Chronicles of Prydain were accompanied by an illustrated short story book in 1965 and another in 1967, and were followed by The Foundling and Other Tales of Prydain, a collection of six short stories published in 1973. The cover art for the novels and the interior art for the short story picture books was done by Evaline Ness. New illustrations for the 1973 anthology were done by Margot Zemach. The first two novels of The Chronicles of Prydain were loosely adapted into the 1985 Disney film The Black Cauldron and led to a video game of the same name produced by Sierra Entertainment.
During World War II, Lloyd Alexander received army combat intelligence training in Wales; he also became familiar with Welsh culture, geography, and language. He took particular interest in the country's castles and folklore, explaining later that he was "always interested in mythology". Alexander later described his experiences in Wales as "part of the raw material for the Prydain books".
The magical land Prydain's geography is loosely based on Wales. Ynys Môn, the Welsh name for the Isle of Anglesey, became the Isle of Mona. The word Prydain itself is the Welsh name of Britain, to which the word "Britain" is etymologically related.
The stories draw on themes, ideas, and culture inspired by Welsh folklore, particularly the stories collected in the Mabinogion. According to Alexander, nearly all of the proper names in Prydain are from Welsh myth or history, with the exceptions of Eilonwy and Taran. The author's note in the first novel, The Book of Three, points out the Prydain stories and characters are his own and not simply retellings of old folklore, adding that students of Welsh culture should be prepared to see familiar names such as Arawn and Gwydion attached to characters who act very differently from their mythological namesakes. In the author's note for The Castle of Lyr, Alexander said The Prydain Chronicles are meant to communicate "the feeling, not the fact, of the land of Wales and its legends". In the author's note for The High King, Alexander said of the series, "While it grew from Welsh legend, it has broadened into my attempt to make a land of fantasy relevant to the world of reality."
Originally, Alexander planned to write only one or two Prydain novels, "three at the very most". At one point, the plan was for a trilogy of books that would be entitled The Battle of the Trees, The Lion with the Steady Hand, and Little Gwion. By 1965, a four novel series was planned with new titles. The first novel, The Book of Three, was released by Holt and Company in 1964, followed by The Black Cauldron in 1965, and The Castle of Lyr in 1966. Originally, the fourth novel was meant to be titled The High King of Prydain. But as Alexander finished The Castle of Lyr, an editor remarked that it felt as if some material was missing between the third and fourth volumes. To act as a bridge between the two and show more of Taran's journey to maturity, Alexander started writing a new novel Taran Wanderer, finishing it one month after The Castle of Llyr was published in 1966. The new book Taran Wanderer was published in 1967. The next novel, entitled The High King, was published in 1968, concluding the now five-volume series. The High King included a map illustrated by Evaline Ness, who also did the cover art for the original novel editions.
While writing the series, Lloyd Alexander also published short stories taking place in Prydain, occurring before the events of the novels. This included Coll and His White Pig (1965) and The Truthful Harp (1967), both being 32-page picture books illustrated by Evaline Ness.