Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #7032 in Books
• Published on: 1987-07-15
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 639 pages

The Merriam-Webster Encyclopedia of Literature
Quartet of novels by T.H. White, published in a single volume in 1958. The quartet comprises The Sword in the Stone (1938), The Queen of Air and Darkness--first published as The Witch in the Wood (1939)--The Ill-Made Knight (1940), and The Candle in the Wind (published in the composite volume, 1958). The series is a retelling of the Arthurian legend, from Arthur's birth to the end of his reign, and is based largely on Sir Thomas Malory's Le Morte Darthur. After White's death, a conclusion to The Once and Future King was found among his papers; it was published in 1977 as The Book of Merlyn.

Customer Reviews

Wow. Wow! WOW!!!
Oh my god. This was the greatest book I have ever read. Sorry everyone but the book has practically rendered me speechless so all I will say is that you must read The Once & Future King. MUST READ IT!

How I wish I was thirteen again ...
... And able to read T. H. White's admirable rendition of the Legend of Arthur for the first time.

Alas, I am only able to experience this vicariously, having given the book to my nephew some time ago. Also, alas, I fear too late, as he has wanted to follow the modern path of fast things with wheels.

(But he may yet learn of the magic of Merlyn, and the mystery of the sword, Excalibur).

Mr. White's rendition is at once easy to read, and deeply insightful, sometimes darkly so, taking us from Arthur as a young lad, to Arthur ruling uneasily in Camelot.

Highly recommended to anyone who is young, or young at heart. Read it to your children or grandchildren, if you must.

An Arthurian Masterpiece
This is the book that introduced me to the Arthur cycle. Ever since I read it three years ago I've been obsessed with the subject.
Even if you ignore all of the great Arthurian books out there this one is nothing short of a masterpiece.
I'm reading it now for the fourth time,and it just keeps getting better.
It's a beautifully told epic that will stick with you long after you finish it. White delivers a funny, touching,witty,tragic, and enthralling fantasy that may just open you up to the joy of the Arthur cycle.
While it's based on Malory's epic, White manages to boldly carve his name into the legacy of storytellers that goes back almost a thousand years.
If you plan on reading anything in the near future, take a chance on this triumph of English literature.