August 23, 2005

Arthur

This is another page written by Martha Jane Stewart in 2003. Because of numerous requests, we are republishing it.

Reference librarian's note: This page does not mention John Steinbeck's posthumous Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights which so enchanted a library patron that the staff is reading it on his recommendation. A rather new Arthuriana book is on order: The Mammoth Book of King Arthur: Reality and Legend, the Beginning and the End--The Most Complete Arthurian Sourcebook Ever.

Arthurian Legends and Romances

King Arthur - 14th Century

STUDIES OF THE KNOWN HISTORY, THE LEGENDS, AND THE LORE OF KING ARTHUR AND HIS ASSOCIATES

Andronik, Catherine M.: Quest for a King : Searching for the Real King Arthur (1989) - J 941.01 ANDRONI Surveys the legends surrounding King Arthur and examines the historical evidence behind them.
Crossley -Holland, Kevin: The World of King Arthur and his Court : People, Places, Legend, and Lore. (1999) J 942.01 CROSSLE Surveys the known history of King Arthur, the legends and lore surrounding him, his treatment in literature, and the possible historical background of his associates and stories.
Day, David: The Search for King Arthur (1995) 942.014 DAY A richly illustrated exploration of the myths, legends, history and literature surrounding the archetypal figure of King Arthur.

THE KING ARTHUR LEGENDS: MALLORY'S MORTE D'ARTHUR & OTHER RETELLINGS
The legends of King Arthur told in the archaic style are mostly to be found in the folklore sections of both the adult and children's collections. The Dewey classification 398.22 is used for the legends and lore of semi-historical figures like King Arthur and Robin Hood. Included in the children's collection are single illustrated tales such as Sir Gawain and the Loathely Lady as well as the classic retellings illustrated by luminaries such as N.C.Wyeth. Particularly useful is the trilogy by Rosemary Sutcliff, The Sword in the Stone, The Light Beyond the Forest, and The Road to Camlann which may be found on the children's paperback truck under the author's name.

Adult Fiction

Ashley, Michael: The Pendragon Chronicles : Heroic Fantasy from the Time of King Arthur (1990) A collection of short novels and stories that retell the King Arthur legend. SC P398
Bradley, Marion Zimmer: The Forest House (1994), Lady of Avalon (1997), The Mists of Avalon (1982), A Priestess of Avalon (2001) A rich, feminist weave of history and myth. The first and most famous is The Mists of Avalon in which Morgaine symbolizes the clash between the "old religion" and Christianity. FIC BRADLEY
Cochran, Molly & Warren Murphy: The Broken Sword (1997) Chivalry, adventure, and magic with the reincarnation of Arthur in the modern world. Camelot will rise again. FIC COCHRUN
Cornwell, Bernard: The Winter King (c1996), Enemy of God(1997), Excalibur (c1998) The Warlord Chronicles, full of battle action, ancient ritual, and details of daily life in a gripping, complex narrative. FIC CORNWELL
James, Cary: King & Raven (1995) A poor peasant boy becomes a page in the court of Camelot and the tale of King Arthur is seen through his eyes. FIC JAMES
Miles, Rosalind: Guenevere : Queen of the Summer Country (1999) Romantic novel of the whole Arthurian cast.) FIC MILES
Newman, Sharan: The Chessboard Queen (1983, 1997) A story of Guinevere. FIC NEWMAN
Stewart, Mary: The Crystal Cave (1970), The Hollow Hills (1973), The Last Enchantment(1979) A trilogy of Merlin the Enchanter , set amidst the turbulent events of Arthur's 5th century Britain .FIC STEWART
Tolstoy, Nikolai: The Coming of the King : the First book of Merlin (1989) A re-creation of the life of Merlin, making Merlin fascinating and alive and showing how his life will change Britain forever. FIC TOLSTOY
White, T. H.: The Sword in the Stone (1939) "delightful, satirical nonsense", The Once and Future King (1958), The Book of Merlyn (1977) FIC WHITE White pursues a central theme, finding the antidote to war, with a mix of fantasy, humor, and rationality.
Whyte, Jack: The Eagle's Brood (c1977), Part of the Camulod Chronicles about the colony named Camulod led by Uther Pendragon and his cousin, Merlyn. The Sorcerer : Metamorphosis (1999) The colony named Camulod now led by Merlyn and Arthur Pendragon who are fighting to protect themselves from Peter Ironhair. FIC WHYTE

