In the thirty-odd years of his writing career, Lloyd Chudley Alexander has proven himself a master in the field of modern children's literature. His numerous literary awards both in the United States and Europe, as well as his widespread readership, which includes children as far away as Japan, attest to his international popularity. One reason for Alexander's universal appeal may be that his stories reflect an awareness of the basis upon which all literature is built. Even as a child, he "loved all the world's mythologies," from the tales of the Arabian nights to the didactic animal stories of Aesop.

Although the five-part Prydain cycle, which includes the Newbery award-winning The High King, is perhaps his best-known and most highly acclaimed work to date, his contributions to children's literature span a wide range of genres, from richly illustrated fables for very young readers to a trilogy for young...