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penny22222's review against another edition
dark
funny
mysterious
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
1.25
Content Warnings
Graphic: Grief, Death of parent, Death, and Murder
Moderate: Child death
Minor: Blood and Death
superhappywolfie's review
adventurous
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? N/A
- Loveable characters? N/A
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? N/A
4.5
viola_wuwa's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.0
leannarapier's review against another edition
3.0
3 1/2 stars
I read this book aloud to my 9-year-old son. It wasn't long before I found it's old-fashioned manner of storytelling wearisome. Nonetheless, my son found the stories entertaining, although even he remarked after a while on the predictability of every tale and that some knight would cause some other to lose his head. Also, despite being labeled as "children" in the library, these stories were in fact originally intended for adults, evident by the number of affairs, illegitimate births, and losses of one's head, but thankfully not graphic.
Note—if you read the afterword (which was actually more interesting to me than the stories themselves)—these stories were not realistic to the the age of the legendary King Author, but were, rather, the imaginings of the medieval storytellers imposed upon that time frame; for knights and chivalry and Christianity were medieval ideals and not that of the earlier times in which King Author himself was supposed to have lived. So you can think of King Arthur and his knights as the original fantasy stories that certainly have impacted the fantasy genre for ages to come.
I read this book aloud to my 9-year-old son. It wasn't long before I found it's old-fashioned manner of storytelling wearisome. Nonetheless, my son found the stories entertaining, although even he remarked after a while on the predictability of every tale and that some knight would cause some other to lose his head. Also, despite being labeled as "children" in the library, these stories were in fact originally intended for adults, evident by the number of affairs, illegitimate births, and losses of one's head, but thankfully not graphic.
Note—if you read the afterword (which was actually more interesting to me than the stories themselves)—these stories were not realistic to the the age of the legendary King Author, but were, rather, the imaginings of the medieval storytellers imposed upon that time frame; for knights and chivalry and Christianity were medieval ideals and not that of the earlier times in which King Author himself was supposed to have lived. So you can think of King Arthur and his knights as the original fantasy stories that certainly have impacted the fantasy genre for ages to come.
armartel's review
adventurous
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lukefulton29's review against another edition
adventurous
emotional
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
4.0
kenzima's review against another edition
2.0
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).
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.
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).
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.
joelkarpowitz's review against another edition
2.0
I've been trying to find a good King Arthur to use in the Brit Lit class I teach. I tried this one this year, and while it has plenty of classic Arthur stories, it's not written in a particularly informative, interesting, or entertaining way. Green has a few mildly understated (and therefore funny) lines--most of which involve people being surprisingly decapitated--but overall it's a pretty dry retelling of what could and should be exciting material. Arthur stories have inspired and entertained for literally centuries, but if they were always told as dully as Green tells these tales I think they'd be about as familiar as Cuchulain tales--known to small groups, but generally ignored.
I'm definitely interested still in finding a good version of the stories, so if you know of one, include it in the comments. Next up (well, in a month or two) is TH White's The Once and Future King, which I hear good things about. I'll let you know how it turns out.
I'm definitely interested still in finding a good version of the stories, so if you know of one, include it in the comments. Next up (well, in a month or two) is TH White's The Once and Future King, which I hear good things about. I'll let you know how it turns out.
mountainfox's review against another edition
4.0
It was okay but a little bit sexist. It didn't help that most of the women were called "lady" and "damsel". I recommend that younger kids read this one because it seems a little dummed down in both language and content.