Adult Science Fiction

Kenneally-Morrison, Patricia: The Hawk's Gray Feather : a Book of the Keltiad Romances-(1990) First in a trilogy, the book is about Keltia a world where Arthur fights to regain the throne for the royal House of Don against the usurper Edeyrn, the greatest of the Druids, who is bent on destroying House of Don . SF KENNEAL
Lawhead, Stephen: Avalon : The Return of King Arthur (1999) In the 21st Century, a young Scot finds that he is not a commoner but rather a monarch, Arthur reincarnated, being raised in obscurity and must now claim the throne and save the country from an evil Prime Minister intent on destroying the monarchy. SF LAWHEAD.
Saberhagen, Fred: Merlin's Bones (1995) A young performer from a troupe of travelling players stumbles upon the resting place of Merlin's bones shortly after the death of Arthur and becomes embroiled in a deadly intrigue over the remains with characters including Morgan Le Fey, Mordred, and Hakon, the Viking. SF SABERHA
Shwartz, Susan: The Grail of Hearts (1992) An interweaving of the mythos of the Grail and of Arthur with the legend of the Wandering Jew, told from the point of view of a woman. SF SHWARTZ
Tarr, Judith: Kingdom of the Grail (2000) A fantasy inspired by the epic poem The Song of Roland combined with the myth of the history of Merlin. SF TARR

Arthurian Romance In Children's & Young Adult Fiction

Barron, T. A.: The Lost Years of Merlin (1996), The Seven Songs of Merlin (1997), The Fires of Merlin (1998) The Mirror of Merlin (1999) .A young boy with no memory travels to the Underworld and discovers his true name. The young wizard Merlin continues to experience both his growing powers and his essential humanity .in each succeeding book. J FIC BARRON
Bond, Nancy: A String in the Harp (1976). Relates what happens to three American children, unwillingly transplanted to Wales for one year, when one of them finds an ancient harp-tuning key that takes him back to the time of the great sixth-century bard Taliesin. J FIC BOND
Dickinson, Peter: Merlin Dreams (1988) Nine stories of blood, magic, and fabulous creatures, set in the framing device of dreams coming to the enchanted wizard Merlin as he lies imprisoned under a great stone. J FIC DICKENS
Morpurgo, Michael: Arthur, High King of Britain . (1995) A twelve-year-old boy comes across Arthur Pendragon, who has just awakened from his long sleep beneath the earth, and hears from him some of the exciting stories of his past. J FIC MORPURG
Morris, Gerald: Parsifal's Page (2001) Piers joins Parsifal in the Quest for the Holy Grail with humor, magic, and action. J FIC MORRIS
Morris, Gerald: The Squire's Tale (1998), The Squire, His Knight, & His Lady (1999), The Savage Damsel & the Dwarf (2000).The first two books tell of the perilous adventures of a young squire Terence and his knight, Sir Gawain. The third in the series features the lady Lynet and ultimately, Sir Gareth. J FIC MORRIS
Rice, Robert: The Last Pendragon (1991). Arthur's grandson and a disgraced knight of the Round Table set about to save Camelot from Ceawlin, a Saxon warlord who is threatening to conquer Camelot. J FIC RICE
Springer, Nancy: I am Mordred : A Tale from Camelot (1998).When Mordred learns the identity of his father, he struggles with feelings of hatred, but also fights the fate which determines that he kill the good and gracious king - J FIC SPRINGE
Thomson, Sarah L: The Dragon's Son. (2001) The spinning together of the stories of four complex characters - Nimué, Morgan, Lined, and Medraud - with that of King Arthur, whose reign will be preserved or shattered by the choices they make. J FIC THOMSON
Twain, Mark: A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur's court (1988) A blow on the head transports a Yankee to 528 A.D. where he proceeds to modernize King Arthur's kingdom by organizing a school system, constructing telephone lines, and inventing the printing press. - J FIC TWAIN
Wein, Elizabeth E.: The Winter Prince (1993). Medraut, the bitter, illegitimate son of King Artos, is tempted into joining Morgause, the king's treacherous sister, in a plot against Lleu, the legitimate Prince of Britain - J FIC WEIN
Yolen, Jane: Camelot (1995)A collection of ten short stories and one song exploring the comic, tragic, and magical adventures of King Arthur, Merlin, and the other inhabitants of Camelot. - J FIC YOLEN
Yolen, Jane: The Dragon's Boy (1990). Young Artos meets a dragon and comes to accept him as a friend and mentor. FIC YOLEN
Yolen, Jane: Passager (on order), Hobby (1996), Merlin (1997) . Three short novels telling of the adventures of Merlin as a young boy. J FIC YOLEN
Yolen, Jane: Merlin's booke (1986).Tales of Merlin, the Archmage of Camelot, King Arthur's tutor, friend, counselor, and wizard. : J FIC YOLEN