(1) YA This spirited, intelligent mashup of Arthuriana puts Morgan Le Fay -- now Ancient Crone, cheerfully saggy-bosomed and thin-haired -- and her granddaughter, Young Hag, at the center of a fresh new story. At her ceremonial naming with her mother and grandmother, Young Hag learns from Ancient Crone that the ways between Faerie and the human world have been severed and that it is their task to return the broken sword Excalibur to Avalon to mend that rupture. As they traverse the wild countryside, Young Hag learns through Taliesin the bard and Ancient Crone just how King Arthur, Merlin, magic, and the land ended up in this predicament. When Ancient Crone disappears and Young Hag's recently met traveling companion, Tom, is magically ensnared, Young Hag is on her own, piecing together stories, "fragments, questions, faces, threads all gathering, and me at the heart" -- to bring all to a new beginning. Greenberg's drawing style is comic but has a skillfully naive, seemingly unpracticed quality that enhances the protagonist's poignant, youthful courage. Epic tragedy and grave betrayals are conveyed with a light touch, while Young Hag's arduous personal growth and development have a heartwarming gravitas. "It takes a whole life to come of age," says Ancient Crone -- robust words of wisdom for any reader. Greenberg's play with her sources -- medieval Arthuriana, Edmund Spenser's Britomart (here wonderfully queer and pink-haired), Christina Rosetti's "Goblin Market" -- has satisfying imaginative and critical depth.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2024

(2) YA Illustrated by Chris Riddell. Crossley-Holland (the Arthur Trilogy, including The Seeing Stone, rev. 11/01) presents a retelling of several Arthurian stories and parts of Thomas Malory's sweeping Morte d'Arthur. He has shaped his work "to tell one story illustrating each stage of Arthur's dream and the idea behind it... Each tale springs from a strong moral sense of what's right, what's wrong, and how we're all part of it." Readers will find the arc of Arthur's childhood, his dream of the Round Table and its shattered fallout, and his death at his son's hand. Crossley-Holland doesn't shy away from tales that are difficult, perhaps even off-putting to our current sensibilities (the story of Erec and Enide springs to mind) or from the strange, stark Christian images--such as the Holy Grail and the Fisher King--of the knights' quests. The volume is all the more challenging and thought-provoking for it. His attentiveness to the natural world and his clear, jewel-like language are counterpointed by Riddell's abundant illustrations, which rather than idealizing scenes offer vague, untidy landscapes and dwell on the blood, horror, and grotesquerie of men wounding one another. While Riddell's depicted women tend toward the willowy, his knights, with their stubble, unkempt hair, and mobile facial features, have a spotty, irregular realism that brings them into our world of imperfections.

Reviewer: Deirdre F. Baker | Horn Book Magazine Issue: July, 2023

(3) 4-6 Mice of the Round Table series. In this third entry, Calib, a mouse of Camelot aspiring toward knighthood, and his human friend, Galahad, are lured into Morgan's underwater lair. There they build allies and discover magical secrets. In a bittersweet ending, the magic of the famous sword, grail, and mirror all come together--but Camelot falls; Arthur and Galahad depart for Avalon; and Calib, rewardingly, is left to help lead the new era.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(2) 1-3 After Sir Erec lies about slaying forty dragons to King Arthur, Merlin, and fellow Knights of the Round Table, he's sent into the past to face off against angry dinosaurs. Playing fast and loose with anachronisms, Phelan crafts a lighthearted romp with an engaging cast of characters. Pen-and-ink illustrations and intermittent comic-style sequential art bring swordplay to the forefront and keep the tone light enough for the book's young audience.

Reviewer: Eric Carpenter | Horn Book Magazine Issue: September, 2018

(2) YA Illustrated by Andrea Offermann. This graphic-novel retelling of a twelfth-century epic poem about young knight-errant Sir Yvain's marriage to widow Lady Laudine puts as much emphasis on Laudine's sorrow as on Yvain's adventures. It's a tempestuous counter-story that challenges perceived notions of love by examining women's roles in relationships and society. Anderson's spare narration is set against Offermann's muted tones, detailed panels, sweeping spreads, and turbulent motifs.

