Only He of Noble Worth

My favorite book of all of the books in the Prydain Chronicles, by Lloyd Alexander, is The High King. It's a stunning, surprising conclusion to the exciting series, that tugs both harp strings, and heart strings, as the tale unfolds.

The Sword of Dyrnwyn that Taran, the Assistant Pig-Keeper of the wizard Dallben, and Eilonwy, the last princess of Llyr, found on their very first adventure, has been stolen, and has fallen into the hands of the evil Arawn-Death-Lord. Once a student of the enchantress, Achren, who held Eilonwy captive, Arawn seeks to unlock the magic of the sword and use it to his own devious ends. However, the sword is enchanted against being used by anyone who is not "of noble worth," and burns in the hands of anyone who dares to touch it who is not.

Can Taran and his friends retrieve the sword from Arawn's stronghold before the Death-Lord discovers a way to break the enchantment?

This story is a race against time as a war between Arawn and the rest of Prydain rages. Taran and Eilonwy, along with their friends Gurgi; Fflewddur Fflam, the bard; and Doli, the dwarf, must reclaim the sword to save their war-torn land.

The High King is one of the best books I've ever read. I highly recommend it to everyone, but especially for young boys just getting started on fantasy.

On a scale of one to ten, I'd give it a very enthusiastic nine and a half.

Happy reading! - Mel

Here are some links to information about Lloyd Alexander and his work:

http://www.unaweb.com/book/

http://falcon.jmu.edu/~ramseyil/alexande...

http://members.aol.com/cmbutk/tbcmain.htm

http://www.cas.usf.edu/lis/alis/lis5937/...

http://www.carr.lib.md.us/authco/alex.htm

http://encarta.msn.com/find/Concise.asp?...

http://www.penguinputnam.com/catalog/yre...

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