American fantasy author, most famous for the
Chronicles of Prydain which is probably best known for spawning the not particularly well-received (but better than I think most people give it credit for) Disney movie The Black Cauldron (Alexander himself once remarked that it bore little resemblance to his own work, but he enjoyed it well enough on its own merits). They were a pretty excellent series of youth-oriented fantasy novels in that they were fully appropriate for all ages without being "kiddy" or shying away from being genuinely dark and depressing at times. I'd highly recommend them.