Reviewer: Roxanne Hsu Feldman | Horn Book Magazine Issue: March, 2017

(3) 4-6 Illustrated by Dave Phillips. Nosewise, wizard Merlin's eager dog, narrates this tale about magic, Fae, and the legendary Sword in the Stone. Nosewise loyally attends Merlin's magic lessons for apprentice Morgana, so this dog knows more than the usual canine tricks. When Merlin is kidnapped by Fae, Nosewise leaps to the rescue (with help from young Arthur). Humor and action dominate this lively middle-grade take on the legend.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(4) 4-6 A diverse group of misfits--Madge, Joe, Kiku, and Walter--unite at the Metropolitan Museum of Art to stop a Nazi plot as the U.S. teeters on the brink of WWII. While discovering clues connected to Arthurian legend that could help foil the Nazis, the kids each develop magical gifts, which tests their loyalty to one another. History and mythology collide a bit awkwardly in an otherwise engaging spy quest.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(3) 4-6 Mice of the Round Table series. Illustrated by Lindsay Carr. Still recovering from a Saxon attack (A Tail of Camelot), Camelot suddenly falls to a mysterious illness. As young mice Calib and Cecily set out on a voyage to find help, Lancelot's son Galahad seeks a cure within the fortress. Working together, the mice and their "two-legged" partners again triumph. Leung's lively retellings of Arthurian lore feature earnestly cheerful animals and children.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(3) 4-6 Mice of the Round Table series. Calib, a small mouse with aspirations for knighthood, and Galahad, Lancelot's son, heal old rifts, build new alliances, and reveal secret conspiracies in order to unite the forces of Camelot (both four-legged and two-legged) against Saxon invaders. Characters (especially mice) are well drawn, and the many political relationships complex. Leung weaves Arthurian legend with elements of Jacques's Redwall books in this winning series-starter.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(3) 1-3 Magic Tree House series. Illustrated by Sal Murdocca. This time it's Guinevere, not Merlin, who summons Jack and Annie to Camelot. They must solve a riddle, trick a band of robbers, and find a missing dragon, all to save the gravely wounded King Arthur. Another magical adventure in the popular series, this highly readable and exciting narrative is ably accompanied by numerous black-and-white illustrations.

Reviewer: Rita Soltan

(4) 4-6 Complicated alliances and feuds paired with mythologies both original and Arthurian make this third time-slip novel (The Eighth Day; The Inquisitor's Mark) challenging to navigate. Thirteen-year-old "Transitioner" Jax works with sisters Addie and Evangeline to defeat the Kin, defend everyone against the Morrigan, and cope with powerful ancient treasures. Salerni satisfyingly ties up most loose ends but leaves room for more sequels.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(4) 4-6 Long-lost relatives kidnap one of Jax's friends and threaten his loyalties to both his mentor and liege lady. In her loosely Arthurian, time-slip fantasy world, Salerni provocatively presents an eighth day in each week that only the select ("Transitioners") can experience and use, but too many characters with myriad complications muddle the clever premise in this sequel to The Eighth Day.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(4) 4-6 Otherworld Chronicles series. This trilogy-ender sees King Arthur reincarnation Artie and friends search for the Holy Grail amid dragons and other fantastic beasts. The parallel-realm-via-video-game conceit lets them jump back and forth between worlds to learn secrets of their pasts. It adds up to a lot going on, but series fans who love action may find all the threads worth following.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(4) YA Shadow Grail series. In this series conclusion, Spirit White and her friends discover that they are reincarnated Arthurian knights and ladies (Spirit is Guinevere); acquire powerful magical weapons; and enlist former Oakhurst Academy students in order to defeat medieval villain Mordred. The mythology element becomes increasingly tedious, but the book culminates in a classic good-versus-evil battle, with Spirit courageously leading the fight.

Reviewer: Rachel L. Smith

(3) 4-6 Jax's discovery that he is a "Transitioner"--someone who involuntarily moves once a week between the timeline of the regular world and an alternate eight-day-week timeline--opens up a realm of secret powers, alliances, and responsibilities that stretch back to the days of King Arthur. Jax's confusion as he struggles to discern friend from foe is tangible in this original, complex adventure novel.

Reviewer: Megan Lynn Isaac

(4) 4-6 Otherworld Chronicles series. The contemporary science fiction take on Arthurian legend continues as Artie rescues Qwon from Morgaine's clutches, and new information comes to light about his own unusual origins. Omniscient narration provides welcome various perspectives on the scenes, but the heady combination of genetic experimentation, video-game magic, and medieval mythology makes it crucial that the series be read in sequence.

Reviewer: Shoshana Flax

(4) 4-6 In this retelling, Merlin gathers teenagers to form a new group of knights, here to pilot spacecraft to fight alien invaders. Reluctant Ben must look within himself to become the hero he's destined to be. An entertaining (if odd) mixture of Arthurian legend and science fiction, fans of Ender's Game will eat up the well-worn kids-saving-the-day trope.

Reviewer: Antonio Trujillo

(4) 4-6 Otherworld Chronicles series. Twelve-year-old Artie Kingfisher discovers through his favorite video game that he is a reincarnation of King Arthur. Contacted by Merlin, he joins a quest through a parallel world to find Excalibur. The action is slow to start and video game fans may be put off by the lack of verisimilitude, but fans of myth-inspired adventures will devour this tale.

Reviewer: Natasha Gilmore

(4) 1-3 Knights' Tales series. Illustrated by Aaron Renier. This fourth installment focuses on the adventures of Sir Balin, chronicling his deeds during the time of King Arthur's Round Table. Younger readers who don't mind the forced humor will appreciate the whimsical text and frequent black-and-white illustrations. Under the whimsy, this is a discussion on fate versus free will.

Reviewer: Antonio Trujillo

(4) YA Contemporary teen Lizzy Mortimer and her grandmother Bizzy, descendants of Morgan le Faye, have the ability to see death-specters of their loved ones. The tale's weaving in of Arthurian mythos is well done. Other plot twists seem superfluous, as does the book's framing device (the story is Lizzy's letter to her English teacher explaining why she should pass the class).

Reviewer: Jenn Matters