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30th out of 999 books
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3,152 voters
The Book of Three (The Chronicles of Prydain #1)
Taran the Assistant Pig-Keeper wants to become a hero, joined by Eilonwy, the strong-willed and sharp-tongued princess; Fflewddur Fflam, the hyperbole-prone bard; the ever-faithful Gurgi; and the curmudgeonly Doli--all of whom have become involved in an epic struggle between good and evil that shapes the fate of the legendary land of Prydain.
Paperback, 190 pages
Published
May 16th 2006
by Square Fish
(first published 1964)
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Apr 17, 2013
Jon
added it
Recommends it for:
tweens, young adults and the young at heart who crave adventure
Recommended to Jon by:
Terence
4 stars
Due to the acquisition of GoodReads by Amazon on March 28, 2013 and my existing and continuing boycott of all things Amazon, the review I wrote after reading this book now resides, safe and secure, at my blog. You can read it by following this link: http://bit.ly/14vILLY
Due to the acquisition of GoodReads by Amazon on March 28, 2013 and my existing and continuing boycott of all things Amazon, the review I wrote after reading this book now resides, safe and secure, at my blog. You can read it by following this link: http://bit.ly/14vILLY
Blast From The Past Year Zero:
Hooboy. I have conflicted feelings about the book, and my feelings about those conflicted feelings are also conflicted. So there's that.
To make a long story short I loved this series when I was kid, I needed to pick up a gift for my nephew who is apparently Mini-Me, so I grabbed him the first couple of books in this series. Figured I'd give him something better to read then the Eragon type crap he's reading now. Of course I couldn't resist but take a look at them...more
Hooboy. I have conflicted feelings about the book, and my feelings about those conflicted feelings are also conflicted. So there's that.
To make a long story short I loved this series when I was kid, I needed to pick up a gift for my nephew who is apparently Mini-Me, so I grabbed him the first couple of books in this series. Figured I'd give him something better to read then the Eragon type crap he's reading now. Of course I couldn't resist but take a look at them...more
34 likes · like · see review
Back in the days before Harry Potter, I was too young to get through Tolkien and wasn't interested in The Chronicles of Narnia - fortunately, I had The Chronicles of Prydain.
The series (there are five books in all) takes place in a setting similar to Wales in the Middle Ages. The main character is an assistant pig-keeper named Taran - the reason there's a need for both a pig-keeper and an assistant is because the pig in question can predict the future. The books are full of witches, magic sword...more
The series (there are five books in all) takes place in a setting similar to Wales in the Middle Ages. The main character is an assistant pig-keeper named Taran - the reason there's a need for both a pig-keeper and an assistant is because the pig in question can predict the future. The books are full of witches, magic sword...more
13 likes · like · see review
Kids who cannot understand or don’t have the patience for the Lord of the Rings but who want to read fantasy novels may enjoy this.
As for me, if I wanted to read Fellowship of the Ring I would have just read it. I didn’t like this book at all, there were too many obvious similarities to the Lord of the Rings and I just kept becoming more and more irritated with the parallels as the book progressed.
(ahemmm... *fake cough* blatant ripoff *end fake cough*)
Sorry to my friends that love it, but I j...more
As for me, if I wanted to read Fellowship of the Ring I would have just read it. I didn’t like this book at all, there were too many obvious similarities to the Lord of the Rings and I just kept becoming more and more irritated with the parallels as the book progressed.
(ahemmm... *fake cough* blatant ripoff *end fake cough*)
Sorry to my friends that love it, but I j...more
6 likes · like · see review
3.5 stars
I believe wholeheartedly that C.S.Lewis got it right when he said that a book not worth reading as an adult should not be read when a child. Yet it seems a preoccupation of children's writers (I excuse picture book writers in general) to create stories only children can read. This is an exception and hence a very fine work of children's fiction.
While I found the start of the book rushed and the writing less than exceptional I was drawn quickly into this book. I felt early on that the wo...more
I believe wholeheartedly that C.S.Lewis got it right when he said that a book not worth reading as an adult should not be read when a child. Yet it seems a preoccupation of children's writers (I excuse picture book writers in general) to create stories only children can read. This is an exception and hence a very fine work of children's fiction.
While I found the start of the book rushed and the writing less than exceptional I was drawn quickly into this book. I felt early on that the wo...more
7 likes · like · see review
For some reason, I've had a hankering to reread these books for a few months. A yen I gave in to this weekend when I checked out a Science Fiction Book Club omnibus edition of all 5 novels and a collection of short stories (the latter of which, I haven't read).
