I Am Mordred: A Tale from Camelot

Rating:
Summary: Wow!
Review: I usually don't read fantasy books, but wow, what an amazing book! It was extremely well written. Merlin cursed Mordred before his birth, the son of King Arthur and his half-sister, Merlin prophesizes that he will kill his father in battle, so Arthur tries to kill baby Mordred before Mordred kills him. In order to make sure that Mordred was killed, he sets all newborn boys out to sea to die. Mordred is not killed, however. A fisherman and his wife take him in. Many years later, Murdered finds out who he is and is taken away from the fisherman and his wife. He goes to live with his mother, Morgause, and her husband and five sons. When is older, he goes to Camelot to become a knight of Arthur. Mordred is disappointed in Camelot; his father doesn't acknowledge that Mordred is his son. In fact, he doesn't seem to care about the Prophecy Merlin made about Mordred, either. And at court Mordred is a loner. Who wants to be friendly to the boy who will kill their Great King? He runs away from Camelot. During this he starts to go crazy. He has mixed emotions about his father, a voice inside his head tells him to hate Arthur; while Mordred tries to tell himself he loves his father. He tries to change his destiny, and finally, crazy from the voices inside his head, he kills Arthur out of desperation. He is driven to do what he was fated to do. A dark tale that is for older readers. As I have already said, WOW!!!!

Rating:
Summary: I am Mordred
Review: If you like stories of adventure, suspense and magic, I am Mordred is the book for you! I am Mordred is exiting, adventurous and filled with suprises. The book is about Mordred, the son of King Arthur. The story is told by Mordred. The story begins when Merlin predicted that king Arthur would die at his only son's hands in battle, and that son would take the throne. Because of this, when Mordred was only a baby, he was sent out into the sea in a small boat to die. He survived and was found by an old fisherman. Mordred lived in a small village with the fisherman's family. When he was 6, a sorceress named Nyneve came to take hima to Lothian for his safety.
Nyneve wanted to help Mordred,. She had been melins apprentice, but then mastered him and imprisoned him. She wanted to show the world that Merlin was nothing but a trickster, and that his phrophecy was just a lie. She left Mordred at the castle in Lothian. As Mordred grows, he learns about his past and his terrible fate. When Mordred turned 15, he went to Camelot to become a knight and serve King Arthur.
All Mordred wants is for his father to love him. After he is knighted, he goes on a quest to fight his fate and save his father, whom he both loves and hates. Nyneve helps him along the way. The journey is full of adventure and danger, but if you want to find out what happens, you should read the book. I thought the book was great, and I had a hard time putting it down. This book is one of my favorites and I give it five stars. I would recommend it to everyone who loves adventures and suspense.

Rating:
Summary: Changing Fate
Review: In the story I am Mordred, by Nancy Springer, a new side of the Arthurian Legend is revealed. The reader will learn not just about Mordred's (son of King Arthur) betrayal, but also about his youth. Springer stipulated a fair job on restoring the legend and guides the reader through Mordred's lifelong quest to earn Arthur's approval.
I am Mordred demonstrates a different retelling of the classic King Arthur tale. Springer's version is quite unique, and introduces characters such as Mordred's fishermother and fisherfather, who raised him almost from birth, Nyneve, who brought him to Arthur's kingdom, Camelot, and many other characters. In the story Mordred has to prove fate wrong, and unite with his noble father. The book is split into four parts, The White Shadow, The White Stag, The White Falcon, and The Raven... all different periods in Mordred's life.
I thought the story was decently written, however it was not one of the better books I have read. Some points in the story were dull and others were interesting. I would recommend this book to an older age group. 13 years and up would be about right. Some parts of the story were confusing and would lose a younger readers attention.

Rating:
Summary: Can you fight fate?
Review: Mordred was born destined to kill his own father, the great King Arthur. Merlin prophesied that fact; it was his fate. Mordred wanted more than anything to beat that fate and to have his father accept him as his son, but was that possible? Could Mordred change his life and be the son of King Arthur?
I really enjoyed this book. The reader fights along with Mordred, throughout the whole book, to try and save his life, as well as his father's. It is a very emotional ride as Mordred fights with his inner demons and tries to change his destiny. It's hard not to feel bad for Mordred through his struggles. The book is well- written, but may not be suitable for younger readers. If you like stories of medieval times, you will like this book. What happens with Mordred and his great father? You have to read to find out!

Rating:
Summary: Can you change destiny?
Review: Most people familiar with the Arthur legend know of the father-son conflict between Arthur and his illegitmate son, Mordred, a product of a one night stand with Morgause, Arthur's half sister. Because of the unfortunate events leading up to his conception, Mordred is seen as being born evil, predestined to do harmful acts. The wizard Melin phrophesizes that Mordred's fate is to kill his father and destroy Camelot. Thus Arthur tries to kill Mordred when he was a baby, yet Mordred is saved by a fisherman and his wife. When young Mordred learns of his true identity, he rides to Camelot hoping to become a knight and finally get to know his famous father. Yet Camelot is not what Mordred had hoped for. His father, Arthur, doesn't even so much as acknowledge him and the affection that Mordred hopes Arthur would show him is nonexistent. Mordred becomes a loner in Camelot and soon begins to hear voices in his head telling him to fulfill his phrophecy. Mordred, longing for Arthur's love and acceptance, would do almost anything to cheat his destiny, even selling his soul.

