The Age of Chivalry: The Illustrated Bulfinch's Mythology

by Thomas Bulfinch

Retells the stories of King Arthur and the Round Table, the Mabinogeon of Wales, and knights in English history

Genres: Mythology, History, Classics, Nonfiction, Medieval, Arthurian, Folklore

224 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1858

About the author

Thomas Bulfinch was an American writer born in Newton, Massachusetts, best known for the book Bulfinch's Mythology.

Reviews

[Деница Райкова]

Denitza Raykova
1 min
Томас Булфинч - "Митове и легенди от рицарските времена", изд. "Рива", 2018 г., прев. Розалина Евдокимова

Когато осъзнаеш, че времето ти да четеш рицарски истории май е отминало...
... те обзема едно чувство на тъга и негодувание. Към самия теб.
С много голямо желание седнах да чета тази книга. Помня как влезе в "списъка за пазаруване" за Пролетния базар. Стигаше ми само заглавието, за да реша, че искам да я имам. А когато видях на корицата името на Томас Булфинч, това само затвърди решението ми. Не бях попадала досега на събрани и /или/ преразказани истории, но името беше достатъчно известно, за да реша, че ме очаква хубаво книжно преживяване.
Пък и... В групата сигурно има доста хора, които си спомнят онова старо издание "В страната на легендите" с вълшебната корица и чудесното оформление. Аз определено го помня. Помня как отново и отново четях историята за Тристат и Изолда - още от първото прочитане на сборника тя ми стана любима. Помня имената на скъпоценни камъни, които научих от тях. И най-вее, помня колко омайващо ми звучаха всички истории.
И очаквах да се почувствам по същия начин и сега.
Само че - и пак ще кажа, дори и ако се приеме за оправдание - да, знам, че Булфинч е име в събирането на такива легенди, - но "звученето" на книгата не ми хареса. Първите страници наистина обещаваха да са "хващащи", но някъде към средата книгата започна да ме "губи". Не ми допадна стилът, на места историята ми дойде твърде многословна, и, честно казано, макар че от детските ми години не ми се е случвало да "прескачам" страници, сега на моменти ми идваше да го направя.
Казаното дотук важи най-вече за историите, свързани с крал Артур - а, както се оказа, това е всъщност една доста голяма част от книгата. И си го обяснявам най-вече с това, че навремето толкова често препрочитах тези истории.
От 18-а глава нататък обаче /след 170-а страница/ книгата започна да ме увлича все повече. Много ми харесаха историите за Герайнт и тези за Господарката на фонтана, и искрено съжалих, че беше отделено толкова малко място на историите за Робин Худ.
Като цяло - книгата допълни това, което вече знаех за героите, споменаващи се в нея, от "Страната на легендите", и ме "запозна" с нови, за които чувах за пръв път. Една литературна "среща", която сега беше просто приятна, а можеше да бъде омайваща и запомняща се, ако се беше осъществила няколко години по-рано...

[Alexander Draganov · Rating 2 out of 5]

Не съм я свършвал реално, но Goodreads продължават да се помайват и да не дават опция Dropped. Книгата е интересна за историци на средновековната литература, но за читател, търсещ приятна отмора с четивото е с безкрайно остарял стил. Не мисля, че е издадена правилно от "Рива", без никакъв коментар за това кога е писана. Затова и не спестявам лошата оценка.

[Tinquerbelle]

Bulfinch, Thomas
Bulfinch's Mythology

In compilation only.