Having read The Book of Three, I can see where my moral compass may have begun to form. I first read these books in sixth grade as an extracurricular project, and then made a filmstrip of the final book, The High King (yes, a "filmstrip" -...more
Having read The Book of Three, I can see where my moral compass may have begun to form. I first read these books in sixth grade as an extracurricular project, and then made a filmstrip of the final book, The High King (yes, a "filmstrip" -...more
9 likes · like · see review
I really liked this book but I liked it even more because I got to read it with my dad.
I have often heard about the Chronicles of Prydain as it said to set standards of excellence in fantasy for children’s literature. Honestly, I really wanted to read fantasy books from the past for it evoke a sentimental feeling in me, maybe because of it written in the year of 1964? For I believe that fantasy from the past (The Lord of the Rings, The Chronicles of Narnia, etc…) are more original for they are less influence by technology and just based on pure thoughts, humble opinions that makes...more
This has to be the very best book in the entire series.
The Synopsis:
"The tale of Taran, assistant pig keeper, has been entertaining young readers for generations. Set in the mythical land of Prydain (which bears a more than passing resemblance to Wales), Lloyd Alexander's book draws together the elements of the hero's journey from unformed boy to courageous young man. Taran grumbles with frustration at home in the hamlet Caer Dallben; he yearns to go into battle like his hero, Prince Gwydion. Be...more
The Synopsis:
"The tale of Taran, assistant pig keeper, has been entertaining young readers for generations. Set in the mythical land of Prydain (which bears a more than passing resemblance to Wales), Lloyd Alexander's book draws together the elements of the hero's journey from unformed boy to courageous young man. Taran grumbles with frustration at home in the hamlet Caer Dallben; he yearns to go into battle like his hero, Prince Gwydion. Be...more
1 like · like · see review
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers. To view it,
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2 likes · like · see review
Based on Welsh mythology, this book tells the tale of Taran, the lowly Assistant Pig-Keeper, who gets wrapped up in a quest to stop the Great Horned King from destroying the land of Prydain. Accompanied by a rugged band of compatriots, including a displaced princess, an exagerating unofficial bard, and a wolf man, Taran feels that every decision he makes on the journey is the wrong one... Does the rugged band have what it takes to stop the evil spreading over the land?
LOVED this book. I'm so sad...more
LOVED this book. I'm so sad...more
Like many good children's books, I missed this one when I was a child. My friend, Amelia, introduced me to this author, and I devoured all of his books while I was in college.
It's refreshing to find young adult fiction that allows the main characters to choose their fate rather than to have fate or prophecy spell out what happens to them. Lloyd Alexander does an excellent job of letting Taran be an immature boy, but through the choices he makes the reader understands what an immature boy needs to do if he wants to be more than an immature man when he grows up. I love how Alexander does not fall into the trap of letting Taran solve all of the problems that the adults...more
1 like · like · see review
In which an Assistant Pig-Keeper, a snarky red-head princess, one of those comical Bards with a tendency to exaggerate, a very Gollumesque (but considerably more pleasant) creature, and a really awesome horse (the horse had to be mentioned) on a quest to find a really wise pig?
That. Is brilliant.
Add to that mix an abundance of magnificent Welsh names, mythology tie-ins, the no-begad-nonsense-about-it—but still witty—writing style, and you have this delightfully frabjous book. We loves it, prec...more
That. Is brilliant.
Add to that mix an abundance of magnificent Welsh names, mythology tie-ins, the no-begad-nonsense-about-it—but still witty—writing style, and you have this delightfully frabjous book. We loves it, prec...more
2 likes · like · see review
This was a fun read. The characters are imperfect, quirky, and entertaining. There's abundant humor despite a serious enemy and conflict. I agree with Kimball's review that it did have several striking similarities to Lord-of-the-Rings, but I didn't find that as annoying as he did. It was published about 10 years after LOTR, and perhaps it was influenced by the trilogy. But I think this story also stands on its own - many of the elements so common in this genre crop up time and time again as dif...more
I first read this series in law school, even though we had an old set in my house ever since middle school. It was more my younger brother's favorite series and I just never had the chance to read them - they weren't assigned in school or anything. Then one summer when I had to ride the train to and from an internship, I decided to pick up the series - and was enthralled. Now, 4 years later, this first book doesn't impress me as much, I'm not sure why. I found myself reading impatiently and skip...more
This is another title that would land in the category of Rereading Books From My Youth. And I'm happy to say, it holds up.
Taran, an assistant pigkeeper, finds himself in the unenviable position of having to save his home after letting the oracular pig in his charge run away. Along the way there are many adventures, the accumulation of a motley crew of friends, and multiple feats of derring do.
