Customer Reviews

At the Crossing-Places (Arthur)

5 star:		(5)
4 star:		(3)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I usually do not read the reviews of others until I have written mine so I won't be influenced. I very much enjoyed the first book in the series, The Seeing Stone. I was surprised at how many "kid reviews" were run and have to repeat something I did in my first review. I consider these works by Kevin Crossley Holland outstanding and gave it five stars just as I give this one. However, I am concerned about the emphasis that the books are for children. It is true there is no profanity to the extreme, I refer to the implications of sexual activities that children under their teens may have problems with. If young children are to read these then their parents should screen them to discuss certain elements. There are also very good philosophical concepts that may be beyond the understanding of young children. This comes from a retired teacher and principal now turned author and magazine publisher.

Now on to the very excellent At The Crossing Places. This is a continuation of the story of Arthur formerly of Caldicot now of Holt, in the early twelve hundreds. Now aged 15, Arthur is a squire and has learned that his parentage is not as he long believed. He has a real father who is a murderer and a real mother he wants to find. Arthur's desire is to be a knight and to build a life for himself, almost his own little kingdom. He is realistic about things around him and has a sense of justice beyond any of the other characters in the book. What Holland does so well is depict the times with more information than you'll find anywhere else about the way people lived in England at this point of history. It covers their life styles, beliefs, and their environment better than any such I have read before. Holland has done his research. His characterizations are excellent and far ahead of the society in the "seeing stone". Like the first book, this is a double story as in the "seeing stone", given Arthur by Merlin, he sees scenes from the life of the legendary King Arthur. There are definite parallels in the lives of both Arthurs which is the justification for combining the two tales. The only real justification in my opinion as the books would stand alone without the Arthurian legends which are in many ways flawed.

My only quarrel with Holland is that the Kind Arthur whose story he follows is too much Thomas Mallory and T. H. White. I was glad that some of the young readers were newly introduced to King Arthur, but would want them to read much better books like the series of books by Stephen Lawhead and Mary Stewart. Both have researched King Arthur to the point that you have no doubt that such a king once lived. I have had the pleasure of twice visiting some of the locations connected with Arthur in England and this too has added to my own understanding. There are many other authors beyond the two I recommended and many have written for children. Certainly Holland's books are much healthier reading than the Harry Potter series and those few who hailed Potter in their reviews would do well to read the Narnian series by C.S. Lewis.

I look very forward to the third book in this series. I love the books, but must be realistic about them.

After reading The Seeing Stone, which I thoroughly enjoyed, I quickly bought this book. I must first say the faults about this book. I admit that in the first book I found myself thinking that Arthur's life was a bit more boring than teh Arthur-in-the-stone's life and I was always waiting for the Arthur-in-the-stone stories to come. It was quite the oppisate for this book. This one was filled with Arthuran lengends and Kevin Crossley=Holland (the athor) poorly made the legends reflect the book.

I found myself waiting for more of Arthur (the real one) 's life. His new life got much more exciting when since he is now a squire for Lord Stephan. He learns about who his new father is and he goes on a desprete quest to find his mother. He also meets a new girl named Winnie who he complely swoons over. Winni has red hair and most people can tell that she is the Gueniver in the stone. The only prob. is that Winnie nad Arthur have no chemistry! There is a lotta chemistry between Gatty and Arthur and the reader is always hoping for Gatty and Arthur to get togther...but we all know that King Arthur ended up with Gwen...

Also. There was no Merlin. That was a bit of a dissapointment. But Ive been sayign all the bad stuff. There are much more good things in this inspiring novel. There is a whole bunch of new characters and mysteries. If you liked the first book in the trilogy I highly recomend this book. And although the third book (THE KING OF MIDDLE MARCH) has not been released in the US (4 reasons I know not) it has been realeased in the UK and you can order it on Amazon.co.uk (the British amazon so to speak). So if you have enough cash go out and buy it or rent it from teh library or borrow it from a friend, because it is good. I congradulate Kevin Crossely=Holland on his Arthur trilogy. :)

"At the Crossing-Places" is the second instalment in Kevin Crossley-Holland's Arthur trilogy, and the sequel to the award-winning "The Seeing Stone". Set on the Welsh Marches in the year 1200, it continues the tale of thirteen-year-old Arthur de Caldicot. Arthur has recently been made squire to Lord Stephen de Holt, who is preparing to go on crusade against the Saracens. But as Arthur readies himself to go with his lord, he also begins his own quest to find his real mother, whose identity has been kept from him his entire life.

