King Arthur

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Actually, the first six or seven John Norman books were pretty good. Unfortunately things went downhill from there.
 
Another series of Arthurian books to avoid, sad to say, is the Steven Lawhead series–and he writes from a pro-Christian viewpoint, too.

The best adjective for his writing style is gushing–he seems to be writing for a particular female audience (Harlequin Romance I suppose) and the story and the characters suffer.
 
Lion_of_Narnia said:
Another series of Arthurian books to avoid, sad to say, is the Steven Lawhead series–and he writes from a pro-Christian viewpoint, too.

The best adjective for his writing style is gushing–he seems to be writing for a particular female audience (Harlequin Romance I suppose) and the story and the characters suffer.
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Really…? I have not read his Arthurian series but I have been reading his Templar series and I don’t find him to be gushy. Different concept maybe?
 
Personally, I loved “The Mists of Avalon”. Especially the ending. It actually gave me chills and reduced me to tears. shrug To each her own. 🙂
 
The last volume of C.S. Lewis’ “Space Trilogy”, That Hideous Strength, ties in the Arthurian mythology (specifically, Merlin and Logres) with J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth world and the world Lewis created (or modified, as it’s supposed to take place in Earth, Mars and Venus, late 30’s-early 50’s). Well worth reading, as are the other two volumes in the series - Out of the Silent Planet (the first volume) and Perelandra.
 
brotherhrolf said:
Really…? I have not read his Arthurian series but I have been reading his Templar series and I don’t find him to be gushy. Different concept maybe?
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Although I thoroughly enjoy Lawhead and pretty much all his novels, and the fact that they all have a very Christian bent to them, he does include some questionable material. Such as his novel on the life of St. Patrick. In the novel Patrick is influenced by Pelagious and basically becomes a druid of sorts.

Anyway, as I said, I enjoy his novels. His Arthur series is very well written, and I didn’t think it was all that “gushy” either.
 
I love the Howard Pyle books-I remember getting them from the bookmobile when I was in elementary school. Part of the reason I later majored in history with my favorite period the Medieval one (which shows I’m over 40 because I understand from the more ‘modern historians’ that this designation is dated!).

Brotherholf, does your wife subscribe to the King Arthur newsletter? (You can check it out at the website). All kinds of good things to order. Yum!
 
Malory. that’s where it all begins. my homschool freshmen all hit it and do well.

my current fifteen y.o has read all mentioned and much Howard Pyle, too. he insists Malory’s the man.
 
I second the Howard Pyle recommend on his King Arthur as the best modern retelling of the Arthurian legend from Thomas Mallory’s version. Rackham illustrations are definitive.
 
Setlew said:
The last volume of C.S. Lewis’ “Space Trilogy”, That Hideous Strength, ties in the Arthurian mythology (specifically, Merlin and Logres) with J.R.R. Tolkien’s Middle Earth world and the world Lewis created (or modified, as it’s supposed to take place in Earth, Mars and Venus, late 30’s-early 50’s). Well worth reading, as are the other two volumes in the series - Out of the Silent Planet (the first volume) and Perelandra.
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I loved the Space Trilogy, especiallyThat Hideous Strength. Lewis did a really good job of his portrayal of magic, and for being a protestant, was very intune with the Catholic “sacramental imagination.”

On a different note, I noticed someone mention Evangeline Walton. I own her Mabinogion Tetralogy, and except for its anti-Christian themes, is a very intriguing read. Sad to say, at one time in my life, I bought all of that pagan mystical nonsense.
 
Somewhere online–I came across it doing research for a class–you can find the Arthurian legends from Wales and Cornwall, including things both in and out of the Mabinogion.

That’d be my vote.

And Marion Zimmer Bradley is certainly not going anywhere near the Isles of the Blest, when she wrote “The Mists of Avalon.”
Hate to point this out, but the Celtic religion was more patriarchal than Christianity–why does everyone expect Indo-Europeans with a priestly caste to be matriarchal, when there’s a billion Hindus to contradict them?
 
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