Tuesday, October 19, 2010

Currently Reading: The Once and Future King by T.H. White

The supremely kind children's librarians at the Lawson-McGhee library dredged a copy of T.H. White's The Once and Future King out of the archives for me to read.

I have no idea why this Arthurian epic is buried in Knox County's archives, when fantasies like The Hobbit and Dune continue to circulate vigorously. The Once and Future King seems almost to have been lost to history, even though it's thorough, funny, philosophical, and engrossing. I love the tale of Arthur's struggle to do good: "Why can't you harness Might so that it works for Right?" And I'm fascinated by T.H. White's portrayal of Arthur's queen, Guinevere: "She was pretty Jenny, who could think and feel."

More people should read this book.

1 comment:

Barbara Flynn said...

I have mixed up E.B. White with T.H. White but found their bios with Google help..
The Once and Future King has been made into various movies, in parts and in whole. Somehow I have missed all of them.
Sounds like very good reading. I'd like to put it on my list. Enjoy.
Love from BJF