Just as in "The Seeing Stone", the story is narrated by Arthur over the course of 101 short chapters, each one no more usually than a handful of pages in length. In these he describes not only daily life on the manor at Holt, but also the visions he receives through his obsidian seeing stone, of his namesake King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. Compared with the previous volume, however, the sections set within the seeing stone lack coherence, and do not seem to bear as much relevance to Arthur's real life, even though they take up a greater proportion of the book. This can prove frustrating at times, particularly since Arthur's own quest takes some time to develop.

Nevertheless, the writing is still as poetic and evocative as before, with touches both of humour and of sadness, and an authentic feel which is never heavy-handed. Crossley-Holland has an exceptional eye for detail; the depth of his research as well as his passion for his subject are evident. Every location is expertly and clearly evoked - the splendour of Holt castle forms an excellent contrast to the humble manor of Caldicot, the place of Arthur's childhood. Meanwhile the characters - from kind Lord Stephen to two-faced Haket, the village priest - are well-drawn and each have their own characteristics. In particular it is hard not to be touched by Arthur's relationship with Gatty, the daughter of the reeve at Caldicot, especially as their close friendship blurs into love. Indeed it is the lightness of the author's touch that makes these scenes all the more powerful.

"At the Crossing-Places" is, all in all, an admirable sequel. While it may lack some of the drama of "The Seeing Stone", it nevertheless lays firm foundations for the final book in the trilogy, "King of the Middle March".

I really enjoyed this book. It was very interesting and it also had a lot of facts in it. The main character, Arthur is a gallant person, he always tries to do his best and work his hardest. As he becomes a squire, he goes through many twists an turns in his life and in his life in his seeing stone. This book is one of the best I've read. It construes a young boys life back in that time period.

This book is a classic. While it didn't meet all of my expectations, it was still a very good book. It was researched excellently, down to every detail. Crossley-Holland carried on the series in a way that kept me hooked throughout the entire book.

The sequel to "The Seeing Stone," titled "At the Crossing-Places," is less interesting than the first book of this trilogy. While Crossley-Holland has clearly researched the historic details thoroughly, there doesn't seem to be much soul behind the actual narrative.
As Arthur found out more about his past, his life has gotten more complex. He's learned who his father is (the fierce Sir William), has learned that his now-ex-betrothed is his half sister and is a squire to Sir Stephen. He also still has the ability to see the life of Arthur of Camelot, whose life somehow (don't ask me how) reflects Arthur of Caldicot's. And he doesn't know who his unknown mother was.

As it is a medieval era, Arthur follows Sir Stephen to the Crusades while he continues to search for his mom's identity, while watching the ancient king who is him -- and not him. And as he goes to Champagne and then back to Britain, he comes closer to the truth about the connection between Arthur de Caldicot and Arthur in the stone...

Arthurian fiction has been around for a long time, and many readers have a particular affection for it. But, within the framework of another, different story, it just doesn't work. It worked better in "Seeing Stone," but in "At the Crossing-Places" nothing much happens to Arthur de Caldicot. Things happen, sure, but not very fast. Most of the focus is on King Arthur. And while that isn't really a problem in other books, it's a little frustrating to see things through Arthur de Caldicot's eyes, and not get a strong sense of what's happening in his own life.

Unfortunately, Crossley-Holland's writing hasn't improved much either. It's still very bare-bones, almost like a play. The narrative improves when the focus is on the past, or when something really spectacular happens. The rest of the time, it's just rather boring. (Especially when dealing with Arthur's romantic involvements -- he has no chemistry with Winnie at all)

Arthur is a rather flat lead character, who serves more as a window to the plot than an actual character. Winnie is also quite two-dimensional, but Sir Stephen is a likable enough guy. Unfortunately, Merlin is pretty much absent except through the seeing-stone, and it's hard to get a sense for Arthur and Gawain and the rest. It's like reading a book about someone watching a TV show -- I got little, if any, connection to the Arthurian people.

