Pyle retells classic Arthurian legends while adding some tales of his own. The Story of King Arthur covers the fabled beginnings: the sword in the stone, the getting of Excalibur from the Lady of the Lake, the wooing of Guinevere, and the establishment of the Round Table.Again, Pyle's prose is enchanting. Using the same semi-olde style from Robin Hood, he mixes an almost liturgical descriptive style ("and the two knights came together, and the sound of their horses was like thunder, then they burst their spears upon their shields") with poetic, enchanting descriptions of scenery and landscapes. Grand pageantry and pastoral idylls mix freely with knightly combat and mystical magic.
Most of the episodes include a somewhat didactic ending, deriving the moral of the story for young readers, but these morals are typically spot-on, and they add charm to the story. There is plenty of action, intigue, and danger, and the characters are nuanced with real faults and foibles. The "noble" Arthur going incognito as a gardener's boy proves a worthless and insubordinate employee, and his "noble" knights treat him like a nobody before they realize who he is. Sir Gawaine begrudgingly agrees to wed an old woman who saved Arthur's life, and Sir Pellias lets himself be captured repeatedly by lesser knights hoping to catch a glimpse of their lady, his love. The stories are instantly engrossing and eminently entertaining.
Pyle would go on to write three other Arthur books, which I will keep on my radar. Such enjoyable reading is hard to come by.
Arbitrary rating: 4 out of 5 fabled beginnings
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