The Book of Three by Lloyd Alexander

The Book of Three (Chronicles of Prydain, #1)

by Lloyd Alexander

The first book in The Chronicles of Prydain, a classic epic full of breathtaking action, humour, valour and excitement.

Taran is desperate for adventure. Being a lowly Assistant Pig-Keeper just isn't exciting. That is, until the magical pig, Hen Wen, disappears and Taran embarks on a death-defying quest to save her from the evil Horned King.

His perilous adventures bring Taran many new friends: an irritable dwarf, an impulsive bard, a strange hairy beast and the hot-headed Princess Eilonwy. Together, they must face the deathless Cauldron-Born warriors, dragons, witches and the terrifying Horned King himself. Taran learns much about his identity, but the mysterious Book of Three is yet to reveal his true identity.

Reviewed by ibeforem on

4 of 5 stars

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I thought this was a great story that actually made me quite nostalgic. One of the first computer games I played extensively was Sierra’s The Black Cauldron, which actually uses some of the events from this book as well as the later books in the series. Reading about Taran and Hen Wen was like reuniting with old friends. This is your classic quest story with a struggle between good and evil and a fair amount of comic relief, between Fflewddur Fflam’s lie detecting harp and Eilonwy’s penchant for similies. It was a very pleasant read, and I look forward to more adventures of Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper.

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Reading updates

  • Started reading
  • 17 November, 2008: Finished reading
  • 17 November, 2008: Reviewed