The Black Cauldron by Lloyd Alexander
Publication: Henry Holt and Co. (BYR); Revised edition (May 15, 1999), Hardcover, 182 pages / ISBN 0805061312
Genre: Fantasy, Adventure, YA
Rating: 4.5/5
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Challenges: 2009 Support Your Local Library Challenge (#3)
First sentence: Autumn had come too swiftly.
I liked this one much better than The Book of Three. I don’t know if it’s because I’m more used to Mr. Lloyd’s writing style or just because it is better, but whatever the reason, I loved it.
Summary from Amazon:
In the imaginary Land of Prydain, where “evil is never distant,” it has become imperative that the Black Cauldron, chief implement of the diabolical Arawn, be destroyed. In this cauldron Arawn has created his terrible army of deathless warriors from the stolen bodies of the slain. For each of those chosen to journey to Arawn’s domain, the quest has a special meaning, and to Taran, Assistant Pig-Keeper, the adventure becomes a glorious opportunity to wear his first sword and prove himself a man among men.
The story flows so smoothly and yet so enticingly– there’s plenty of action and thrills, but even better there’s been CHARACTER GROWTH! Just as I hoped for!
I like Taran much better, too, and I’m glad that he’s acting more like the young man he is and not like a fanboy. Pretty much all the other characters act the same as they were in the first book, but I didn’t mind as much as I probably normally would. There’s new characters to occupy my thoughts, too, and though I guessed that one of them would kick it (it helped that it was pretty heavily foreshadowed), I did not guess what the other character would do. I was so happily surprised! I can’t say much more for fear of spoilers, but I was very pleased with the ending (though it was rather sad).
I thought it was very interesting that the older characters didn’t want to go to war, but thought it necessary to protect the country. The younger characters, on the other hand, very much were in favor of fighting any and all villains. By the end– and, alright, this is a bit of a spoiler– they learn that war isn’t all it’s cracked up to be, and that being an adult is much harder than being a kid. A nice little lesson, without any heavy-handedness that my paraphrasing might have implied.
At this rate, the third book should be even better than the second. I look forward to finding out!
And finally– I’m not sure what’s “revised” about this book; anyone know?
Other reviews: Why Not? | The Reading Room by rara_imura | Booklore by Nadine
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