The Magician Trilogy, also published in an omnibus edition as The Snow Spider Trilogy, is a trilogy

Trilogy

A trilogy is a set of three works of art that are connected, and that can be seen either as a single work or as three individual works. They are commonly found in literature, film, or video games...

 of children's fantasy novels by Jenny Nimmo

Jenny Nimmo

Jenny Nimmo is a British author of numerous books for children, including many fantasy and adventure novels, beginning reader books, and picture books....

, author of the Children of the Red King

Children of the Red King

Children of the Red King is a popular series of children's fantasy and adventure novels written by British author Jenny Nimmo. It is also known as the "Charlie Bone" series and, before it was extended to eight books, as the "Red King Quintet"....

 series. The first book, The Snow Spider, won the Smarties Prize

Nestlé Smarties Book Prize

The Nestlé Children's Book Prize, also known as the Nestlé Smarties Book Prize, was an annual award given to children's books written in the previous year by a UK citizen or resident. The prize was administered by Booktrust, an independent charity which promotes books and reading, and sponsored by...

 (1986) and the Tir na n-Og Award (1987), the latter being an award for the best English-language children's book with an authentic Welsh background.

The books of the trilogy are:
The Snow Spider (1986)
Emlyn's Moon a.k.a. Orchard of the Crescent Moon (1987)
The Chestnut Soldier (1989)

Plot

The books, set in twentieth-century Wales, revolve around a boy named Gwyn. His grandmother gives him five odd gifts for his ninth birthday. They take him on a quest to discover whether he is a magician like his Celtic ancestors, and help him to unravel the mystery of his sister Bethan's mysterious disappearance.

Characters

• Gwyn Griffiths
• Nain Griffiths
• Nerys Lloyd
• Catrin "Kate" Lloyd
• Alun Lloyd
• Nia Lloyd
• Sion Lloyd
• Gareth Lloyd
• Iolo Lloyd
• Bethan Griffiths
• Emelyn Llewlyn
• Eirlys
• Arianwen, the snow spider

Adaptations

The Magician Trilogy was adapted for television by HTV

HTV

HTV, now legally known as ITV Wales & West, is the ITV contractor for Wales and the West of England, which operated from studios in Cardiff and Bristol. The company provided commercial television for the dual-region 'Wales and West' franchise, which it won from TWW in 1968...

 in three mini-series: The Snow Spider (1988), Emlyn's Moon (1990) and The Chestnut Soldier (1991)

A stage production of The Snow Spider, adapted by Mike Kenny

Mike Kenny

Michael Kenny may refer to:*Mike Kenny , British playwright*Mike Kenny , Canadian politician*Michael Kenny , New Zealand boxer*Mick Kenny , played in the 1910s and 20s...

 and directed by Phil Clark (director)

Phil Clark (director)

Phil Clark is a theatre director and writer, specialising in work for young people.He trained at Rose Bruford College and in 2007received a Phd...

 took place in 1990-1 at the Sherman Theatre, Cardiff and then toured to Theatr Clwyd

Clwyd Theatr Cymru

Clwyd Theatr Cymru , known until 1998 as Theatr Clwyd, is a regional arts centre located 1 mile from Mold, Flintshire, in north-east Wales.The complex contains five auditoria:*The Anthony Hopkins Theatre ....

, Mold

Mold, Flintshire

Mold is a town in Flintshire, North Wales, on the River Alyn. It is the administrative seat of Flintshire County Council, and was also the county town of Clwyd from 1974 to 1996...

 and Theatr Gwynedd, Bangor

Bangor

- United Kingdom :* Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland** Bangor ** Bangor , until 1800* Bangor, Gwynedd, Wales, after which most of the ex-colonial Bangors are named....

.