Customer Reviews

The Sword and the Circle: King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(9)
3 star:		(6)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(4)

 

 

Rosemary Sutcliff's adaptation of the King Arthur legend is truly a unique and inspiring work, told in a highly descriptive yet very concise format. It is not only powerful and thought-provoking, but creates a sense of the ancient and medieval time it owes its existence to. Starting years before Arthur comes to power, Sutcliff tells the story of young Merlin and how Arthur came to be, following him through his rise to High King, the meetings of such brave and infamous knights such as Lancelot, Tristan and Gawain, right up to just before the quest for the Holy Grail begins. Sutcliff not only tells the traditional and time-honored stories, such as the sword in the stone, but also adapts other variations of the quests that individual knights took upon themselves to maintain peace and honor in Britain. For example, although he may not have actually been a knight of the round table, Sutcliff tells the tragic and romantic story of Tristan and Iseult, the ironic tale of Beaumains, and the humorous story of Sir Gawain and the Green Knight, all of which reflect the honor and love which bounded King Arthur's kingdom together. This book easily stands alone, but simultaneously lays solid groundwork for the next two books, The Light Beyond the Forest and The Road to Camlann, two other excellent books written by Sutcliff on the rise and fall of Arthur. By taking her stories to a level above just the basic story-telling, Sutcliff also helps put King Arthur's place in history into perspective and gives an excellent reason for retelling this timeless legend again for this day and age. The book is really a medieval romantic story at heart, but has enough battles and swashbuckling adventures to keep readers more interested in action than a rambling story hooked. I would recommend this book to those who have never read a King Arthur book in their life, to those who might know the story by heart, and anyone in between those two categories, because it is an excellent way of reacquainting ourselves with the days of princes and knights, of villains and dragons, chivalry and fair maidens, and the ultimate triumph of good over evil. The Sword and the Circle and the other two books in the trilogy truly deserve a place all their own among those stories about the knights of the round table. Reading through it page by page, I truly felt drawn into a dim and room, lit by a crackling fire while the wind howled outside, listening to the voice of an excellent story-teller speak of a bygone age and long-dead heroes.

The Sword and the Circle is a great book about King Arthur and his Knights of the Round Table. The story begins with how Arthur actually became king. The story then continues on with adventures of Arthur and how he assembles his Knights of the Round Table. The book tells about the many quests of Arthur, his knights, Guenever, and Merlin, the magician. During the story Arthur adds many knights to his group, but none stand out more than Gawain and Lanccelot. I enjoyed this book and thought it was very well-written. This book is very exciting and full of adventure. I had a hard time putting this book down because it told so much about the journeys of the knights, such as the mystery between Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. The book was also quite interesting and gave adequate information and detail without having excessive writing. This book kept me interested because it was so in depth and full of fascinating information, such as the feelings Sir Lancelot was forced to hide from others. The only negative aspect about the book was that it jumped around between characters. I had a little difficulty following what each character was doing, so I had to look back in the book to see what was happening. I would definitely recommend this book because it is an epic story of adventure that people of all ages would enjoy.

The book "The Sword and the Circle," is about King Arthur and his knights of the Round Table. King Arthur is a young man who was crowned King of Britain at an early age. He is a brown haired boy with a slight build, who became king at age 15. He is a king and courteous perosn. He was given the Round Table and 100 good-trained kinghts as a gift from Queen Guenevere's father. This book is mainly about King Arthur and his knights. It is based on the stories of the adventures the kinghts go on. Every chapter is a different adventure for a different person in the story, but all the small chapters are connected by being part of the "brotherhood," the "knights and King Arthur." I thought one very interesting part was when King Arthur went out on his own adventure and was challeneged for a jousting by a knight. King Arthur could not defeat the knight, so the knight gave the High King a chance to live. The deal was if King Arthur could find the answer to a riddle, by the next year, then he would live, but if he did not find the correct answer, he would die. I really enjoyed reading this book because it was very exciting, and it was hard to put the book down. I thought the characters in the book were really admirable. They were fun, and their personalities made the book thrilling. I found the story magnificent because the charaters were always going on exciting adventures. They would always come back to King Arthur's Court and share their story with everyone. It was fascinating to learn that King Arthur invited strangers into his castle. He trusted everyone, and anyone that needed shelter was invited to come into the castle. In conclusion, I really enjoyed this book and I think anyone would if they like adventures. It was a great book!

I am teaching Sutcliff's The Sword and the Circle to a 7th grade class. I do find the descriptive language incredibly beautiful, and I like how thorough the collection is. However, I'm finding that this book is entirely too difficult for my 7th graders (and they are a bright bunch of kids). I'm frustrated that this book is marketed to such a young audience, because I think it would be more appropriate for high schoolers and for adults. (The Sword and the Circle in the 5th grade?! I'm glad I'm not teaching that class!)

