The Once and Future King

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Summary: bogus basis
Review: I picked this book up expecting a unique twist on the King Arthur legend. What I got was a pothetic explanation for how Merlin got his magical powers -that he had access to modern technology. So instead of the mighty wizard mumbling a spell to cure an illness, he wips out his penacillin syringe. I'm sorry if you loved this rendition, but King Arthur has to be mideival. No excuse is good enough.

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Summary: ?!?!?
Review: I read this book in a week. I thought it was the best I had ever read. I am 13, so naturally I have read the Harry Potter books also. Since I had read those and liked them, my mother encouraged me to read this one. I loved it, and as I was reading I noticed why mother mother had done so. There were so many similarities, but I did think it was more adult and better written. I haven't read the conclusion to it. My piece of advice is that if you have read and liked the Harry Potter books, I strongly sugest that you read this book, No matter how old you are.

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Summary: The Book by Which All Others Should Be Rated
Review: This book is the very best for those interested in reading about King Arthur. It is filled with imagination and it creatively looks at the famous characters and events featured in the story with a fresh and unbiased tone. The musical "Camelot" and the Disney film "The Sword in the Stone" are both based off of this particular book, and many other versions have been influenced by it. It is a great book for the way it looks at Arthur as a man who was genuinely good, but also emphasizes that at the same time he was really only a normal guy with his limitations. One of my favorite parts is when Arthur is just a boy and Merlyn teaches him how to look at different things in different perspectives by turning him into animals. The middle and end are very sad, but the author shows her originality again by giving the very end an uplifting message that hope will live on in the sight of despair, and that people may be mortal, but legends live forever.

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Summary: The greatest epic of all time
Review: The Once and Future King should be the novel that all other fictional fantasies are judged. Simply, this book is the greatest I have ever read. Contrary to other opinions, I thought that the first book was long and tedious until the final few chapters of The Sword in the Stone. At that point everything that we read about the teachings of Merlyn and the making of a King came together. The second book did not dissappoint as it ventured into the world of Gawaine and his brothers. It gave great background into the world in which Arthur had to live. The third book focused on Lancelot, the ugly and brave knight, the best in the world, and his life. Every word in the book came together in the final book, the Candle in the Wind, and all of the character's emotions and motivations came to a head in a tragic yet satisfying end to a grand, large-scale epic that the world has only seen once- in the legend of King Arthur, or in this case, The Once and Future King.

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Summary: The Once and Future King
Review: Overall, I thought that this book was full of wonderful plots and interesting storylines, but it was written in such a way that made it immensely boring. What could have been said, in great detail, within a few paragraphs, was written in a few pages -- or more!

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Summary: Students--BEWARE
Review: I was actually given a choice to read this book in school, and I was dumb enough to choose it. It was the worst book that I have ever read. I actually felt pain in reading it. The first section of the book is pretty good, however he should have stopped when he was slightly on top. I am the type of person who gets things done quickly. I found myself a few days before the test frantically trying to finish the most boring book. All it is battle after battle after battle, with a little bit of Lancelot being hurt thrown in. I apologize to those of you who have found it wonderful, but I must say that you are missing out big time. I love to read, and this was a big, long waste of time. It was horrible! Students--do all that you can to steer clear from this book. A year ago I found it tucked away in my bookcase, I drew back in horror, then ripped the book off the shelf and threw it away. Yes, it really was that bad. If you are considering reading it, please, take my advice, stay away! But if you really must read it, read only the first chapter. And if you are too stubborn not to listen...one can only pray for you...

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Summary: Literature at it's Finest
Review: I choose to review The Once and Future King by T.H. White, as I consider it the finest specimen of British Literature that has ever been written. I was 17 the first time I read this novel, and I was clearly too young to fully appreciate it. I worry that perhaps now, at age 23, I am still too young. A book with this much depth reminds you just how young you are, no matter your age. It showed me that there is a range of emotions which can only be felt during one's final days.

