The Children of Llyr: The Second Branch of the Mabinogion

Evangeline Walton's brilliant re-workings of the Mabinogion are the place to begin exploring this body of Celtic legend -- understanding that she has taken fiction's liberties with the sacred text (as did the Medieval scribes who wrote them down, by the way). Read the books in order, beginning with Price of Annwn, or start with the best one, Song of Rhiannon, to appreciate them.

Being 30 I could not, in good conscience, give this book the full five stars. I read it in sixth grade and re-read it only a couple of months ago. The writing style is a little simplistic and the background not as full as I would like, yet it still stands as a classic. It is the re-working of one branch of the Mabinogion - equate it with the Bullfinch of Welsh mythology. It tells the story of the demigod children of Llyr, making the magic of myth seem plausible. Let me warn you, however, Celts apparently have a well-developed sense of melancholy and there are no happy endings to any of their tales. There are tragic moments and brutal events but there are also poignant passages. The subject of Celtic mythology is much more popular today than in 1981, but few have related it with the spirit of Ms. Walton's work. It was her introduction in this volume to which I credit my abiding interest to this day. I highly recommend this story to anyone over the age of ten.