20th Century Arthurian Literature

[angharadJones]

Hi! I wonder if you can help me?
I am researching the possibility of doing my English Literature dissertation on Arthurian Literature of the 20th century (not sure yet which angle to take on it- we'll se.)
Anyway, I need to read some decent well-respected Arthurian literature from any point between the late 19th century and the present day.
I'm not really interested in what is neccessarily a 'good read', because this isn't for fun! But any texts with interesting takes on the Arthurian Legends, any original viewpoints or emphasis on different areas of the myths- that kind of thing- would be very interesting to me.
I also need the texts to have some definate roots in 'real' arthurian myth, unlike some stories that simply hijack the names and then make up their own story.
Pease help me if you can, I would be very grateful, thank you!

angharad

[Perpetual Man]

As you can imagine there are loads! And quite a lot of them have been good.

Perhaps the most famous one would have to be T H White's The Once and Future King. In principle a childrens book, but sets up so many elements that have been used since.

A more modern and very popular one was The Mists of Avalon by Marion Zimmer Bradley, told from the persepctive of the women. A lot better than the mini series made based on it

Mary Stewart wrote a very good series - The Crystal Cave, The Hollow Hills, The Last Enchantment and That Wicked Day

Gillian Bradshaw did a trilogy starting with The Hawk of Summer

And for something very different there is In A Pig's Ear by Paul Bryers, a reinterpretation of the old tales set in the modern world.

Hope that's enough to get you started with and I'm sure there will be plenty of other recommendations

[iansales]

Grail of Hearts by Susan Shwarz is an interesting take on the Matter of Britain. There's also the graphic novel Camelot 3000. And didn't Bernard Cornwell write a historical trilogy about Arthur?

[Perpetual Man]

Originally Posted by iansales

Grail of Hearts by Susan Shwarz is an interesting take on the Matter of Britain. There's also the graphic novel Camelot 3000. And didn't Bernard Cornwell write a historical trilogy about Arthur?

Well remembered I forgot to mention the Bernard Cornwell series, The Winter King is the first one...

[Rane Longfox]

I would suggest searching the forums... you come up with stuff like this, which I hope is useful: http://www.chronicles-network.com/fo...an-legend.html

[SpaceShip]

Welcome to the Chronicles angharad. Hope you find what you're looking for. There's quite a bit of stuff on this site relating to Arthur and lots of members who know either about him or how you can search. Good luck.

[Nesacat]

A couple more to add to the list:
Stephen Lawhead's Pendragon cycle:
Taliesin
Merlin
Arthur
Pendragon
Grail
Avalon

Helen Hollick's Pendragon's Banner trilogy:
The Kingmaking
Pendragon's Banner
The Shadow of the King

Rosalind Miles' Guenevere trilogy
Guenevere, Queen of the Summer Country
The Knight of the Sacred Lake
The Child of the Holy Grail

[Perpetual Man]

[quote=Nesacat;753632]A couple more to add to the list:
Stephen Lawhead's Pendragon cycle:
Taliesin
Merlin
Arthur
Pendragon
Grail
Avalon

Why is it whenever you make a list you always forget some? I loved Lawhead's take on Arthur and still neglected it when I did mine...

There is also The Blind Knight by Gail Van Asten - not exactly Arthur, but continues the story and fits nicely with the ongoing themes

[elvet]

Another modern take on the legend is a series by Molly Cochran - The Broken Sword, The Forever King, World Without End and The Third Magic.

[Valko]

I seem to remember a similar question being asked last week?

[Gav]

I take this is one of those forum "bogie" questions?

I hear Bernard Cromwell's books are not bad as well - though I've never read them myself.

[angharadJones]

Thanks very much, you've given me a lot of very useful-sounding stuff!!

Sorry if there was a similar question last week, I only just joined, so I wasn't around last week. And sorry if it's a 'bogie' question, what ever that may be!

Anyway, thank you very much for all your kind help *smile and hug*

[sanityassassin]

A very different take on it could be David Gemmell's Ghost King but this is more fantasy and showing a renamed Arthur growing up from a scared boy to the man he became

[beenorthern]

For something a little earlier than Bradley or Cornwell: *A Sword At Sunset* by Rosemary Sutcliff ... late 50's or early 60's.

And for something really off the wall: *Port Eternity* by C.J. Cherryh -- SF based on the Arthurian cycle.