Newbery Medal 1969 The High King Lloyd Chudley Alexander (January 30, 1924 – May 17, 2007) was an American author of more than 40 books, primarily fantasy novels for children and young adults.

After returning to the United States with his new family, he struggled to make a living from writing until he published And Let the Credit Go (1955), his first autobiographical novel.

The Harold B. Lee Library at Brigham Young University contains a permanent Lloyd Alexander exhibit that showcases several items from his home office including his desk, typewriter, and manuscripts and editions of his books.

[9] In addition to being interested in art, at age thirteen, Alexander wanted to become an Episcopal priest; however, his family could not afford to send him to divinity school.

[12] In high school, he began writing romantic poetry modeled after the work of nineteenth-century poets and narrative short stories, but he failed to acquire interest from publishers.

[13] His parents found him a job as a bank messenger, which inspired a satire that would become his first book published fifteen years later, And Let the Credit Go (1955).

[22] Alexander was stationed in Wales and England briefly and then was assigned to the 7th army in eastern France where he translated radio messages for six months.

[23] After the war, Alexander attended the University of Paris where he studied French literature and was fascinated by the poetry of Paul Éluard.

[25] The three moved into the attic of his parents' home where Alexander spent twelve hours a day translating Éluard's works and writing his own.

At the end of 1948, he started writing advertising copy, and he began to receive more royalties for his translations, leading him to purchase a house for his family in Kellytown.

However, he lost his job after three months, requiring his wife to take up employment in a textile mill to make ends meet.

The American Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals subsequently commissioned their history, which Alexander wrote as Fifty Years in the Doghouse (1964).

[39] The five novels detail the adventures of a young man named Taran, who dreams of being a sword-bearing hero but has only the title of Assistant Pig-Keeper.

Alexander also wrote two spin-off children's books from the Prydain series, Coll and His White Pig (1965) and The Truthful Harp (1967).

[43] He once described it as being educational for him and "rather like being a visiting uncle, who has a marvelous time with his nephews and nieces, then goes off leaving the parents to cope with attacks of whooping cough, mending socks and blackmailing the kids to straighten up the mess in their rooms.

"[56] According to Dictionary of Literary Biography, Alexander's books had "the special depth and insight provided by characters who not only act but think, feel and struggle with the same kinds of problems that confuse and trouble people in the twentieth century.

[57] C. W. Sullivan, a professor of Northern European mythology at East Carolina University, stated that Alexander took the structure of a fairy tale, or märchen, and added Welsh details.

[58] Brian Attebery wrote that The Book of Three was "no more than a clever imitation of Tolkien", but noted that Taran, written by an American, finds his identity in the future, not the past.

[59] Mark Oziewicz, a professor specializing in young adult fantasy,[60] wrote that the Prydain Chronicles show the importance of connecting the present to the past.

[64] Alexander's biographer, Jill May, along with critic Normal Bagnall, noted several American themes in the Prydain series: that leadership is an ability, not inherited, and that anyone can become a hero.

[65][66] Bagnall further elucidated that Taran's character development was American, with him growing from an inarticulate, self-conscious teen into a self-educated, self-sacrificing adult.

He stated that in his fantasy world, "good is ultimately stronger than evil" and "courage, justice, love, and mercy actually function".

The books are appealing adventure stories that simultaneously discuss ethical issues, a quality that critic Hazel Rochman praised in School Library Journal.

Writing at The Horn Book, Mary M. Burns stated that The Illyrian Adventure was excellent because it was believable while being a fantasy and had a strong underlying theme.

While she is independent and assertive in The Book of Three, other characters view her adventuring in The High King as unladylike, consistently dismissing her useful advice.

Fierce concludes that, unlike other women in fantasy fiction, at least Eilonwy made the decision herself to lose her magical powers.

[79] His first work for children, a biography of Jewish freedom fighter August Bondi, had little dialogue, perhaps in an effort to be faithful to historical sources.

[82] Alexander was included in the 1972 third volume of the H. W. Wilson reference series, Book of Junior Authors and Illustrators[49]—early in his career as a children's writer, but after Prydain was complete.

[90] On January 28, 2010, an exhibit opened at the Harold B. Lee Library on the campus of Brigham Young University, displaying several items from Alexander's home office, which he referred to as "the Box".

The first Disney animated film to employ computer-generated images, it was a box-office failure and received mixed critical reviews.