Does anyone know of a collection of Arthurian legends that is well written, but more appropriate for a younger audience? I want my kids to get excited about legends, not to find them grueling and tedious.

I don't know why everyone keep complaining about how confusing this book is, and how there are too many names or the adventures are all the same.
First of all, people did have names in the story, and there are more than two knights at the Round Table. In fact, there are 150, so occasionally, other knights MUST pop up in the story,and it's wise that they have names.
As for the adventures, I can't agree less. Each adventure is so skillfully written in this book, you are immediatly pulled in.
And each character is wonderfully brought to life from there less-described first days in La Morte D'Arthur, where you only had a few descriptions to go on.
Sutcliff expounds on those and more, and leaves you with memorable, believable characters, my especial favorites being the boisterous and hot-tempered Sir Gawaine, his handsome and noble brother Gareth and Merlin, who, instead of sounding corny and magical, just sounds like a very wise man who knows of the days to come.
Awesome variety of selections from the orginal King Arthur book(s), inlcuding the classics like Sir Gawaine and the Green Knight, Gawaine and the Loathly Lady (a humorous retelling), and my favorite: Beaumains, the Kitchen Knight.
All great stuff! However, if you are not into King Arthur, and you just picked this up because you're bored, I'm not sure how well you'll enjoy it. Obviously, the Round Table and King Arthur are a big part of this book, and since I notice a large number of people on here only read it and nothing else, it pays to read other King Arthur books as well as this one, to give you a bigger picture, and better appreciation for this fantastic retelling of the first 10 or so years of Arthur's reign.

This is a good book about the adventures of King Arthur and his knights and I enjoyed the history about Merlin's birth and childhood. I think that some of the stories are a litle short but do not leave you feeling incomplete. This book was not hard to read or to understand and there were very few boring parts. I think this is an interesting book about King Arthur and his knights and is a good book for ages 10 and up.

The Sword and the Circle is a well written retelling of the legend of King Arthur. Rosemary Sutcliff's writing flows gracefully, and she skillfully describes the scenes in this book. I could vividly picture them in my mind and watch them unfold as I read through the book. It is very satisfying for someone who understands the vocabulary she uses.

Sutcliff nicely fits together the classic adventures of King Arthur and his knights in her book. Each of the chapters seems to have a small plot of its own, each being an adventure of one of The Knights of the Round Table and tied into the legend of King Arthur. The book begins with Arthur's finding of the sword in the stone and becoming king at the age of fifteen. Sutcliff tells of the early years and formation of Arthur's kingdom, and how the round table passed into his keeping. Her book progresses into the many adventures of the knights who sit at that table, and of the lords and ladies of King Arthur's hall.

Some people may say that the book is redundant, or that it is simply the same all the way through, but I though that each of the chapters is distinct, yet following the rest of the book. I highly enjoyed this book, and I thought Sutcliff's writing was beautiful, but I would not recommend it to anyone who can't stand a book that isn't rapid and action oriented.

I went through a stage where I was reading everything King Arthury and I of course read this. I really loved that Sutcliff managed to mesh the true historical Arthur with the mythological one. She kept the magic but put his feet on the ground. A lovely story. I particularly loved Gawain and the Loathly Lady.

I would highly recommend this for reading in Grades 5 - 7 for an inspiring introduction to the King Arthur legend. Works better being read in class, and gone through together as a group with a teacher, than for a kid to read on his or her own.

Sutcliffe captures the pagan spirit of the legends with her mention of the "dark arts" and "Lordly Ones" in a compelling way. She is historically accurate as well so the text works fine in tandem with a history class in which chivalric culture of early middle ages is being taught.

Sutcliffe does have her wordy moments and her breathless "and so it was ..." turns of phrase - oh, editor, could you not have snapped those up a bit? - but by and large her language is vivid and the stories come to life, particulary the Sir Gawain and the Green Knight and Loathly Lady tales, and her take on Merlin as a yellow-eyed shape-shifter, son of a "fallen angel."

The sword and the circle

The sword and the circle is about a young knight that finds out he is the true king of Brittan when he pulls a magical sword out of a enchanted stone in the capitol of Britons church
His name was Aurther and he was loved by most of his people, his aunt thought that her son should be the rightful heir and she tried throughout the first years of Aurther kingship to take the throne
When Aurther marries the beautiful Guinevere he comes into the possession of the round table, a table that has magical powers and has places set for each night that is worthy of king Aurther court
The tale of king Aurther is full of magic, mystery, and adventure.