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Tales of King Arthur

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Twelve of the best-known tales of King Arthur and his knights, retold from Malory's "Morte d'Arthur" and other medieval sources.

124 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1982

7 people are currently reading
78 people want to read

About the author

James Riordan

197 books32 followers
Riōdan, Jeimuzu 1936-2012
Riordan, Dž.
Riordan, Džejms.
Riordan, James
Riordan, James William 1936-2012
Riordan, Jim, 1936-2012

James Riordan (10 October 1936 – 10 February 2012) was an English novelist, broadcaster, sports historian, association football player and Russian scholar.

Well known for his work Sport in Soviet Society, the first academic look at sport in the Soviet Union, and for his children's novels.

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5 stars
35 (26%)
4 stars
39 (29%)
3 stars
42 (31%)
2 stars
13 (9%)
1 star
3 (2%)
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews
Profile Image for Mir.
4,974 reviews5,331 followers
February 20, 2023
I had this as a kid. I picked it up at a used book store because the cover looked good and I liked Arthurian material. I wasn't a fan of the text, which seems sort of...off in tone? Dissimilar from versions I'm familiar with? Arthur is oddly precocious and adult as a child. And I seem to recall feeling that if you didn't already know the background story this presentation wouldn't make a ton of sense.

But the illustrations were good. I will look for more by Ambrus.
Profile Image for Kristin Soone.
152 reviews2 followers
December 3, 2023
rip kuningas arthur, sa oleks nii kurb kui sa praegust UK kuningat näeks
Profile Image for anni adele.
45 reviews
January 11, 2025
ma tean et see on brittidele mingi mega püha raamat aga nagu hell naw ma ei suutnud seda lugeda

miks nad 24/7 üksteise päid maha raiuvad??
Profile Image for Ülle Hilep.
99 reviews5 followers
December 6, 2020
Olin ammu tahtnud Arthuri Ümarlaua lugusid tervikuna lugeda. Suur oli minu üllatus, kui leidsin, et eesti keeles on selline raamat avaldatud juba 1995.a. Tol ajal viisin kogu oma vaba raha raamatupoodi (ja krediidi ka), kuid see raamat oli kuidagi filtrist läbi lipsanud.
Jupikaupa on need lood filmidest ja muudest raamatutest tuttavad. Raamatu stiil on suhteliselt sisutihe kondikava, millele saab pildid ja emotsioonid ise juurde mõelda. Ehk siis kujutlusvõimele väga hea alusmaterjal.
Kui ma varem oleks tahtnud seda oma pojale ettelugemiseks, siis nüüd ma enam nii kindel ei ole.
Käib hoogne ringimadistamine ja võitluste pidamine, verd lendab, pidevalt on kellegi maharaiutud pea kaasas. Ja kui lüüakse, siis ikka pea õlgadeni lõhki. Samas ei rõhutata seda liigselt, nii lihtsalt oli. Oh ajad, oh kombed.
Profile Image for Kristine Ross.
72 reviews4 followers
November 26, 2023
Kuningas Arthuri legendide ümberjutustus Krista Kaera suurepärases tõlkes. Kuna raamatu leidsin raamatukogu lastekirjanduse riiulitelt, siis ilmselt on mõeldud lastele, kuid minu meelest igati tore lugemine kõikidele, kes soovivad teha esmatutvust kuningas Arthuri lugudega. Lugemiseks sain innustust sellesuvisel kirjandusreisil Inglismaale, kui Tintageli lossi poole sõites Krista Kaer meile bussis raamatust katkendeid ette luges. Soe soovitus kõikidele keskaja ja rüütliromantika huvilistele.
Profile Image for Torzilla.
278 reviews134 followers
October 24, 2010
This book is a collection of well-known stories set in Britain that follow Arthur from his birth to death. The illustrations are somewhat choppy and rough, though this serves to reinforce the writing style and the time in which these stories were based upon. There is some character development within the book, though the characters generally appear to be set in their ways. After committing a grave error, most knights repent for their wrongs.

A general theme of the book is chivalry and the importance of maintaining one’s honor; due to Gwendolyn and Lancelot’s lack of honor for their king, the entire round table eventually falls.

The author uses repetition during battle – a constant factor within this book – to grant familiarity and predictability for young readers. The style of writing is also brief, and, as was mentioned earlier, choppy.

Not my cup of tea. The writing was somewhat bland, and the pictures did not capture my interest. As for the stories themselves... they were simplified versions of the tales that I read in my college classes (and I prefer the college texts to this). This book is nice if one would like to read a simplified version of these tales in order to learn a bit more about Arthur and his knights.
Profile Image for Christine Lucia Asha.
401 reviews41 followers
August 8, 2024
This book was very exciting and did a good job elaborating on the stories we know, but I believe there was a chronological error in the book. In the story "Tristram and Isolda", Tristram dies at the end of a broken heart, right? So why does it seem like he is still alive later when Galahad comes to the Round Table and his seat is referred to the "one between Sir Lancelot and Sir Tristram"?
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
46 reviews
April 14, 2024
It was an ok book, i wasnt the biggest fan since i hate history related things with a passion, but ibviously the book itself and the writing were good.
Profile Image for David Chmelik.
113 reviews3 followers
April 25, 2016
This is a well-illustrated children's version of the Arthurian legends. If you are more interested in the stories than illustrations, just read the history, and also mediaeval Arthurian sagas such as Parzival and "Tristram and Isolde."
112 reviews
June 23, 2021
Lugudel on lisaks haaravusele tugev sümboolika mõju, maagiline lugu. Mitmed juhtumised on otseses mõttes muinasjutulised ja esineb nii lahti seletatud kui lahti seletamata sümboolikat. Et need sümbolid esinevad ka kaasaegses kultuuris, annab lugude tundmine võime neid sümboleid märgata ja mõista.
Profile Image for Margit.
181 reviews6 followers
January 4, 2022
Ma ei mäleta, kuidas see raamat mulle nooremana tundus, aga praegu oli pisut igav. Ja liiga palju peade maharaiumist ning vägivalda.
Vanaisa kinkis selle mulle 16. sünnipäevaks, nii et seetõttu pean vajalikuks raamatut alles hoida.
Profile Image for Carole.
404 reviews8 followers
April 3, 2012
An overall nice telling. Not spectacular, but altogether catches the virtue and valor of the tale.
Displaying 1 - 16 of 16 reviews

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