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the_dragon_starback's review against another edition
3.0
I FINISHED IT!
It took me 86 days, and it may not have been worth it, but I did it.
Would I recommend you read it?
haha NO
Listen, there are lots of good options for King Arthur retellings. For the good stuff about Arthur, Guinevere, Merlin, and Lancelot (especially Lancelot!), read T.H. White’s The Once and Future King. If you want stories about the knights of the Round Table (good call!), try Howard Pyle’s or Roger Lancelyn Green’s retelling. If you want Sir Tristram, just go for one of the standalone Tristram and Isolde retelling.
Well, I’m extremely stubborn and did actually read the whole thing, so I’ll sum it up for you all, by percentage.
Here’s what happens in this very long book:
5% The beginning—it’s slightly hopeful, and Merlin is alive! But then he dies and it all deteriorates
20% wearing different armour and fighting with friends because you don’t recognize one another (sometimes on purpose, in tournaments; sometimes by accident)
15% tournaments, in which they all fight their “friends” for fun
15% one of the best knights in the realm (see below) defeating thirty knights single-handedly
10% adultery and learning the (rather inconsistent) consequences of it—could be death by your angry son, could be universal fame for being a “faithful lover”
5% all women falling in love with Launcelot
5% all young knights pledging their swords to Launcelot
5% everyone bemoaning why Sir Palomides isn’t christened
1% fighting dragons/lions/snakes (was honestly hoping for more of this)
2% Arthur having independent thoughts
2% people trying to find other people who are scattered across the realms
10% the quest for the Sangreal (Holy Grail), during which the knights have visions and find out that adultery and even occasionally killing is in fact wrong (also apparently Launcelot is descended from Joseph of Arimathea)
5% The ending—Treason! Civil war! Taking the habit! Death! (No, I’m serious—at least twelve people take the habit before they die, including Guinevere and Launcelot)
It’s worth noting that Le Morte Darthur is, like all other King Arthur legends, not really about Arthur, perhaps because Arthur is not an interesting person and does no interesting things. Regardless, 40% of this book is about Sir Launcelot and 35% is about Sir Tristram, with some other knights sprinkled in for good measure.
The best knights, according to this book, are:
1.) Sir Launcelot
2.) Sir Tristram
3.) Sir Lamorak
Sir Palomides is also pretty good, but he’s defeated by all of the above and doesn’t quite make the cut.
This book is remarkable because character wasn’t really a thing. There are obviously a lot of characters who do admirable or not so admirable things, but I really wasn’t rooting for any of them. I mean, I had strong feelings about less than five characters:
Positive feelings for—Sir Lamorak
Negative feelings for—Sir Kay, King Mark, Sir Gawaine
3.5 stars.
It took me 86 days, and it may not have been worth it, but I did it.
Would I recommend you read it?
haha NO
Listen, there are lots of good options for King Arthur retellings. For the good stuff about Arthur, Guinevere, Merlin, and Lancelot (especially Lancelot!), read T.H. White’s The Once and Future King. If you want stories about the knights of the Round Table (good call!), try Howard Pyle’s or Roger Lancelyn Green’s retelling. If you want Sir Tristram, just go for one of the standalone Tristram and Isolde retelling.
Well, I’m extremely stubborn and did actually read the whole thing, so I’ll sum it up for you all, by percentage.
Here’s what happens in this very long book:
5% The beginning—it’s slightly hopeful, and Merlin is alive! But then he dies and it all deteriorates
20% wearing different armour and fighting with friends because you don’t recognize one another (sometimes on purpose, in tournaments; sometimes by accident)
15% tournaments, in which they all fight their “friends” for fun
15% one of the best knights in the realm (see below) defeating thirty knights single-handedly
10% adultery and learning the (rather inconsistent) consequences of it—could be death by your angry son, could be universal fame for being a “faithful lover”
5% all women falling in love with Launcelot
5% all young knights pledging their swords to Launcelot
5% everyone bemoaning why Sir Palomides isn’t christened
1% fighting dragons/lions/snakes (was honestly hoping for more of this)
2% Arthur having independent thoughts
2% people trying to find other people who are scattered across the realms
10% the quest for the Sangreal (Holy Grail), during which the knights have visions and find out that adultery and even occasionally killing is in fact wrong (also apparently Launcelot is descended from Joseph of Arimathea)
5% The ending—Treason! Civil war! Taking the habit! Death! (No, I’m serious—at least twelve people take the habit before they die, including Guinevere and Launcelot)
It’s worth noting that Le Morte Darthur is, like all other King Arthur legends, not really about Arthur, perhaps because Arthur is not an interesting person and does no interesting things. Regardless, 40% of this book is about Sir Launcelot and 35% is about Sir Tristram, with some other knights sprinkled in for good measure.
The best knights, according to this book, are:
1.) Sir Launcelot
2.) Sir Tristram
3.) Sir Lamorak
Sir Palomides is also pretty good, but he’s defeated by all of the above and doesn’t quite make the cut.
This book is remarkable because character wasn’t really a thing. There are obviously a lot of characters who do admirable or not so admirable things, but I really wasn’t rooting for any of them. I mean, I had strong feelings about less than five characters:
Positive feelings for—Sir Lamorak
Negative feelings for—Sir Kay, King Mark, Sir Gawaine
3.5 stars.
hannahd196's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
emotional
inspiring
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
kayleigh23's review against another edition
3.0
3.5* since I only read Book 1, 2, 6 & 7 for uni, I'm not rating the whole book.
I really liked learning the actual history of King Arthur. Some of the tales were insightful and some were funny.
Naturally the tone of the stories were slightly monotonous since Malory recounts it historically rather than storytelling, but the stories themselves were fascinating.
I really liked learning the actual history of King Arthur. Some of the tales were insightful and some were funny.
Naturally the tone of the stories were slightly monotonous since Malory recounts it historically rather than storytelling, but the stories themselves were fascinating.
allex's review against another edition
emotional
hopeful
reflective
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? Yes
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
iriswindmeijer's review against another edition
I have read a selection of these tales for one of my university courses and I really liked it.
haleigheustis's review against another edition
3.0
It was okay. I read it for my medieval lit class ... I wouldn’t read it again.
vonny3492's review against another edition
3.0
it's old and thus not written in a contemporary style that I enjoy, but stl completely interesting for its arthur lore