More...overtly romantic than the first two volumes, "The Castle of Llyr" has the distinction of being the only book in the series where no one dies-at least no one whose name we know.
I would say that it also marks the tonal shift in the series, introducing both more comedy (in the person of the feckless Prince Rhun) and more philosophy. How accurate are first impressions? Is there always more to a person than what appears on the surface? Does fate decide our lives, or do we choose for ourselves? And, as always, what does it mean to be a hero?
Author: Lloyd Alexander
Potentially objectionable content: No one dies, but it's rather intense
Thursday, May 29, 2014
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Book #16: "The Black Cauldron"
The second Prydain book has the distinction of having been made into a REALLY awful Disney movie almost 30 years ago. I tried to find it to prove to myself just how awful it is, but neither Netflix or Hulu has it and I didn't want to pay for it. I'm not THAT dedicated.
Anyway, if all you know about this series is the movie, do yourself a favor and check out the book. You can borrow it from me if you want.
Author: Lloyd Alexander
Potentially objectionable content: violence, death, etc.
Anyway, if all you know about this series is the movie, do yourself a favor and check out the book. You can borrow it from me if you want.
Author: Lloyd Alexander
Potentially objectionable content: violence, death, etc.
Tuesday, May 6, 2014
Book #15: "The Book of Three"
Back in my bookseller days, I would frequently get requests for books that went thusly: "I can't remember the title, and I don't know the author, but I think it had a blue cover and it turned out they were twins." Or something similar-in fact, saying the book had a blue cover is so common that it's become a running joke in the book world. http://libraryshenanigans.wordpress.com/2013/02/07/i-dont-remember-the-title-but-the-cover-was-blue,
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/7810999328086852 (The picture in the second link is from the Blue Willow Bookshop in Texas, but I couldn't find a link to it on their website.)
Anyway, after a couple of months you get used to it. In fact, in those rare cases where the customer KNOWS what they've given you is next to useless but is just hoping for a miracle, you actually enjoy the challenge. So one night this teenage boy and his mom came up to me and he said, "I know this is ridiculous, but I'm looking for a book and all I can remember is the picture on the cover." I told him I'd try, and he said, "Okay, so there's one guy lying down, and another guy on a horse, and the horse is rearing up, and the guy on the horse has like a skull mask with horns."
I said, "It's 'The Book of Three', isn't it? Lloyd Alexander?" And we went over to the children's department and I pulled the book (a newer edition, with a different design) off the shelf. He pointed out that the cover was not what he'd described, and I said, "I know. Trust me." He opened it, read a few sentences and said, "THIS IS IT!"
And the point of this story is this: I was so good at that game that I once found a book based on a description of a cover that doesn't look like that anymore. And it was this book, the first of the Prydain chronicles, the book that introduces our main characters: Taran, Assistant Pig-keeper of Caer Dallben; his charge, Hen Wen the oracular pig; his master, the enchanter Dallben; Coll, his mentor and friend; Gwydion, Prince of Don; Fflewddur Fflam; Doli; Gurgi; and, of course, the Princess Eilonwy. Our hero is a boy of indeterminate age (though from the way he talks, I'd put him at about fourteen) who wants nothing more than to get off the farm where he has spent his entire life and become a hero.
This series is a favorite of mine, and anyone who likes Harry Potter or Percy Jackson needs to read it. It's based on Welsh mythology, which makes the names ...something of a challenge, but it's also, in my estimation at least, one of the best adventure sagas ever told.
Author: Lloyd Alexander
Potentially objectionable content: There are a lot of battle scenes, and some fairly scary bad guys.
http://www.pinterest.com/pin/7810999328086852 (The picture in the second link is from the Blue Willow Bookshop in Texas, but I couldn't find a link to it on their website.)
Anyway, after a couple of months you get used to it. In fact, in those rare cases where the customer KNOWS what they've given you is next to useless but is just hoping for a miracle, you actually enjoy the challenge. So one night this teenage boy and his mom came up to me and he said, "I know this is ridiculous, but I'm looking for a book and all I can remember is the picture on the cover." I told him I'd try, and he said, "Okay, so there's one guy lying down, and another guy on a horse, and the horse is rearing up, and the guy on the horse has like a skull mask with horns."
I said, "It's 'The Book of Three', isn't it? Lloyd Alexander?" And we went over to the children's department and I pulled the book (a newer edition, with a different design) off the shelf. He pointed out that the cover was not what he'd described, and I said, "I know. Trust me." He opened it, read a few sentences and said, "THIS IS IT!"
And the point of this story is this: I was so good at that game that I once found a book based on a description of a cover that doesn't look like that anymore. And it was this book, the first of the Prydain chronicles, the book that introduces our main characters: Taran, Assistant Pig-keeper of Caer Dallben; his charge, Hen Wen the oracular pig; his master, the enchanter Dallben; Coll, his mentor and friend; Gwydion, Prince of Don; Fflewddur Fflam; Doli; Gurgi; and, of course, the Princess Eilonwy. Our hero is a boy of indeterminate age (though from the way he talks, I'd put him at about fourteen) who wants nothing more than to get off the farm where he has spent his entire life and become a hero.
This series is a favorite of mine, and anyone who likes Harry Potter or Percy Jackson needs to read it. It's based on Welsh mythology, which makes the names ...something of a challenge, but it's also, in my estimation at least, one of the best adventure sagas ever told.
Author: Lloyd Alexander
Potentially objectionable content: There are a lot of battle scenes, and some fairly scary bad guys.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)