King Arthur's Children: A Study In Fiction and Tradition [Hardcover]

Tyler R. Tichelaar (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: January 10, 2011

Did you know King Arthur had many other children besides Mordred?

Depending on which version of the legend you read, he had both sons and daughters, some of whom even survived him. From the ancient tale of Gwydre, the son who was gored to death by a boar, to Scottish traditions of Mordred as a beloved king, Tyler R. Tichelaar has studied all the references to King Arthur's children to show how they shed light upon a legend that has intrigued us for fifteen centuries.

King Arthur's Children: A Study in Fiction and Tradition is the first full-length analysis of every known treatment of King Arthur's children, from Welsh legends and French romances, to Scottish genealogies and modern novels by such authors as Parke Godwin, Stephen Lawhead, Debra Kemp, and Elizabeth Wein. King Arthur's Children explores an often overlooked theme in Arthurian literature and reveals King Arthur's bloodline may still exist today.

Arthurian Authors Praise "King Arthur's Children"
"Author Tyler R. Tichelaar has performed impeccable research into the Arthurian legend, fi nding neglected details in early sources and reigniting their significance. Great brainstorming fun! I am proud to add this to my personal collection of Arthurian non-fiction."
--Debra Kemp, author of The House of Pendragon series

"Tyler R. Tichelaar's in-depth analysis of the plausibility of King Arthur's children reaffirms the importance the King Arthur legacy continues to have for society and the need of people all over the world to be able to connect to and believe in King Arthur and Camelot."
--Cheryl Carpinello, author of Guinevere: On the Eve of Legend

About the Author
Tyler R. Tichelaar, Ph.D., is the author of several historical novels, most notably The Marquette Trilogy and the award-winning Narrow Lives. King Arthur's Children reveals his findings into the Arthurian legend as a precursor to his upcoming novel King Arthur's Legacy.
Learn more at www.ChildrenOfArthur.com

from the Reflections of Camelot Series at Modern History Press www.ModernHistoryPress.com

Product Details

• Hardcover: 208 pages
• Publisher: Modern History Press (January 10, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1615990674
• ISBN-13: 978-1615990672
• Product Dimensions: 6.1 x 9.2 x 0.5 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (5 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,773,215 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Tyler R. Tichelaar, 7th generation Marquette resident, spent thousands of hours researching and writing The Marquette Trilogy: Iron Pioneers, The Queen City, and Superior Heritage. Tyler has a Ph.D. in Literature from Western Michigan University, and Bachelor and Master's Degrees from Northern Michigan University. He has lectured on writing and literature at Clemson University, the University of Wisconsin, and the University of London. Tyler is the regular guest host of Authors Access Internet Radio and the President of the Upper Peninsula Publishers and Authors Association. He is the owner of Marquette Fiction and Superior Book Promotions, a professional book review, editing, and proofreading service. Tyler lives in Marquette, Michigan where the roar of Lake Superior, mountains of snow, and sandstone architecture inspire his writing.

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Exploring a Little Known Subject of Arthurian Tradition, May 4, 2011

By 

Jeffrey P. Bampos "Goddess Guy" (Springfield, MA USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: King Arthur's Children: A Study In Fiction and Tradition (Paperback)

"King Arthur's Children" is a long overdue addition to Arthurian studies. Most people are familiar with Arthur's son Mordred, and he is extensively reviewed in this book. But such characters as Amr and Llacheu are also covered, along with lesser known examples of Arthur's children. Besides looking at the traditional tales, "King Arthur's Children" highlights modern fiction which has made use of invented children of Arthur. A lot of this material was new to me and inspired me to explore some of these later books. The author is writing a novel about Arthur's legacy. I look foward to it.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars King Arthur's Children - Great Read, March 5, 2011

By 

Janice M. Hidey (Sykesville, MD USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   

This review is from: King Arthur's Children: A Study In Fiction and Tradition (Hardcover)

Tyler R. Tichelaar, who has a Ph.D. in literature, has been fascinated with King Arthur since a child. I understand that, as in 6th grade my class read a King Arthur story and then wrote a play about him that we later performed. I have great memories of all that went into the writing, the sets, the learning of lines and then performing the play not just two times for the elementary school but later at night presenting it to our parents and other people from the community. That started my own fascination with Arthurian legend. Did he really exist or on the other hand, is he just a legend? As an adult, I continued to read about Arthur in Stephen Lawhead's five book series The Pendragon and then Avalon: The Return of King Arthur. Therefore, I was excited to read Tichelaar's King Arthur's Children and I was not disappointed.

King Arthur's Children looks at the literature since the fifth century tracing every mention of the children of Arthur starting with the Welsh legends. Tichelaar also looks at the French romances and other references to the children during the Middle Ages. He then brings it up to modern times where authors continue to write about the king and his children, often making up new children. Lawhead's series is just one of many modern novels he discusses.

This though is not a dry historical account but Tichelaar is a storyteller and in the midst of all the details of the children, storylines are shared that made me want to read more about Arthur. Why is it that even in the 21st century we are still interested in King Arthur, his adventures and his family? Maybe it is the fact that we do not know if he really did exist, or is it the classic issues his story brings up - family struggles, forbidden love, best friends in love with the same woman, or maybe our fascination is with all the adventures of King Arthur. I do not know but Tichelaar's work has added something valuable to those who study the man or to those of us who still want to read more of the infamous king. I highly recommend King Arthur's Children: A Study in Fiction and Tradition.

Tichelaar himself is going to add to the King Arthur books with his upcoming novel King Arthur's Legacy. After reading this book, I am looking forward to reading his novel also.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Tichelaar continues to astound lovers of King Arthur, January 23, 2011

By 

Cheryl Carpinello "http://www.beyondtodayeduc... (Colorado) - See all my reviews

This review is from: King Arthur's Children: A Study In Fiction and Tradition (Hardcover)

After teaching the Legend of King Arthur for over 20 years, I felt that I had a pretty good handle on the legend. But, Tyler Tichelaar has astounded me with the details and research about the actual sons of King Arthur!

His methodical research of the ancient texts, including The Anglo-Saxon Chronicle, Geoffrey's The History of the Kings of Britain, The Mabinogion, and Malory's Le Morte D'Arthur coupled with more modern texts like Celtic Myth and Arthurian Romance (1967) and The Book of Arthur: Lost Tales of the Round Table (2002), present readers with a validity for Arthur's children that has not been shown before.

Tichelaar also explores current fiction in which Arthur's children make their own path in the literary legend of Arthur. The reasons put forth by Tichelaar in King Arthur's Children for this proliferation of heirs is logical and at the same time magical. Arthur's legend continues to appeal to people of all ages and backgrounds, and it only makes sense that authors feel modifying the Legend will allow more people to discover the honor and hope so many are looking for in today's world.

The information about Arthur's early sons coupled with Tichelaar's in-depth analysis of the known son Mordred leaves readers wondering how much more Tichelaar will uncover of this magnificent legend. Tyler even explores the claims of the British royal family both past and present that they are Arthur's descendants!

Tichelaar's in-depth analysis of the plausibility of King Arthur's children reaffirms the importance that the King Arthur legacy continues to have for society and the need of people all over the world to be able to connect to and believe in King Arthur and Camelot.

Cheryl Carpinello

author of

"Guinevere: On the Eve of Legend"