The Grey King

This is the fourth installment to Susan Cooper's The Dark is Rising series. Here, Will Stanton goes to his Aunt Jen in Wales to recover from a previous sickness. Here, he meets Bran, the raven boy, and Cafall, a white dog who has silver eyes. The three of them go on a quest to retrieve the harp of gold and wake the Sleepers, giving the assurance of victory to the forces of the Light.

It's a really great book and Wales is just breath-taking. I've actually taken an interest in learning the Welsh language. It has a different alphabet from the English alphabet. It's quite fun to read the Welsh names like Ceiswyn or Brenin Llywd.

In this book, I liked the character of Bran. He's different from others because he is an albino. He has white complexion, white hair, white eyelashes, and tawny gold eyes like a raven's. (The name bran is actually the Welsh for raven.) Bran, in this story, is the son of Queen Guinevere and King Arthur. Fearing that her husband would banish his own because of her affair with Lancelot, she reluctantly asks Merimman Lyon to bring Bran to the future (that is, the present). She leaves him there to the care of Owen Davies.

Bran lived a secluded life, partly because his father did not want him to know anything about his mother's connections. Owen was worried that the child would not be able to understand why his mother never came back. Bran is kind of aloof because of the way he is being treated at school. He is labeled a freak because of his condition and called names such as Paleface and Whitey (which reminded me of Toshiro from Bleach). I think he's a really nice character, very cute. Nee?

This installment was nice. A good read for 35 pesos. The series are just getting better. Susan Cooper is not one to disappoint.