1) Introduction
2) The Mythical History of England
3) Merlin
4) Arthur
5) Arthur (continued)
6) Sir Gawain
7) Caradoc Briefbras; or, Caradoc with the Shrunken Arm
8) Lancelot of the Lake
9) The Adventure of the Cart
10) The Lady of Shalott
11) Queen Guenever's Peril
12) Tristram and Isoude
13) Tristram and Isoude (continued)
14) Sir Tristram's Battle with Sir Lancelot
15) The Round Table
16) Sir Palamedes
17) Sir Tristram
18) Perceval
19) The Sangreal, or Holy Ghost
20) The Sangreal (continued)
21) The Sangreal (continued)
22) Sir Agrivain's Treason
23) Morte d'Arthur
24) Introductory Note to the Mabinogeon
25) The Britons
26) The Lady of the Fountain
27) The Lady of the Fountain (continued)
28) The Lady of the Fountain (continued)
29) Geraint, the Son of Erbin
30) Geraint, the Son of Erbin (continued)
31) Geraint, the Son of Erbin (continued)
32) Pwyll, Prince of Dyved
33) Branwen, the Daughter of Llyr
34) Manawyddan
35) Kilwich and Olwen
36) Kilwich and Olwen (continued
37) Taliesin
38) Beowulf
39) Cuchulain, Champion of Ireland
40) Hereward the Wake
41) Robin Hood

[Hannah Mozingo · Rating 3 out of 5]

I wouldn't have read this, had I not been required to for my Medieval literature class. It was ok, but not exactly my cup of tea. It was a lot of random old stories and legends compiled into a book, mildly interesting and rather long winded. I didn't dislike it, I just didn't love it.

[Kristens.reading.nook · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read this for my 7th graders homeschool curriculum. I’m just not that interested in the time of knights. So my rating more reflects that than the author’s ability to write about the time period.

[Andre Piucci · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Arthur's pretensions were that he was a brave, though not always a successful warrior; he had withstood with great resolution the arms of the infidels, that is to say of the Saxons, and his memory was held in the highest estimation by his countrymen, the Britons, who carried with them into Wales, and into the kindred country of Armorica, or Brittany, the memory of his exploits, which their national vanity insensibly exaggerated, till the little prince of the Silures (South Wales) was magnified into the conqueror of England, of Gaul, and of the greater part of Europe."

[B.M.R. Williams · Rating 4 out of 5]

The more I think about Bulfinch the more I like him. His writing is an excellent introduction to anybody who is interested in learning archaic lexicon and syntax.

Each chapter is short and sweat. They are never too long, and if I may add, I think this book is a great casual read. It's good to pick up and read from every once and a while; maybe just to get your mind thinking in a higher level English for a while, after having read countless Facebook posts... bereft of grammar and thought--I digress.

Read it.

[Jake · Rating 2 out of 5]

Ok, to be fair i am not much of a King Arthur type of guy so maybe this book wasn't for me to begin with, but with that said, I found the writing boring, the stories a little hard to follow, and the magic of the the legend not even there. I did learn a few things about King Arthur and the Round Table but wasn't much impressed with Bulfinch's description of it. I know this book is a holy grail (pun intended) to chivalry lovers but i don't think this book is for much anybody else.

[Donna Shackleton · Rating 2 out of 5]

Phew, this was a tiring book to read! It had a lot of old English that was very hard to understand and I had to look up many words. Some of the stories were very interesting but others were so detailed that I got lost in the telling.

[Aurora · Rating 4 out of 5]

This second book of the Bulfinch trilogy covers the stories of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table and the tales of Charlemagne and the romantic age. The collection is complete and the commentaries are insightful and complete as one expects of Bulfinch's work.
All three of these volumes are a must for any serious collector or student of the mythology of the middle ages and I thoroughly enjoyed recalling those stories I knew and discovering the knights and heroes (and even the mice) I didn't know about.

[Ashley Lynn Young · Rating 4 out of 5]

Trying to complete all the books in my children’s middle school literature curriculum, so this was over a few years. I remember some stories well and others I slogged through. If I compare it to other mythology of its type I enjoyed it very much. I love Bulfinch’s language abilities. I get bogged down in King Arthur literature.

[Katherine · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book has a lot of mini stories of historical events and how they played out. It moves through history very quickly, from battle to battle to historical figures. It’s interesting, and the narrator does a good job.

[Julie Mabus · Rating 3 out of 5]

I thought the second half was more interesting than the first. I prefer other retelling if Arthur. Some of the other English lore was interesting. I almost gave up on it but pushed through since I am asking my kids to read it for school.

