9 February, 2002
The Iron Ring
Lloyd Alexander
1997
283 pp (PB)
Lloyd Alexander is most famous for The Chronicles of Prydain, a five-volume fantasy series which draws much of its inspiration from Celtic mythology. He's written a lot of other good children's fantasy stories, including the Westmark series. I have a lot of good childhood memories of his books. The Iron Ring is his most recent work. It draws on Indian culture and folklore, rather than European, which is a welcome change for somebody who's read so much Fantasy as I have.
Tamar is the young king of a small kingdom, in a land not dissimilar to the India of folklore and legend. He foolishly loses his freedom in a dice game, and sets out on a quest to honor his debt. On his journey, he has a series of adventures, and gathers an entourage which includes talking animals, a sensible milkmaid, a clueless sage, and a mystical mystic. The characters are likeable, the writing is snappy, and the plot moves along from one adventure to the next at a good pace-- not too fast or too slow.
There's not a lot of ground breaking originality in this book, but it is a fun little story which I'd definitely recommend for kids, as well as for adults like myself who enjoy YA literature. It's good to see that Alexander hasn't succumbed to the notorious Brain Eater which affects so many authors as they get older.