Written by Lloyd Alexander
SUMMARY:
Though the Newbery Honor-winning book was originally published in 1965, this 229-page Bantam Doubleday Dell paperback reprint was released in April 1990.
Roughly eighteen months have elapsed since the Companions’ first adventure in The Book of Three. Assembling in Caer Dalben, Prince Gwydion’s trusted forces map out a three-prong counter-attack against the malevolent Arawn Death-Lord, which includes a strike against Arawn’s feared home base of Annuvin. Assigned to guarding the mission’s pack train, Taran feuds with embittered Prince Ellidyr, who resents being relegated to the back-up squad, which now includes Princess Eilonwy and Gurgi.
Attacked and separated from Gwydion’s allies by Arawn’s minions, Taran re-assembles his closest friends for a fateful journey into the Marshes of Morva to find and destroy the reputed ‘Black Cauldron.’ It’s reputedly the cursed source of Arawn’s zombie-like, undead soldiers known as ‘The Cauldron-Born.’ Among those standing in their way is an unpredictable trio of ‘golden ghoul’ witches.
Facing desperate choices, Taran, Gurgi, Eilonwy, and a wounded Fflewddur must overcome tragedy and unexpected treachery to have a chance of survival, let alone thwarting Arawn’s mystical factory of constantly regenerating new henchmen.
REVIEW:
Much like how The Empire Strikes Back takes a decidedly darker turn after Star Wars, the same can be said of The Black Cauldron following the traditional fairy tale charm of The Book of Three. Still, what high-spirited charm this second Chronicle of Prydain deliberately lacks, it compensates with a welcome sense of macabre unpredictability and a more sophisticated form of storytelling.
Though some sequences may prove unsettling for younger readers, author Lloyd Alexander concocts a powerful fantasy tale that honors some of the grim realities of heroism. Quite likely, The Black Cauldron’s storyline of sacrifice and redemption rates as the second-best of Alexander’s five-part Chronicles of Prydain, behind only its poignant finale: The High King. All it needs now is a scenic big-screen adaptation in the same league as Lord of the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia.
ADDITIONAL CONTENT:
Alexander provides a short ‘Author’s Note.’
BRIAN’S ODD MOON RATING: 8½ Stars
Note: Disney’s disappointing 1985 animated adaptation is really a mish-mash with the Companions’ prior adventure, The Book of Three.
