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King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
Aided by the magician Merlin, Arthur draws the sword from the stone to become King of Britain, and Lord of the Knights of the Round Table. Read of their valiant deeds as King Arthur, Sir Lancelot, Sir Galahad and other heroic knights rescue maidens, defend Excalibur and search for the Grail.Please ask if you need a specific version. The data provided here may not be correct. With buying and not asking you are accepting the book as is.
32 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1996
3 people are currently reading
135 people want to read
About the author
Marcia Williams
141 books48 followersMarcia Williams began to develop her distinctive comic-book style at an early age: "When I was about ten and wrote home to my family from boarding school," she says, "I never wrote normal letters. I tried to tell my family about what I was doing in a way that was more fun. Also, my parents didn't let me read comic books, so I decided to create my own."
This former nursery school teacher blends her storytelling skills and humorous illustrations with well-known figures and stories from literature. Her unique style has produced such vivid works and action-packed books as GOD AND HIS CREATIONS: TALES FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT. "Working on the Old Testament was a joy," Marcia Williams says. "The tales are so rich, it is always possible to find something new within them. Yet, at the same time, they have all the comfort of the familiar." The artist also found pleasure in creating CHARLES DICKENS AND FRIENDS, which presents five retellings of classic Dickens tales. Of her inspiration for this book, she tells of a teacher she once had "who was extremely fierce and angry . . . except when she read the stories of Charles Dickens aloud. Through her, all his characters lived, and I was transported to their Victorian world. I hope that readers will also enter the wonderful world of Charles Dickens through this book."
With BRAVO, MR. WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE! and TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE Marcia Williams introduces young readers to the world of William Shakespeare's plays. Another classic she has made much more accessible to children--and more appreciated by them--is THE ILIAD AND THE ODYSSEY. "My mother read me classics, but until I got older I never found them interesting," she says. "If I could make these stories more accessible, I realized, kids wouldn't have to wait until they were grown-up to appreciate them."
Marcia Williams traveled extensively as a child and was educated in Sussex, England, and Switzerland. During her varied career she has worked as an interior designer and has assisted cartoon artist and designer Gerald Scarfe in making papier-mâché and cloth sculptures.
This former nursery school teacher blends her storytelling skills and humorous illustrations with well-known figures and stories from literature. Her unique style has produced such vivid works and action-packed books as GOD AND HIS CREATIONS: TALES FROM THE OLD TESTAMENT. "Working on the Old Testament was a joy," Marcia Williams says. "The tales are so rich, it is always possible to find something new within them. Yet, at the same time, they have all the comfort of the familiar." The artist also found pleasure in creating CHARLES DICKENS AND FRIENDS, which presents five retellings of classic Dickens tales. Of her inspiration for this book, she tells of a teacher she once had "who was extremely fierce and angry . . . except when she read the stories of Charles Dickens aloud. Through her, all his characters lived, and I was transported to their Victorian world. I hope that readers will also enter the wonderful world of Charles Dickens through this book."
With BRAVO, MR. WILLIAM SHAKESPEARE! and TALES FROM SHAKESPEARE Marcia Williams introduces young readers to the world of William Shakespeare's plays. Another classic she has made much more accessible to children--and more appreciated by them--is THE ILIAD AND THE ODYSSEY. "My mother read me classics, but until I got older I never found them interesting," she says. "If I could make these stories more accessible, I realized, kids wouldn't have to wait until they were grown-up to appreciate them."
Marcia Williams traveled extensively as a child and was educated in Sussex, England, and Switzerland. During her varied career she has worked as an interior designer and has assisted cartoon artist and designer Gerald Scarfe in making papier-mâché and cloth sculptures.
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Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews
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August 6, 2020Cute picture book with fun pictures, silly heraldry, and an easy-to-understand (and very PG) version of the King Arthur tales. A super easy read for an adult but probably a fun book for kids? I loved it.
May 21, 2019
3.5-4 stars. Enjoyable. Long. Well done cameos on each significant character in the King Arthur Stories.
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March 1, 2016Title: King Arthur and the Knights of the Roundtable
Author: Marcia Williams
Illustrator: Marcia Williams
Genre: Legend
Theme(s): Folklore, King Arthur, Knights/Kingthood, Roundtable
Opening line/sentence: “Long ago, when forests were still enchanted a warrior-king names Uther Pendragon ruled Britain.”
