Chapter Books

The High King

HighKingIt’s happened: we’ve finished them. All five Prydain chronicles. I could cry.

Oh, wait — I did. Several times. And it’s not just because my daughters and I reached the end of this superb shared reading experience. It’s because The High King is an unbelievably high-stakes, moving ending to the story of Taran and “the companions.”

Tolkien calls his band of questing characters a fellowship. But Lloyd Alexander chooses this less biblical, more vulnerable human term “companions” to describe the now familiar group surrounding Taran: Eilonwy, Gurgi, Flweddur Fflam, and good old Doli the dwarf. I began noticing it here in the last book most of all. Gwydion, Coll, Hen Wen the oracular pig, Dallben the enchanter, Prince (now King) Rhun, and numerous acquaintances Taran made in Taran Wanderer also make appearances in these pages as events gather momentum  toward a defining crisis for Prydain. Their mission seems truly impossible: to recover the sword Dyrnwyn, stolen by Arawn the Death Lord, and thereby save Prydain from thralldom or destruction.

Rereading these books as an adult, I’ve been struck from the start by the depth of character Alexander gives Taran and his friends. The result is a sense of deep attachment to them, and we felt anxious and at times heartbroken as we worked our way through these pages. There is wisdom here, and courage, and the conflict between good and evil is laid bare. It’s a serious book but an immensely satisfying one.

I don’t want to include any spoilers, but I did find myself wanting to learn more about Lloyd Alexander after rereading these books. What did he have to say about his stories? Among other things, in this interview he says,

The High King was the final logical development of the first four books in the Prydain Chronicles. It was not an easy book to write, but at least I was building on a foundation that I had already made. I never considered a different ending, but I know that some readers think it should have ended differently. I cried for three days afterwards… I had been writing the Prydain Chronicles for about seven years, and the characters were as close to me as my own family. Indeed, they felt like my family. I admit that I wept at the end – to see Taran confronted with such a brutally difficult decision. And yet, I was convinced that he did the right thing. But to me, I felt the same loss that he did…

Maybe that will whet your appetite if you haven’t read these books! And if you have, and you want to see Lloyd Alexander talking about them, here is the first of a three-segment interview with Lloyd Alexander on YouTube. (He shows us Fflewddur’s harp!) Here’s the second part. (He talks about becoming a writer, and transitioning into writing “children’s books.”) And here’s the third. (He shows us his work room and talks about writing.)

*Much though I love the Narnia stories, and much though I believe them to contain a deeply meaningful level of spiritual realism, the Prydain chronicles have a different kind of realism — as well as what I can only describe as more heart. There is a spiritual depth to these tales; they are similar in many ways to Tolkien’s tales of Middle Earth. But they are somehow less cerebral and more psychological in their imaginative vision. I recommend them all highly and feel sure I’ll be revisiting them again.

*Edited to add: I find myself wanting to stand the Narnia and Prydain stories next to one another and compare them, but I’m not satisfied with my attempt here. It will be something to muse on in coming days…

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