I Am Mordred is one of the best works on Mordred I have ever seen. He is one of the most misunderstood characters in the myth and the preconception that he is evil because of the circumstances of his conception is quite unfair. Springer tries, and effectively, pictures Mordred as a young man trying to fight his destiny, yet the more he tries, the more closer he comes to fulfilling the fate we all know happened. The reader feels very sympathetic towards Mordred, yet sits there unable to save him. In the end you realize that Mordred was not what the famous Arthur authors wrote him to be, born evil, but instead a boy that needed love and attention from a father he so wanted acceptance from, but in the came up empty. Like I am Morgan Le Fay, this book is more of a physcological work that raises new questions to previous assumptions. I definitely recommend this book to all fans of Camelot. It is one of the best.

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Summary: The Sorrows of Camelot
Review: One day you're just this normal little kid and the next you find out that you are the son of a king who tried to kill you. That's how it was for Tad (Mordred) when Nyneve came to his simple house one day. He was King Authur's one and only son. It was prophesied by Merlin that his son would grow up and kill him. So king Athur killed all of the baby boys of that year, well Mordred survived. He grew up and became a knight of the round table and served Authur until that fateful day, when the prophecy was supposed to come true. Read this book to find out what happens to Mordred. This book is probably one of the saddest books that I have ever read. It is also one of the best written books that I have read. The suspense of it kept me right on the edge of my seat the whole way through. To see Mordred's fate unfolding right in front of him will live you breathless at times. I feel that although it made me cry that it is a book worth reading. Fiction

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Summary: Who was Mordred?
Review: One of the most enigmatic and mysterious characters of Arthurian legend is Arthur's illegitimate son, Mordred. Unfortunately, he is also one of the least explored. In a market flooded with preachy, badly-written Arthuriana, "I Am Mordred" shines like a rare, dark gem.

The book opens with King Arthur sadly setting dozens of newborn babies adrift on the ocean. Several years later, we see a young boy living peacefully with a fisherman and his wife. Their happy lives are interrupted when a woman named Nyneve rides in to bring Mordred back to his biological family, the royal family of Lothian. However, they are not pleased to see him.

He soon finds out why: he is the product of incest between King Arthur and his half-sister Morgause, and is destined to kill his father someday. Shocked by this, Mordred goes to Camelot and soon begins craving his father's love and acceptance. He is also terrified of the prophecy that he will kill Arthur, and does everything he can to fight it. But can he fight his destiny, or only fulfil it?

This is probably the best book I've read by Nancy Springer, a dark, beautiful, suspenseful and very sad novel. It's very rare to find an inspired Arthurian novel with any new material, but she pulls it off by creating a new Mordred -- this is not the monster who wants to kill Arthur for no reason, but a confused young man who only wants to be loved by his father, while knowing he is doomed to destroy him.

One of the primary themes is whether a person is "born bad"; Mordred has, in his lifetime, done nothing wrong. Yet he is treated as a pariah by the people around him. His loneliness is broken only by Arthur and by Mordred's dog, Gull. While traditional Arthurian legends seem to be based around the idea of Mordred being evil because of his incestuous conception, Springer simply breaks those ideas apart. Nobody is simply born to be evil. Destiny and fate are some of the items that are also explored: Mordred seeks a way to avoid fulfilling the prophecy, but risks fulfilling it through avoidance.

Mordred is an incredibly appealing character. He's merely a shy, introspective teenager who has been shunned by his relatives and by others in Camelot. His desperation is present on almost every page, as is his isolation, but Springer makes it sympathetic. Nobody will want to say "just shut up and quit whining"; rather, they'll be hoping that Mordred can somehow beat the prophecy, while knowing that he's all but certain to fail. Arthur is a good supporting character, surprisingly complex. Springer portrays him as an essentially good man who committed a terrible crime in an effort to save himself and his kingdom, and who regrets it. He wants to love Mordred as Mordred wants to be loved, but is as afraid of the prophecy as Mordred is.

Springer's writing is descriptive and evocative; it's a little flowery, but not too flowery. She has an excellent sense of buildup and suspense, that grows as the book progresses. The first and last chapters are written in third-person style, which may seem like a jolt when most of the book is written from Mordred's perspective; however, it becomes clear why this is necessary.

I would not advise this book for younger children. There's no objectionable content in it, but a great deal of focus on incest and the social stigmas attached to children born of it. The overall storyline is rather dark and occasionally violent, and Mordred's perpetual struggle against fate is a very psychologically intense storyline that may upset smaller children. Mature 9-12 kids and all teens ought to be able to handle this, and all the subtle undertones and nuances.

You'll be hard-pressed to find a more beautiful and original Arthurian book published in recent years. "I Am Mordred" is an amazing addition to anyone's library, whether they are a fan of Camelot or not.

Rating:
Summary: captivating writing
Review: The writing in this book is like seductive, captivating music which lures one in. I was in the middle of it before I realized that I had picked it up. Once caught I couldn't escape the web until the end.

Nancy Springer's moving tale filled me with tears and opened wounds of childhood. I appreciate what she is trying to do in this book by forcing us to examine our notions of innocence and the biases that we ask our young to accept.

Rating:
Summary: An interesting book
Review: This book was a lot better than " I am Morgan le Fay". This book has more to do with King Arthur and his court, and was a lot more exciting if you ask me. You find out more about Arthurian legend.

Rating:
Summary: I Am Mordred: A Tale From Camelot
Review: This is the one of the well-written and enjoyable books about Arthurian lore. It is about Sir Mordred of Lothian, son of the Very King Arthur and his step-sister Morgause. Even before Mordred was born, the wizard Merlin prophesied that Arthur would have an evil and unnatural son. He predicted that one day the king would be killed in battle by him. As Mordred grows up, he must live with the fact that he must one day carry out his fate. I really liked this book. Each character is thoroughly believable and realistic. Unlike nearly every other book about him, "I Am Mordred" takes a close look at not the treacherous villian, but the human side of him in this unforgettable tale from Camelot.