Brief Book Summary: This book, written in a large cartoon format, introduces the stories of King Arthur and the different knights of the roundtable. There are many speech bubbles and captions that work together to create jokes and humor throughout the story. This book is a great way to introduce these legends.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1: Carolyn Phelan (Booklist, April 15, 1996 (Vol. 92, No. 16)) This large-format book offers a brief, narrative adaptation of several Arthurian legends, illustrated with panels of brightly colored, cartoon-like illustrations that incorporate off-hand comments by the characters. Simplified retellings incorporate such familiar material as the sword and the stone, the treachery of Morgan Le Fay, and the knights' quests for the Holy Grail. The artwork features many ink drawings with watercolor washes in bright, heraldic colors. Intricate borders give the pages a medieval flavor. Putting the Arthurian lore into comic book format has its perils. The text plays it straight, but illustrations sometimes seem out of sync in their comic exaggeration of the characters' features, movements, and lighthearted quips. When Lancelot returns to court after the death of Elaine, the text reads, "It was with a heavy heart that Sir Lancelot took his seat again at the Round Table . . . ," while in the artwork, three ladies of the court look in through a window, their lips puckered, and one calls out, "Yoo-hoo! Lancey!" It's not for every taste, but some children may enjoy this lighthearted introduction to the tales. Category: Middle Readers. 1996, Candlewick, $17.99. Gr. 2-4.
(PUBLISHER: Candlewick Press (Cambridge Mass.:), PUBLISHED: 1996.)
Professional Recommendation/Review #2: Deborah Stevenson (The Bulletin of the Center for Children s Books, March 1996 (Vol. 49, No. 7))
Readers familiar with Williams' comic-strip treatment of other classic subjects (Greek myths, BCCB 11/92, and Robin Hood, 5/95) will recognize the format here: oversized pages with panel cartoons in various sizes, straightforward narrative appearing in captions underneath and humorous dialogue spoken by the characters within. This version distills and selects from the variety of Arthurian tales extant: there's no Mordred and no actual indiscretion between Lancelot and Guinevere, but there's the sword in the stone, the round table, and a whole lot of grail quest. The last is somewhat problematic, as its mystical point doesn't translate well to this format and the recounting seems a bit hasty (we never know, for instance, what happened to Lancelot in the end); the compositions also tip too often from the lively into the confusing. It's still an amiable and breezily told introduction to a durable legend, with adventure, broad comedy, and atmosphere aplenty (there are some particularly rousing dragons); kids just beginning to quest for Arthur will enjoy sharpening their swords on it. Ad--Additional book of acceptable quality for collections needing more material in the area. Reviewed from galleys (c) Copyright 1996, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 1996, Candlewick, 26p, $17.99. Grades 2-6.
(PUBLISHER: Candlewick Press (Cambridge Mass.:), PUBLISHED: 1996.)
Response to Two Professional Reviews: Something that both reviews mentioned is that this book may not be for everyone. For the main content yes, but also for the format. This book is done in a cartoon, almost comic book style. This makes it easy to follow along with each short story, but also a bit challenging to read correctly as a new reader.
Evaluation of Literary Elements: The way that his book was written and formatted (in a cartoon like format) works well with these stories. It’s almost like the author/illustrator was turning them into small little jokes. The information and the images on the page like up, and there is often more text such as captions and speech bubbles. These are all good ways to help introduce students to “non-fiction” captions.
Consideration of Instructional Application: I think I would just have this book available in my classroom library. As the format is a cartoon, it would be a bit challenging to read this aloud. Also, not every student might be interested in this content for a legend. Leaving this a book box in a 2nd through 5th grade room to allow for a student to pick up and read would be the most beneficial application of this boom in the classroom.
6. Fable
Author: Marcia Williams
Illustrator: Marcia Williams
Genre: Legend
Theme(s): Folklore, King Arthur, Knights/Kingthood, Roundtable
Opening line/sentence: “Long ago, when forests were still enchanted a warrior-king names Uther Pendragon ruled Britain.”
Brief Book Summary: This book, written in a large cartoon format, introduces the stories of King Arthur and the different knights of the roundtable. There are many speech bubbles and captions that work together to create jokes and humor throughout the story. This book is a great way to introduce these legends.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1: Carolyn Phelan (Booklist, April 15, 1996 (Vol. 92, No. 16)) This large-format book offers a brief, narrative adaptation of several Arthurian legends, illustrated with panels of brightly colored, cartoon-like illustrations that incorporate off-hand comments by the characters. Simplified retellings incorporate such familiar material as the sword and the stone, the treachery of Morgan Le Fay, and the knights' quests for the Holy Grail. The artwork features many ink drawings with watercolor washes in bright, heraldic colors. Intricate borders give the pages a medieval flavor. Putting the Arthurian lore into comic book format has its perils. The text plays it straight, but illustrations sometimes seem out of sync in their comic exaggeration of the characters' features, movements, and lighthearted quips. When Lancelot returns to court after the death of Elaine, the text reads, "It was with a heavy heart that Sir Lancelot took his seat again at the Round Table . . . ," while in the artwork, three ladies of the court look in through a window, their lips puckered, and one calls out, "Yoo-hoo! Lancey!" It's not for every taste, but some children may enjoy this lighthearted introduction to the tales. Category: Middle Readers. 1996, Candlewick, $17.99. Gr. 2-4.
