Taran searches for his identity, parentage and wisdom.ĥ. Taran escorts Eilonwy to a royal island court for her education, where she is kidnapped he leads a band to rescue her.Ĥ. Taran and companions struggle to capture a magical cauldron that generates Arawn's deathless army.ģ.

Taran and companions race to report news of an army raised by the Horned King, an evil war leader of Arawn Death-Lord.Ģ. Among these are the enchantress Achren, the fierce Huntsmen of Annuvin, and the deathless Cauldron-Born warriors.ġ. The series narrates their several quests and conflicts, including the struggle to defeat Arawn Death-Lord and his many allies, servants and creatures. Other essential characters include Dallben the Enchanter, Doli of the Fair Folk, and the oracular pig Hen Wen.

Taran's Companions include the lovely and outspoken Princess Eilonwy, the impetuous bard Fflewddur Fflam, the shaggy creature Gurgi, and the noble warrior Prince Gwydion Son of Don. The main character is Taran of Caer Dallben, a sometimes rash young man who dreams of being a hero, and who strives to be honorable through his many adventures. The setting of the Chronicles is the Land of Prydain, an ancient country of many small kingdoms, in which enchantment abounds and 'evil is never far'. The country of Wales, part of the United Kingdom, located in the west of the island of Great Britain. A nearly complete omnibus edition of the fiction was published in 1991 as The Prydain Chronicles. The Internet Speculative Fiction Database catalogs all Prydain publications, Alexander's fiction and The Prydain Companion by Michael O. They act as backstories which fill in gaps for minor characters. The short stories, now collected in The Foundling and Other Tales of Prydain, were originally published in three volumes: two picture books and one collection. Alexander drew names and atmosphere from these texts, then went on to create wholly unique and original characters, stories, places and concepts, independent of the medieval literature. The five novels and eight short stories in the Prydain series were inspired by medieval Welsh legends and folktales, some of which are collected in the so-called Mabinogion or the Welsh Triads. There are five books in Lloyd Alexander's The Chronicles of Prydain series, plus a sixth book of short stories:ġ. Originally intended for children and young adults, the series remains popular among readers of all ages, many of whom consider the series to be on par with Tolkien's The Lord of the Rings. The Chronicles of Prydain are a series of high fantasy novels written by Philadelphia native Lloyd Alexander, and published annually by Holt, Rhinehart and Winston from 1964 to 1968.

The chronicles of prydain books