The Chronicles of Prydain

by Lloyd Alexander

"The Book of Three"--Most of us are called on to perform tasks far beyond what we can do.  Our capabilities seldom match our aspirations, and we are often woefully unprepared.  To this extent, we are all Assistant Pig-Keepers at heart.  (author's note)

"The Black Cauldron"--

“Indeed, the more we find to love, the more we add to the measure of our hearts.” 


“Morgant?" Taran asked, turning a puzzled glance to Gwydion. "How can there be honor for such a man?"

"It is easy to judge evil unmixed," replied Gwydion. "But, alas, in most of us good and bad are closely woven as the threads on a loom; greater wisdom than mine is needed for the judging.

Taran Wanderer--

“Life's a forge -

Yes, and hammer and anvil, too. You'll be roasted, smelted, and pounded, and you'll scarce know what's happening to you. But stand proudly to it. Metal's worthless till it is shaped and tempered. More labor than luck. Face the pounding, don't fear the proving; and you'll stand well against any hammer and anvil.”

The High King--

"It is harsh enough for each man to bear his own wound.  But he who leads bears the wounds of all who follow him." (p. 129)

"There are those who must first learn loss, despair, and grief.  Of all paths to wisdom, this is the cruelest and longest...Those who reach the end do more than gain wisdom.  As rough wool becomes cloth, and crude clay a vessel, so do they change and fashion wisdom for others, and what they give back is greater than what they won." (p. 142)

"Is there worse evil than that which goes in the mask of good?" (p. 148)

“Long ago I yearned to be a hero without knowing, in truth, what a hero was. Now, perhaps, I understand it a little better. A grower of turnips or a shaper of clay, a Commot farmer or a king--every man is a hero if he strives more for others than for himself alone.
Once you told me that the seeking counts more than the finding. So, too, must the striving count more than the gain.” ." (p. 292)

"Do you believe evil itself to be so quickly overcome?  Not so long as men still hate and slay each other, when greed and anger goad them.  Against these even a flaming sword cannot prevail, but only that portion of good in all men's hearts whose flame can never be quenched." (p. 300)