The marvelous misadventures of Sebastian : a grand extravaganza, including a performance by the entire cast of the Gallimaufry-Theatricus

From the Newbery Medal-winning author of The High King , comes the story of Sebastian, a boy never far from adventure—or trouble! When fourth fiddler Sebastian loses his place in the Baron’s orchestra, he takes to the highway—and soon finds himself dealing with disaster after disaster. In trying to rescue a stray cat, he loses his violin; in trying to help a skinny boy who turns out to be a princess, he falls into the clutches of a bear; and when he tries to join a theater troupe as an actor, he finds himself cast as a clown. But Sebastian’s a fleet-footed optimist, and he’ll always find a way to outrace trouble, outwit it, or enchant it—and he’ll keep everyone around him laughing. Winner of the 1971 National Book Award * “Infused with humor, high spirits, and compassion.”— School Library Journal, starred review When fourth fiddler Sebastian loses his place in the Baron's orchestra, he has to leave the only home he knows--which turns out to be the least of his troubles. He rescues a stray cat from a group of tormentors, who then smash his precious violin; and the troubled young boy he tries to help turns out to be the Crown Princess, on the run from an arranged marriage. Sebastian, Princess Isabel, and Presto the cat soon find themselves fleeing stuffy officials, hired assassins, furious guardsmen and sentries--and, in their journey, find out what is truly important in life. The action and humor never stop in Lloyd Alexander's classic novel, written on the heels of his famed Prydain Chronicles. When he loses his place as fourth fiddler in a noble household, Sebastian sets out into the world to seek his fortune.