(PUBLISHER: Candlewick Press (Cambridge Mass.:), PUBLISHED: 1996.)
Professional Recommendation/Review #2: Deborah Stevenson (The Bulletin of the Center for Children s Books, March 1996 (Vol. 49, No. 7))
Readers familiar with Williams' comic-strip treatment of other classic subjects (Greek myths, BCCB 11/92, and Robin Hood, 5/95) will recognize the format here: oversized pages with panel cartoons in various sizes, straightforward narrative appearing in captions underneath and humorous dialogue spoken by the characters within. This version distills and selects from the variety of Arthurian tales extant: there's no Mordred and no actual indiscretion between Lancelot and Guinevere, but there's the sword in the stone, the round table, and a whole lot of grail quest. The last is somewhat problematic, as its mystical point doesn't translate well to this format and the recounting seems a bit hasty (we never know, for instance, what happened to Lancelot in the end); the compositions also tip too often from the lively into the confusing. It's still an amiable and breezily told introduction to a durable legend, with adventure, broad comedy, and atmosphere aplenty (there are some particularly rousing dragons); kids just beginning to quest for Arthur will enjoy sharpening their swords on it. Ad--Additional book of acceptable quality for collections needing more material in the area. Reviewed from galleys (c) Copyright 1996, The Board of Trustees of the University of Illinois. 1996, Candlewick, 26p, $17.99. Grades 2-6.
(PUBLISHER: Candlewick Press (Cambridge Mass.:), PUBLISHED: 1996.)
Response to Two Professional Reviews: Something that both reviews mentioned is that this book may not be for everyone. For the main content yes, but also for the format. This book is done in a cartoon, almost comic book style. This makes it easy to follow along with each short story, but also a bit challenging to read correctly as a new reader.
Evaluation of Literary Elements: The way that his book was written and formatted (in a cartoon like format) works well with these stories. It’s almost like the author/illustrator was turning them into small little jokes. The information and the images on the page like up, and there is often more text such as captions and speech bubbles. These are all good ways to help introduce students to “non-fiction” captions.
Consideration of Instructional Application: I think I would just have this book available in my classroom library. As the format is a cartoon, it would be a bit challenging to read this aloud. Also, not every student might be interested in this content for a legend. Leaving this a book box in a 2nd through 5th grade room to allow for a student to pick up and read would be the most beneficial application of this boom in the classroom.
6. Fable
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November 6, 2016Title (italicize): King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table
Author: Marcia Williams
Illustrator (if separate from author):
Genre: Legend & Epic
Theme(s): Camelot, swords, magic
Opening line/sentence (type directly from text): “Long ago when forests were still enchanted, a warrior-king named Uther Pendragon ruled Britain.”
Brief Book Summary (2-3 sentences in your own words): This book tells the adventures of King Arthur and Knights. The book uses a comic format with lots of illustrations to help make it more relatable for children.
Professional Recommendation/Review #1 (cut & paste): Publishers Weekly March 3, 1996
Though the text is a straightforward abridged retelling, King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table by Marcia Williams stands out for its wacky, detailed panel art, featuring irreverent commentary and more than a few offhand remarks from some legendary and not-so-legendary Arthurian characters. (Candlewick, $17.99 32p ages 7-12 ISBN 1-56402-802-X Mar.)
Professional Recommendation/Review #2 (cut & paste): Carolyn Phelan (Booklist, April 15, 1996 (Vol. 92, No. 16)) This large-format book offers a brief, narrative adaptation of several Arthurian legends, illustrated with panels of brightly colored, cartoon-like illustrations that incorporate off-hand comments by the characters. Simplified retellings incorporate such familiar material as the sword and the stone, the treachery of Morgan Le Fay, and the knights' quests for the Holy Grail. The artwork features many ink drawings with watercolor washes in bright, heraldic colors. Intricate borders give the pages a medieval flavor. Putting the Arthurian lore into comic book format has its perils. The text plays it straight, but illustrations sometimes seem out of sync in their comic exaggeration of the characters' features, movements, and lighthearted quips. When Lancelot returns to court after the death of Elaine, the text reads, "It was with a heavy heart that Sir Lancelot took his seat again at the Round Table . . . ," while in the artwork, three ladies of the court look in through a window, their lips puckered, and one calls out, "Yoo-hoo! Lancey!" It's not for every taste, but some children may enjoy this lighthearted introduction to the tales. Category: Middle Readers. 1996, Candlewick, $17.99. Gr. 2-4.