When people think about the subject of this book, the legend of King Arthur, very few would realize that it is a tragedy. The book which originally captured this legend in it's fullest is called Le Morte D'Arthur, or "The Death of Arthur". What I mean to say is, even at it's origin, the legend of King Arthur is a tragedy. In that respect, T.H. White brought nothing new to the legend, he just refined it to a level of beauty without measure.

Many readers feel that the first quarter of the book -which deals with the Merlyn's tutoring of young Arthur- is it's finest section. I think it suffices to say that it has the most mass appeal. While we will be moved by tragedy and depth in the later parts of the books; we come to appreciate White's grasp of humor and characterization in the beginning. But, I worry that the style of humor is so unique and subtle that many people just won't see it. But even without humor, there is enough adventure and wonder in the first part to entertain most readers.

The section dealing with Arthur as a child is the only part in which we are allowed to see Arthur's thoughts and feelings. White transitions from a first-person perspective to a third-person perspective in the next 3/4 of the book. We are left to guess Arthur's feelings while he is at his highest and lowest. We can sense his pride as he commands a table of the 150 best knights in the world. He is admirably able to use them to right all of the world's -perceived- wrongs. The stories of the famous knights are simply enthralling; and we read about each conquest and tournament with bright eyes and young souls. Without realizing it, we are transformed into men and women with tremendous courage as we fully buy into Arthur's vision for a better world and a better man. It is a fantastic feeling, I promise you.

Conversely, we can sense Arthur's despair as his innovative idea of justice must be used to prosecute his dear wife Guinevere and his best friend Lancelot for having an affair with each other. In bitter irony, we read about the code of justice that Arthur created to make the world a better place; then we watch helplessly as it is used to bring the tragedy of King Arthur to fruition.

The final fourth of the book is my favorite, although it is the darkest part. I refuse to ruin the plot for you, but it suffices to say that the legend of King Arthur would not be a tragedy if not for the final 4th of the book. It's almost not fair that we should have to read about such an amazing man (our hero!) fall so far from grace. But, this is the beautiful and tragic legend, and White writes about it with a style of writing as grand as the castles contained in the novel.

The Once and Future King has a hold on me that I won't soon shake. It is no wonder that so many people read this voluminous book over and over. It inspires us. It encourages us. Each time we hold on to our integrity in the face of a world without integrity...we honor King Arthur and his innovative code of ethics which you can bring back to life by reading this wonderful story.

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Summary: Excellent modern-day adaptation to Arthurian legend
Review: I've read quite a few of the works in the King Arthur genre, and I very much enjoyed this book. White uses the existing legend as a framework around which he builds an excellent fantasy story.

The book is a little schizophrenic (for lack of a better word), in that it begins as a very light-hearted tale of Arthur's learning and development, becomes very philisophical as Arthur seeks to master the earliest rudiments of a democratic society, and ends tragic as his dreams fall apart around him.

Background isn't really necessary to enjoy the book, however, I would highly recommend readers to also look into Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur, which is made reference to several times by White. It gives background on some of the side stories not focused upon, such as Tristam and Isolde.

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Summary: A Truly Fantastic Book
Review: This book is amazing. I come back to read T.O.A.F.K. every couple of years, and it means more to me each time.

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Summary: This book trancends the genre it's associated with
Review: Forget about knights. Forget Gramarye and castles and lances and burnished armor (and Disney). This book is about our once and future bond with the land. This is the most American book ever written by an Englishman, an Englishman who was smitten with white-fronted geese and red setters and hounds and goshawks, and had the good sense to follow them wherever they led. The Arthur legend is only of use to us inasmuch as we are willing to listen respectfully to the ramblings of young hedgehogs and the advice of the Pike, and apply these to our own lives. Miss this book and miss a world of utter humanity that only a talking badger could give you. Buy this book for your children if not for yourself.