I loved it when I was young, and still do. Now I can't wait to read the rest of the series.
Taran, an assistant pigkeeper, finds himself in the unenviable position of having to save his home after letting the oracular pig in his charge run away. Along the way there are many adventures, the accumulation of a motley crew of friends, and multiple feats of derring do.
I loved it when I was young, and still do. Now I can't wait to read the rest of the series.
Everyone has one: a childhood bogeyman that lurks in your nightmares, behind your eyelids in a dark room, and still occasionally gives you the shivers. I met mine on a movie day in grade thre. ee. As I watched in horror, a skull faced man with antlers (somehow the antlers were the worst part for me) and claws for hands proclaimed in a demonic whisper " The Black Cauldron shall be mine!" Yes, The Horned King terrorized me for years until I grew older and wiser (well, sort of) and forgot all abou...more
I recently purchased the entire set of chronicles from Ebay, after a chance session on IMDB. I was looking up the ratings of some obscure Disney films, one of which was the Black Cauldron, and it was there I realized that the movie was based on the first two books of this series. So I decided to get them and read them all.
Glancing at some of the other reviews, I see people who seem to be mostly upset with the characters and those that remind them of characters from The Lord of the Rings. Yes, t...more
Glancing at some of the other reviews, I see people who seem to be mostly upset with the characters and those that remind them of characters from The Lord of the Rings. Yes, t...more
I just finished reading The Book of Three, the first book in the Prydain Chronicles by Lloyd Alexander. It's Tolkienesque. But it's more on the Welsh culture, therefore, I found the names such as Dyrnwyn, Eilonwy, Gwydion, and the others, kinda weird. Haha.
But as what the author said in his note, the setting of the series is not entirely based on the Welsh mythology. Prydian is a different land. The story revolves around the protagonist named Taran, who is a pig-keeper. One day, a strange thing...more
But as what the author said in his note, the setting of the series is not entirely based on the Welsh mythology. Prydian is a different land. The story revolves around the protagonist named Taran, who is a pig-keeper. One day, a strange thing...more
Originally posted at A Novel Idea Reviews
Rating: 4/5
It seems pretty odd that I had that whole string of reviews for the Prydain Chronicles, and now I finally read the first one ages and ages afterward O__O I still enjoyed the series even without getting to read the first novel, though of course I wish I had been able to begin the series where I was supposed to, haha. Never mind! This was just as good as all the other books, and it was actually really nice to kind of get some clarification on eve...more
Rating: 4/5
It seems pretty odd that I had that whole string of reviews for the Prydain Chronicles, and now I finally read the first one ages and ages afterward O__O I still enjoyed the series even without getting to read the first novel, though of course I wish I had been able to begin the series where I was supposed to, haha. Never mind! This was just as good as all the other books, and it was actually really nice to kind of get some clarification on eve...more
The only reason I gave this 4 stars as opposed to 5 is because it is written for young adults. That is not a criticism, just a reminder to interested adult readers that it is a simple book. But it is a good book. A heartwarming tale of a young boy who doesn't know his self worth until unexpectedly swept into grave, great matters that he has only fantasized about. In that sense, one is reminded of your Luke Skywalkers and Frodo Baggins's - Joseph Campbell would be proud. I especially liked the wh...more
Genre: Fantasy
Summary: Based on Welsh legend and mythology, this is a story about an assistant pig keeper that wants nothing more than to be a hero. In this unique take on a fantasy story, even the most ordinary can become a hero.
Critique:
a. Area for comment: Character development.
b. From the beginning, the reader can feel that Taran wants much more from life and is not content being an assistant-pig farmer. Early on, Taran says “what is the use of studying much when I’m to see nothing at all?”...more
3 1/2.
This was a fun read, and I got to read it on a kindle so I can easily find all the quotes I liked from it:
"We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it that we do from learning the answer itself."... "There are times when the seeking counts more than the finding."
"Nothing we do is ever done entirely alone."
"Most of us are called on to perform taskes far beyond what we can do. Our capabilities seldom match our aspirations, and we are aften woefully unprepared. To...more
This was a fun read, and I got to read it on a kindle so I can easily find all the quotes I liked from it:
"We learn more by looking for the answer to a question and not finding it that we do from learning the answer itself."... "There are times when the seeking counts more than the finding."
"Nothing we do is ever done entirely alone."