"At the Crossing-Places," like "Seeing Stone," had potential that never gets realized. At the end I felt frustrated and only slightly curious about "King of the Middle-March," the forthcoming third volume of the trilogy.

Kevin Crossley Holland's Arthur at the Crossing Places is a ver unique book. It is told from a view of a 13 year old boy named Arthur who lives in the 1200's. Arthur received a stone of obsidian from his wise and mysterious friend Merlin that is very unique. This stone shows Arthur the tail of King Arthur and his Knights of the round table. The stone also shows things that relate to Arthur's life. Arthur is starting out his life as a squire under Lord Stephen and is preparing for the crusades. Arthur has also just found out that he is truly Sir William's son and learns a secret about him and his mother. Now, Arthur seeks out to know who his mother is, what she looks like, and the reason she gave him away.
At first I had to admit I didn't want to read this book because of its size, but after I started reading I couldn't put it down. Kevin Crossley Holland id a wonderful job of re-telling the story of King Arthur in a new and inventive way. I would greatly recommend the book for kids and adults over the age of 12, especially if you are a fan of legends. Truly, I'm not a really big fan of King Arthur I thought this book was great. Before reading this book, I would greatly recommend reading Arthur: The Seeing Stone, for it describes all of the character's history and the stone much better. Otherwise, this book is a must read

I love this book! It's just as good as the first, I recommend this book to everyone and anyone who likes to read and who's into the whole King Arthur thing. It has adventure, romance, action and mystery, I just can not wait until the next book. It's a good book,read it. I guarantee you'll like it, the only thing is, you have to read the first book to understand this one.

The Crossing=Places by Kevin Crossley-Holland was the second book in this fantastic trilogy "Arthur".

This story is about a young boy, becoming a man, named Arthur de Caldicott.

This is VERY hard to write without saying stuff about the 1st book

*First all of please read book 1, Arthur: The Seeing Stone*

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In this book, The Crossing=Places, we once again meet young Arthur de Calidicot, now a squire to Lord Stephan of Holt.

In this story, Arthur meets Lord Stephan's daring neice, Winnie, and also many other important faces.

He is forced, yes literally forced, by Lord Stephan to visit his real father Sir William at Gotermore, one of his father's manors. It was not a pleasant visit but yet Arthur was not injured like their last meeting.

Arthur has mixed feelings.

His half-sister, Grace, (in the first book, she was his cousin) can no longer be betrothed to him and both are very upset. Grace is even ANGRY at him!

His new friend, Winnie, Lord Stephan's neice, has been kissing him. He has begun feelings of romance towards her and blushes every time her name is spoken.

You'll have to read this awesome, amazing, magical book to find out more about Arthur's continuing tales!!

((A little description of Winnie, Lord Stephan's neice: flaming red-gold hair, chestnut brown colored eyes, age 12 or 13, a year younger than Arthur))

First, let me say that I absolutly adore the first book in this series. The Seeing Stone is on my top ten list of favorite books.
I was looking very forward to this sequel. Here's what was wrong with it:
*I missed Oliver, Sir John, Serle, and all of the other characters at Caldicot. In this book, Arthur is at Holt, where he is training to become a knight with Lord Stephen. While some of the characters at Holt were interesting, they weren't as much fun as those at Holt. And the "bad" characters and what they did didn't matter in the long wrong (their villiany wasn't too interesting, either.)
*Where is Merlin?!
*In the last book, I almost wished there had been more of Arthur-in-the-Stone. But this book is FILLED with Arthurian legand. Don't get me wrong-I love stories about King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table. But there were so many stories about knights who either weren't too interesting, weren't developed into the story enough,or didn't have enough details. Plus, most of the legends didn't reflect in Arthur de Caldicot's life, as they are supposed to.
I'm not saying that you shouldn't read this book. But maybe you should borrow it from the library. Just know that whenever I read Seeing Stone (and I've read it more than once) I always wish that it would never end. But I couldn't wait for this book to be over!