The legend of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table has fired the imaginations of young and old for centuries. It is the ultimate tale of chivalry and romance, of evil and magic, and of betrayal and revenge. In Arthur, High King of Britain Michael Morpurgo has met the challenge of superbly retelling this great story as it has never been told before.
It begins in our own century, when a half-drowned boy regains consciousness in a strange sea cave and discovers his life has been saved by a man who introduces himself as Arthur Pendragon, High King of Britain. Glad to have company after fourteen hundred years—"beyond the reach of time"—Arthur tells his story as the boy recovers.
After passing the ultimate test of pulling the legendary sword Excalibur from the stone, Arthur sets out to rid the country of cruelty and tyranny and to drive back the Saxon invaders. The finest knights in the kingdom come to his court at Camelot to serve his noble cause, and the beautiful Guinevere agrees to be his queen. The courageous and chivalrous deeds of Sir Launcelot, Sir Gawain, and Sir Percivale, as well as the sad story of the doomed lovers Tristram and Iseult, are poignantly retold by the once great king.
Nothing is more moving, however, than Arthur's own story. Tricked into infidelity by his evil half sister, Morgana Le Fey, he raises their child Mordred, who is to become a deadly enemy. In a final coup de grace, the tragic love affair between Launcelot and Guinevere not only deprives him of the two people he loves most, but also, by dividing loyalties at Camelot, brings about the destruction of all King Arthur has created.
Arthur's story is one of the great epics, and this compelling modern version, vividly illustrated by Michael Foreman, will enthrall every reader.
—from the dust jacket
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