[Allie Seliger · Rating 3 out of 5]

After 3+ years of gradually trying to work through this book, I give up. Staying awake for a whole chapter was a challenge, which is a shame because the stories are actually super interesting. But the prose is *unbelievably* dry and repetitive.

[Ron · Rating 3 out of 5]

Picked up this title on sale at college bookstore. Read it when I had spare time.

[Rob · Rating 2 out of 5]

Didn't finish...

[Paschalis]

elibrary

[Krystal · Rating 3 out of 5]

homeschool book

[Signor Mambrino]

There are two versions of Age of Chivalry. One ends with a shorter section on the heroes of England and Ireland, and the other ends with a section on King Richard and Chevy Chase. The latter is very boring.
The earlier sections in both are the same. They are OK.
I am very happy to be finished with Bulfinch.

[Rosie Gearhart · Rating 3 out of 5]

I enjoyed Roger Green’s King Arthur much better than this. Maybe I read it too fast, but it was just so much information. The stories all ran into each other. This particular version has beautiful illustrations, though!

[Todd Martin · Rating 2 out of 5]

The Age of Chivalry is a compilation of Medieval myths focusing on: the Arthurian legends, Welsh myths and the tales of Robin Hood. As one might expect there are maidens, knights, jousts, horses, quests, tournaments, smiting, magic … and in one inexplicable instance – a badger in a bag.

The Arthur, Tristan and Isolde, and Robin Hood stories have had a significant literary influence, but I have to say … once you’ve heard one knightly tale, you’ve pretty much heard them all.

[Ensiform · Rating 4 out of 5]

This edition included a third section on "The Knights of English History" by Edward Everett Hale, added 17 years after Bullfinch's death. There was also a short into by Beryl Rowland. The two parts by Bullfinch were about King Arthur and his men, Tristam and Isolde and the quest for the Holy Grail (or Sangreal); and tales from the Mabinogeon, "tales" in Welsh.

I found the latter section to be the most fascinating, because the characters within were so human and humorous. The tale of Owain's romance with the Lady of the Fountain, the Grimm-like tale of Taleisin the youthful, magical bard and the tale of Manawyddan, who through either imbecilic obdurance or subtle cunning was going to hang a mouse for stealing, are all stand-outs. Hale's contribution, which deals with Robin Hood, the battles between the Earls of Douglas and Percy and Prince Edward's wars with the French, are interesting but not as stylish and witty. A good classic to have under one's belt.

[Danielle · Rating 3 out of 5]

interesting, although a bit crusty at times. i couldn't keep track of who was doing what, as various persons were presented in something of a blur. but i like reading on knights and chivalry and machismo.

[Jackie · Rating 2 out of 5]

Dry, no excitement. Not a big fan of Bullfinch. However, it is concise and gives the information on the myths.
Depending on what you are looking for, an interesting read or information, will determine whether or not you like it.

[Heather · Rating 2 out of 5]

I didn't finish reading it--it's too dry. It's a good reference book and it could be helpful if you needed to brush up on any Arthurian stories, but it's just so boring that it doesn't matter how many times you re-read a passage, you can be sure to fall asleep.

[Kellylynn · Rating 3 out of 5]

Took me a long time to read this. The first section was rough with all of the battles. But I rather enjoyed reading about Charlemagne. Most of those stories were not like I expected them to be.

Also the stories of Robin Hood were rather raw and completely full of battles, more so than expected.

[Lana · Rating 3 out of 5]

Was a bit disappointed in this book as I had imagined a proper novel about king Arthur but instead the book was very historical and descriptive and I did not quite like the way merlin was portrayed in this book!!

[Mike (the Paladin) · Rating 3 out of 5]

Again, not the edition I have.

Good read. Nice introduction to the ledgends of Arthur and the age of chivalry. Especially for young readers this is good.

[Tana]

Enjoying this because it is bringing me "up to speed" on English mythology and such. My eyes are being opened. :)

[Julie Unruh]

It gives you theories, myth's, or the truth, what ever you believe. Got great names from that book for the character's in my stories.