King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table by Roger Lancelyn Green

King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table

by Roger Lancelyn Green

• Classic, Fiction, Fantasy, YA
• 13+ for violence and complex plots
• Published March 1st, 1995 by Puffin
• ★★★★★

Summary

     "Retold out of the old romances, this collection of Arthurian tales endeavors to make each adventure--"The Quest for the Round Table, " "The First Quest of Sir Lancelot, " "How the Holy Grail Came to Camelot, " and so forth--part of a fixed pattern that effectively presents the whole story, as it does in Le Morte D'Arthur, but in a way less intimidating to young readers." -Goodreads

Review

     From the beginning I wasn't too big a fan of the book. Now, to be fair, this was a summer reading book so that played a part, however the story didn't really catch my attention. To make it worse, there are multiple story lines at once that all intercept in weird ways, which made it hard for me to follow. As the story goes along, I didn't find myself connecting with the characters and began to become bored with the story. The story tends to be highly religious also, and as someone who knows next to nothing about Christianity I'm pretty sure about 75% of the story went straight over my head. However, my more religious friends really enjoyed it, so I feel that my lack of religious knowledge contributed to my confusion. 

     Overall, I was not a huge fan of the story. There were too many plots that didn't connect in obvious or important ways, which confused me. The characters were boring and unrelatable - they were probably more relatable when the stories were first written in the early 12th century. They tended to make stupid choices that had me frustrated and screaming at the book (quite literally). Finally, the story was based on religion way too much for my taste, being someone who has never gone to church regularly and doesn't really plan on it. All together, these problems earned the book a low rating of 2 stars. Also, Green spelled Lancelot as Launcelot so that made me very frustrated (I promise I'm sane).

 Recommendation

    Although I didn't like the book, I know multiple people who also read it and DID like it. This makes me think that I have been spoiled by the great books I read, leaving me with impossibly high standards for books (sorry guys!). So, my recommendation is going to be based off a combination of experiences, just to give a fully unbiased opinion on who should read it. Firstly, if you're a complete lover of Christianity who knows all the specific holidays and traditions that go along with the religion, this may be a good book for you. Practically the whole novel centers around religion, and it's probably helpful to have a working knowledge of religion (which I don't). Secondly, if you like reading about the medieval times with jousting and sword fights and wonderful, wholesome, pure knights then this book would be great for you. That's all this story is about and it includes a lot of action and details about the adventures and struggles they face. Finally, if you are a lover of classics, then I recommend King Arthur and His Knights of the Round Table. It's one of the oldest stories out there, just updated so young people can read it.

About The Author

     "Roger (Gilbert) Lancelyn Green was a British biographer and children's writer. He was an Oxford academic who formed part of the Inklings literary discussion group along with C.S. Lewis and J.R.R. Tolkien. Born in 1918 in Norwich, England, Green studied under C. S. Lewis at Merton College, Oxford, where he obtained a B.Litt. degree. He delivered the 1968 Andrew Lang lecture. Green lived in Cheshire, in a manor which his ancestors owned for over 900 years. He died in October 1987. His son was the writer Richard Lancelyn Green." - Goodreads 

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