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18 of 19 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
A sheer delight of Arthuriana from a woman's view,
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This review is from: The Three Damosels (Paperback)
This is a magnificent book. I read the English edition (pub. 1978) and couldn't get enough of it. There are three novels in here, each retelling an aspect of the Arthurian legends from the perspective of one of the female participants. "The Green Knight" and "King Arthur's Daughter" are both excellent stories, but it was "The King's Damosel" that really blew me away. Here is a re-telling of, and riff on, the tale of Gareth Beaumains, in which he is harangued by one sister and rescues another and marries. But what of this second sister, Lynett? Why did she have such an acid tongue? And what became of her? This tale goes far to answer this and, more importantly, gives a strong female character to the legends. Amazingly, she is not a witch, a queen, or a woman-hiding-as-knight. Instead, she is a messenger, one who loyal serves King Arthur, yet constantly stands against the limited role for women in society and the assumptions laid upon them. Like so many books I have read since MZB, this is what "Mists of Avalon" wanted to be, but failed to produce, a true melding of the legends with a femnist slant, one that is not discordanant, but rather is an improvement upon the old tales well told. If you can find this book, read it. |
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The Three Damosels by Vera Chapman (Hardcover - November 14, 1996)
Used & New from: $30.46
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