Response to Two Professional Reviews (3-4 sentences in your own words): These reviews both talk about how important the pictures and format of this story is. The pictures take up a majority of the book and are bright and bold, and add humor for the children reading this story.
Evaluation of Literary Elements (3-4 sentences in your own words): This book is formatted into comic strips almost, with lots of pictures and text for each. The pictures also have speech bubbles, however, those are really small and would be hard to read for young children. This book is an awful lot to look at at one time. Even as an adult reader my eyes were looking at a million other things than the text, so I can only imagine how hard it would be for a young reader to sit down and read/comprehend this story.
Consideration of Instructional Application (3-4 sentences in your own words): I really don’t like this book because I think there is way too much going on for readers to really focus. However, it does introduce the story of King Arthur with text that is kid friendly so if a child was willing to sit down and read it, I would like to give them this book as an option.
October 30, 2013
This story is the classic tale of King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table, who travel on many quests and rescue maidens and defend their honour and kingdom. It is a fun swash buckling tale. I am undecided about my opinion of this book. I gave this book three stars, because it is set out like a comic, with many illustrations and commentary crammed in on one page, which may make it confusing to read. The font is quite small and so is the speech bubbles of the characters. There may be too much commotion on one page for a child to focus on the actual story. Although after a few pages, the title of the page changes to focus on one particular character, so a child could read one characters' story a day. The book is very informative, yet the illustrations are not as good as other children's books. This book would be ideal for a year four class. It could be used in context with a history lesson on King Arthur or to create a discussion/ debate on what life was like in the Medival Times.
May 15, 2009
One of my boys picked this up at the library and I swear they've looked through it close to a hundred times each. I've rarely seen them look through a book this often.
We read this over a week. The illustrations are very cartoonish. The text is clear and a fairly accurate retelling of the tale. There are little cartoon bubble asides throughout most of it and my boys were rolling on the floor laughing.
I take my Arthur pretty seriously so I thought I'd hate this book. I ended up liking it and will probably purchase it for my home library. The story itself is one of the better retellings and if the goofy cartoons catch their attention, so be it. It is a fairly short book though so only the basics are covered. The boy who checked it out told me, "I'm pretty much a serious Arthur fan now. I'm pretty serious about learning more because I really like it." Woohoo.
I did appreciate how the whole Lancelot/Guinevere thing was portrayed as wrong. None of this, "But they truly loved each other so it was okay" garbage. I'd recommend you check this out from the library before you buy it. I'm not sure that everyone would react as favorably as my kids did to this.
We'll have to return it to the library soon. It will be a sad day for my "serious Arthur fan".
We read this over a week. The illustrations are very cartoonish. The text is clear and a fairly accurate retelling of the tale. There are little cartoon bubble asides throughout most of it and my boys were rolling on the floor laughing.
I take my Arthur pretty seriously so I thought I'd hate this book. I ended up liking it and will probably purchase it for my home library. The story itself is one of the better retellings and if the goofy cartoons catch their attention, so be it. It is a fairly short book though so only the basics are covered. The boy who checked it out told me, "I'm pretty much a serious Arthur fan now. I'm pretty serious about learning more because I really like it." Woohoo.
I did appreciate how the whole Lancelot/Guinevere thing was portrayed as wrong. None of this, "But they truly loved each other so it was okay" garbage. I'd recommend you check this out from the library before you buy it. I'm not sure that everyone would react as favorably as my kids did to this.
We'll have to return it to the library soon. It will be a sad day for my "serious Arthur fan".
February 15, 2015
I was pleasantly surprised with this book. I'm no expert on Arthurian legend, but Williams seems to have packed an awful lot of information on few pages, along with humor and context. The pages are almost like a graphic novel with small boxes and text to be able to tell the story briefly. The stories are also not as sanitized as you might expect in a children's picture book, without any salacious detail, obviously.
September 6, 2007
This is my most favorite version of King Arthur.. I tried reading all versions but I fond this one the most interesting.. :)
September 12, 2011
Marcia Williams's illustrated classics really are a perfect primer, a great first-step look at some classic, timeless legends for early-elementary students.
February 18, 2016
My 6 and 8 year olds both loved it and couldn't bare to wait to hear each new story. They were so disappointed when it was done that there wasn't more. So we promptly restarted the book.
October 17, 2024
Most of these stories are plain ludicrous, don't make any sense, or make the characters look like utter idiots.
January 26, 2015
The legend of Arthur, presented in tapestry-style illustrations.
Displaying 1 - 12 of 12 reviews