"Most of us are called on to perform taskes far beyond what we can do. Our capabilities seldom match our aspirations, and we are aften woefully unprepared. To...more
Nov 17, 2012
April
rated it
3 of 5 stars
·
review of another edition
Shelves:
audiobooks,
nook-library
Just after I got finished telling someone I don't like to listen to fantasy books on audio because it gets too hard to keep track of all the characters and subplots and settings...I went and listened to this one. I had a long car ride ahead of me and I basically finished this in one day. But there were times when my mind wandered and I didn't quite get everything that happened and I feel like there are a few holes but those I suppose could be filled in by reading the rest of the series. (like wh...more
"Timeless classic" is a phrase that gets thrown around far too readily, but The Book of Three might qualify: it's as good for young readers now as it was in 1964, and I suspect it will be just as good again in 2064, and onward.
(Hard to believe, looking at that and doing the math in my head, that the 50th anniversary is coming up in just a couple years.)
That's not to say it's a flawless work. The plot is simple, most of the characters are well-worn archetypes, and Lloyd Alexander's prose can be p...more
(Hard to believe, looking at that and doing the math in my head, that the 50th anniversary is coming up in just a couple years.)
That's not to say it's a flawless work. The plot is simple, most of the characters are well-worn archetypes, and Lloyd Alexander's prose can be p...more
Single review for the Chronicles of Prydain, as they are similar in style and quality and could have been produced as a single large volume of five sub-books.
The Chronicles of Prydain are children's books. Some children's books hold up well when read by an adult, but these are definitely for kids and do not carry any added depth. The adventures are amusing but flat. You might smile at Eilonwy's sass and moxie and Fflewdur Fflam's tall tales. But you're probably also going to cringe at Taran's e...more
The Chronicles of Prydain are children's books. Some children's books hold up well when read by an adult, but these are definitely for kids and do not carry any added depth. The adventures are amusing but flat. You might smile at Eilonwy's sass and moxie and Fflewdur Fflam's tall tales. But you're probably also going to cringe at Taran's e...more
The first in a series of five novels. I probably first read this around age 11 or 12. I remember having this on my nightstand along with the other 6 or 7 other books I was reading at the time, ha ha. Gone are the days...
Aside from the fact that this book is pretty good (no The Fellowship of the Ring, maybe, but pretty good), I feel compelled to mention here how much I like the cover art, by Jody Lee. The depictions really capture the characters in all their glory (or lack thereof), as well as th...more
Aside from the fact that this book is pretty good (no The Fellowship of the Ring, maybe, but pretty good), I feel compelled to mention here how much I like the cover art, by Jody Lee. The depictions really capture the characters in all their glory (or lack thereof), as well as th...more
The year was 1965. I raced through the Chronicles of Narnia and needed something new to read...perhaps it was my school librarian or a mention in the New York Times Book Review (yes, I read the NYTBR when I was a kid - but only the children's books), but I picked up The Book of Three and was hooked. This was the first series I read where I had to wait for the books to come out! And if I wasn't a devotee of the NYT Book Review before, I was now! Reading the Chronicles of Prydain got me into readi...more
The "Friends of the Library" book sale is a wonderful thing. We got the entire Prydain Chronicles for $2.00. Somehow I had missed these as a child, but Moeller mentioned them the other day, and so I decided to read them.
Taran is a young orphan being raised on a reclusive farm by an old enchanter named Dalben. While Taran dreams of glory and adventure, his guardian pushes him to learn the meaning of duty first, which for Taran means taking care of an oracular pig named Hen Wen. Taran, chaffing at...more
Taran is a young orphan being raised on a reclusive farm by an old enchanter named Dalben. While Taran dreams of glory and adventure, his guardian pushes him to learn the meaning of duty first, which for Taran means taking care of an oracular pig named Hen Wen. Taran, chaffing at...more
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|---|---|---|---|---|
| Favorite Character | 19 | 64 | Apr 05, 2013 02:38pm | |
| Mythology in the Book | 1 | 28 | Apr 07, 2011 04:19am |
Lloyd Chudley Alexander (January 30, 1924 - May 17, 2007) was an influential American author of more than forty books, mostly fantasy novels for children and adolescents, as well as several adult books. His most famous contribution to the field of children's literature is the fantasy series The Chronicles of Prydain. The concluding book of the series, The High King, was awarded the Newbery Medal i...more
More about Lloyd Alexander...
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“Most of us are called on to perform tasks far beyond what we can do. Our capabilities seldom match our aspirations, and we are often woefully unprepared. To this extent, we are all Assistant Pig-Keepers at heart.”
—
174 people liked it
“Neither refuse to give help when it is needed,... nor refuse to accept it when it is offered.”
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96 people liked it
More quotes…
No one has mooched it yet. :P
http://www.bookmooch.com/m/detail/080...
It was mooched last week.
updated Jan 22, 2009 08:19am
Jan 28, 2012 02:05pm