About book The Foundling And Other Tales Of Prydain (2006)
It's hard to credit some of the stuff I'm seeing from fellow reviewers on this page. Maybe they don't believe Mr. Alexander when he says The Foundling and Other Tales is perfectly capable of standing on its own, but a single reading of this wee book should clue everyone in as to exactly what it is they are holding. Namely: This is a book of fables, or would-be legends; it isn't meant to answer burning questions about the population of a long-running series (although apparently it does in part fulfil this function, too), and it isn't meant to provide deep characterisation of any kind, really. Realism is not part of the agenda; people in the book act in ways that fulfil the moral imperative of the tales, and nothing more.It's quite good at this, too. This won't rock the world of anyone, I suspect, least of all those over a certain basically arbitrary age, but it's fun; i'd read these cute little stories aloud to my children, if I had any. I think the tales, which are loosely based, says the very humble-seeming Alexander in his foreword, on Welsh legends, work best when he is putting flowery words in the mouths of his archetypical characters: bards, enchanters, farmers and fairies, all of whom speak in the grandiose and florid language of ancient embellished oral traditions. The story about the three enchanters vying for the hand of a princess was probably my favourite. It reminded me a little of Jack Vance, even, what with the mages putting on a contest of conjurings to impress the lady. The story about the bard-king who acquired a beautiful harp which always played the most alluring of melodies, but whose strings broke whenever the flamboyant man told an exaggerated truth or outright lie, got a chuckle out of me. The morals in these tales are very simple and obvious, but I suppose that's really how it should be, and there's a little intrigue in seeing what Alexander does to get us there.I read a few of the Prydain books when I was in elementary school. I am pretty sure I never read the whole series; in fact I probably only read three of the five books, and the only one I remember at all is The Black Cauldron. I didn't recall a single character's name or situation from the books, and so I came at this without any expectations of gaps being filled in an extatn series. Ultimately, I believe that were the name of Prydain not slapped onto this book, its purpose would have been just as well served, or maybe even better served, since one would only expect a series of fabulistic tales set in a nebulous world of enchantment and fey folk, which is precisely what this book is. However, not only is it a coup for the publisher to tie this in with Alexander's series of novels, but I see what he's trying to do here is bring us a little closer to the Welsh tales from which he drew his original inspiration, by distilling his storytelling right to the source, as it were. A few characters from the novels do get name-dropped, but as I said, they meant nothing to me.
Lest anyone be super impressed that I’ve managed to finish another book this week; this book is neither long, nor is it “difficult” reading in any sense of the word. This is not to say it’s not worthwhile, merely that it isn’t something I’d pick up if you’re looking for a serious intellectual challenge.The Foundling is a collection of short stories set in the same setting as Lloyd Alexander’s more well-known and popular Chronicles of Prydain; essentially, it’s a prequel book, adding some detail to the original chronicles, or filling in a few unanswered questions. It includes the story of how Dalben was raised by Ordu, Orwen, and Orgach; how Coll saved Hen Wen from the clutches of Arawn Death Lord; how Fflewddur Fflam got a hold of that damnable harp of his in the first place; and the story of why the great sword Dyrnwyn is, in fact, black. The last is perhaps the most disturbing of all the stories, in keep with Alexander’s penchant for writing children’s stories with some seriously adult undertones.While I enjoyed these stories, I have to confess that I was a little disappointed. I think, honestly, that my expectations were a bit to high; the depth and detail of the original Prydain chronicles is somewhat muted in many of these stories, which read more like a pseudo-Welsh version of Aesop’s Fables. Many of them have a very clear “moral” that, while never stated directly (“the moral of this story is…”), is pretty apparent from the reading. And while the stories do serve to fill n some background information, some of them, like Dalban’s, tell us very little that we didn’t already know. Coll’s story is the only one that really puts a big spin on what we learn in the original Chronicles, and I’m not sure I’m entirely satisfied with that spin. But it works well-enough, I think, in context.Those who enjoyed the original Chronicles of Prydain should enjoy these stories as well; for readers not familiar with Alexander’s work, I would start with the original Chronicles first, which are a lot deeper and more interesting. Certainly, any child who enjoyed the Chronicles would probably enjoy these too, and might not notice some of the issues I’m finding. Worth adding to the bookshelf, if this is your thing.
Do You like book The Foundling And Other Tales Of Prydain (2006)?
This collection of eight short stories is set in the mythical world of Prydain. They are all about events that happen before The Book of Three. Reading this before the rest of the Chronicles of Prydain will not spoil the novels (I've read the first two) though some minor secrets are given away. I started reading it as my "the kids are playing in the family room so I can read a paragraph or two before they ask me a question or want me to do something" book. The stories are short and quite memorable so putting the book down and coming back later is easy to do.The stories all center around characters and places from the other stories. How Dallben became a great enchanter and Fflewddur Fflam became owner of an enchanted harp are told in tales full of mirth and wisdom. The stories are sometimes a little obvious though more often unexpected twists make for good (if not always happy) endings. The tale of the sword Dyrnwyn is particularly bleak but is so well written that it sweeps the reader along like a torrential river. All the stories are enjoyable.My only objection to the book would be that it's a little slim (barely 100 pages) for a $6 paperback. If you buy the Prydain box set, it's a nice bonus to have.
—Joseph R.
A re-read of a book I first read in my twenties. I enjoyed it as much this time as the first, and in between I've read these charming short stories to my children. Fantasy stories told in a folk-tale style, they are full of lovely concepts like the value of wisdom, kindness, and courage, the evils of bullying and abuse of power, but in a rich, involving, utterly non-preachy way.These are background tales to the larger Prydain series, and people who have read that series will recognize names here, but it is not necessary to read the one to appreciate the other.Lovely books.
—Ilona
Look, I’m not sure why I’m bothering to review the book. It is wonderful, phenomenal, enchanted and enchanting, gripping and electrifying and terrifying and a whole host of other emotions that I’m not even sure I can name. This book, The Foundling and Other Tales, is a bare handful of stories about characters, places, and themes we have read about in The Prydain Chronicles. As such, it is both familiar and yet wholly new and, and...I first read this book when I was ten years old. It was a bit after I first discovered Prydain (through The Black Cauldron) and a little after I had hounded my local librarians into getting the entire series for me. It was after I had bawled my way through Taran Wanderer and The High King and found that I wanted to delve ever deeper into Prydain even though, well, you know.So, I’m making a list of the stories with brief descriptions as a service to those who have never discovered Prydain - although to those I say, come back to this one last, after you’ve been through the muddy roads of Prydain and met a certain pig-farmer and a certain young lady - to whet the appetite with the nature of the stories contained herein.They’re all fantastic, literally and metaphorically, and I’d give each of them five out of five stars only because six out of five is faintly ridiculous and such exaggerations detract from the absolute perfection of these stories. Go read them already.The FoundlingA tale of gifts and their cost and about how a young man learned the difference between knowledge and wisdom.The StoneSometimes you have to really want to let go of something in order to get rid of it forever.The True EnchanterA story about how words are more powerful than magic sometimes. Also, one of the best last lines in literature.The Rascal CrowA fable of a crow whose deeds come back to haunt him and how that teaches him nothing.The SwordThe story of a fabled sword and how it comes to be tarnished.The Smith, The Weaver, and The HarperIf something seems too good to be true, it probably is. Here are three tales in one that tells you just how that might be so.Coll and His White PigThe tale of Coll and Hen Wen and what lengths Coll went to to keep her safe. Also, Dallben.The Truthful HarpFflewdder Fflam. Enough said.
—Joel Neff
