Arkadians: Amazon.ca: Lloyd Alexander: Books

Product Description

From Publishers Weekly

Lucian flees corrupt palace officials in pre-classical Greece, his flight becoming a quest to discover his role in life. Soon, he's trying to help a second-rate poet turned donkey regain human form. Roaming the land, he also gets caught up in the great conflict between followers of the mother goddess and believers in the Olympian pantheon. Fortunately, he has the help of Joy-in-the-Dance, a young prophetess, in a relationship strikingly similar to that of Taran and Eilonwy in Alexander's five-volume Prydain Chronicles. And like the Prydain novels, this adventure draws heavily on a great body of myths and legends. Perhaps to accommodate the constraints of a single volume, Alexander relays many myths in comic, de-bunked forms-he shows poets transforming a clan of horse-riders into centaurs, a skilled mariner separated from his barmaid love into the epic hero Odysseus. Even with much of the raw material developed only minimally, the result is a good, involving story. Readers already acquainted with Greek literature and legend will enjoy picking out familiar threads. Ages 10-up.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From School Library Journal

Grade 3-6-By Lloyd Alexander. Lucien, a young bean counter is about to be put to death by villainous soothsayers. His escape leads him on a magical journey where he meets Joy-in-the-Dance, a girl of marvels and mysteries, and Fronto, a poet turned into a donkey.
Copyright 1998 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

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Customer Reviews

32 Reviews

5 star:		(24)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
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Average Customer Review

4.6 out of 5 stars (32 customer reviews)

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5.0 out of 5 stars The art of storytelling at its most professional, Jun 15 2004

By

Jack Sparrow (Singapore) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arkadians (Mass Market Paperback)

This single book is better than the entire Prydain Chronicles. Whereas the storytelling in the latter series was occasionally clunky and the settings vague, Alexander's hallmark is the nerve-wracking suspense he creates so that the reader just has to finish the book once he starts it.

Alexander is not an author; he is a master storyteller. This book is a collage of various characters telling their own humorous stories threaded together by a common plot of a runaway boy and his talking donkey. The wealth of beautifully crafted characters and the occasionally funny, occasionally sombre plot never fails to sustain the amusement of the reader as Alexander shows off his own skill in the stories of his characters.

This is a highly endearing and delightfully light book that is perfect for bedtime reading - although you probably won't get to sleep until you have turned the last page of the book.

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5.0 out of 5 stars The Arkadians, very good, April 29 2004

By A Customer

This review is from: Arkadians (Mass Market Paperback)

The Arkadians

This is an excellent book. I recommend this book to those seeking adventure and fantasy. In this novel, master story teller Alexander writes about a boy who is on the run from two murderous soothsayers. He is accompanied by a donkey-turned poet called Fronto and a pythoness called Joy-in-the-dance. Fronto is on a quest to be turned back to human, as he was turned into a donkey by searching for inspiration. Joy-in-the-dance is the daughter of the Lady of Wild things, who is praised by the people of Metara. This belief is striking against the king, as faith increases in the Lady as faith decreases in the empire. King Bromios recieves a prophecy from Joy-in-the-dance, but she is afraid that she should change it. As you read the book you will find out more. On a scale from 1 to 10, I would give this book a 8.5.

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1.0 out of 5 stars Think Greek mythology goes Monty Python..., Jan 4 2003

By

Cleopatra Rojas "CR" (Boca Raton, Fl United States) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Arkadians (Hardcover)

I loved Alexanders' Prince Jen and so was looking forward to reading The Arkadians with my daughter. However, we were both thoroughly disappointed. This silly and uneven book features Lucian and Fronto. Lucian is more or less a lost soul trying to find his life's purpose. Fronto is an arrogant poet who gets turned into a donkey. Pretty good so far. Lucian is honest and earnest and as a result ends up in trouble. He and Fronto both seek assistance and on their journey meet an endless series of people. This is where Alexander gets into trouble himself. The main story line is very interesting. But the addition of each new character brings us a ridiculously long tale of woe for that new person. There are too many additional characters and far too much information on each of them. Also, Alexander has tried to give the book a Greek mythology flavor but the majority of it is just too silly. Think Greek mythology goes Monty Python. By the time Lucian and Fronto reach the end of their journey nobody cares. Put this book back and reach out for his Journey of Prince Jen instead.

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Most recent customer reviews

5.0 out of 5 stars Funny, adventuristic and.....romantic?
As a new fan of Lloyd Alexander, I have to admit this is one of my favourite books of all time. It is very adventuristic and quite funny. Read more

Published on Dec 26 2002 by N. Hutton

5.0 out of 5 stars A Wonderful and Delightful Book!
I read this book just recently and loved it! I am an avid reader, and hard to please, but found this book was completely and thoroughly enjoyable. Read more

Published on July 18 2002 by Cassidy Crowley