This has always been my favorite of the series. It has such danger & humor & the various hero's journeys deepen as the story continues. Here we meet Gwystyl & Kaw & the tragic figures of King Morgant & Ellidyr & Islimach.

When I read this book as a little girl, I was quite taken with the character of Adaon, the son of Taliesin. I hated Ellidyr, the last son of a poor family who has nothing but his sword, his horse & his prideful rage to carry him through. As an adult I found myself pitying Ellidyr acutely - to be cast out into the world with little hope of making your way would be a terrible fate. His story is a painful one.

Our main characters are growing up & beginning to deal with all the hard choices that adults must make. I love that Alexander doesn't make everything black & white, good & evil; rather he shows the world in all its many shades of gray - that's a brave choice in a children's book.

This book also has Orddu, Orwen, & Orgoch - one of the most fun representations of the Fates that anyone short of Neil Gaiman has thought to create. From their appearance in Hamlet through all the other literary places they reside, they are at their most amusing & most frightening here - a clearer picture of the True Neutral alignment I have never met.

This book won the Newberry Award & it's easy to see why having read it. Disney turned it into a dreadful movie that I urge you to avoid. Read these books - they are wonderful. ( )

I got my copy of this book at a used book store in Orlando. I was probably 10 years old. I had no idea that it would be my introduction to fantasy literature. It swept me up and took me on an incredible journey through the Prydain Chronicles. It was only after I finished The High King that I picked up the Narnia series, and then the Redwall series. ( )

I really loved this series when I was younger, but when I went back to read it around Y2K, it wasn't as good. Something about the writing style didn't sit well, which is why I only gave it 4 stars - it really is a Young Adult classic. Some writers, like John Christopher & L'Engle, are a bit better at writing - FOR ME - over the years. I read all their books as a kid & again as I grew older. Some stories are still re-readable, some aren't. It's a fantasy with magic & such. Nothing terribly remarkable about it, but it was originally a neat new world. There are 5 books in the series. ( )

This is by far the best in the series. I read this at a young age with my father and we both loved it, my father more than I. This fantastical, well created world is believable and appeals to all ages. I fell in love with the adorable Gurgie and my father related well to the bard. There is most definetly something in the characters for every one. ( )

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