Customer Reviews

The Sword In The Stone

5 star:		(12)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

The Sword in the Stone is a fantastic book to read for several reasons.The first reason is the title, which sounds like an exciting adventure story. As soon as I looked at the cover with a magician and a young boy on it, I knew it wouild be something I would be interested in. The short summary on the inside of the cover told me enough about the story to know that I would read this from end to end. The other thind the summary told me was that the book was about King Arthur, who I've always wanted to read about. I picked out the book and immediately decided that this was something I would read.
The main character is young Arthur. He is a young boy who is typical of young people in his time. He is brave, thoughful of others, and very respectful to his elders. When his tutor, the Magician Merlyn, begins his education, Arthur's curiosity and talent for learning become apparent. Even so, Arthur and his brother, Kay, run and play as normal kids would. Not too much is made of the fact that Arthur is adopted.It would be fair to say that Arthur is shown to be somebody who will grow into greatness but will be perfectly normal getting there.
I really like this book because it is a fast-moving story with a great deal of adventure and magic. Arthur's adventures put him into all kinds of circumstances and problems. In fact, each adventure is a unique hapenning. The way the author weaves adventure and magic into his tales makes the book hard to put down. I especially liked the time when Merlyn turned Arthur into a bird. When Arthur was locked in a box and almost cooked by a witch, I enjoyed how Arthur used a goat as a messenger. This kind of descriptive writing made me feel like I was inside the book. I wouild have to say that this book is an exciting, magical adventure story, which I enjoy greatly.

T.H.White must have published at least three slightly different versions of this story.

When I read the full Once And Future King book a few years ago, there was no Madame Mim episode, there was a buttery version of the fairy castle (Robin Hood) episode, there was an Archimedes/Wild Geese episode, and some other minor changes/additions.
When I read a paperback Sword In The Stone twenty years ago, there was a much nicer non-buttery version of the FairyCastle/RobinHood episode, and I don't think the Giant Galapas episode was there, etc.
Now I've just read the illustrated hardcover Sword In The Stone edition, and the FairyCastle/RobinHood episode is replaced by an Anthropophagi/RobinHood episode, Giant Galapas is there, and the Archimedes/WildGeese isn't (its been replaced by an Archimedes/Athena episode).

Anyone else notice these differences and have an explanation for them?

The Sword in the Stone is the first part of The Once and Future King pentalogy (followed by The Witch in the Wood, The Ill-Made Knight, The Candle in the Wind and The Book of Merlyn).

The Wart is a young orphan boy who lives in the castle of Sir Ector, his foster father. The son of the latter, Kay, is his best friend and model, for one day he will be Sir Kay, the master of the estate.

One day, they decide to go hawking together on the edge of the Forest Sauvage, but they're inexperienced and Cully the hawk flies away. They have no choice but to enter the foreboding woods and go after it. And soon the Wart gets lost. In the forest, he meets with King Pellinore, whose Quest is to catch the Beast Glatisant, and later with Merlyn the Enchanter, who brings him back to the castle and becomes his tutor.

As the Wart gets turned successively into a fish, a merlin, an ant, yet several other species of birds and finally a badger to add to his education, the novel itself sort of turns into a book of natural science, more than an actual fantasy, and not much else happens. The author's tendency to address to the reader is somewhat annoying too, and in general The Sword in the Stone far from lived up to my expectations. Not to mention that you have to wait until the fifth to last page for the Wart to finally remove the actual sword from the stone.

"The Once and Future King" is a delightful series of stories, but this is by far the superior, and first off the rank. It is the story of Wart, a hapless orphan boy, and his adventures once his new tutor Merlin arrives on the scene (some of you may be aware of the Walt Disney animated movie of the same name).

This is real adventure stuff and is appealing to both young readers and grown ups alike. Wat and his friends have all manner of exciting escapades as birds, as fish, and as combatants with witches, and in the background there is all the fanciful goings on of a very disorganised medieval castle.

There are many novels which deal with the Arthurian legend, some well, most tastefully, and some take themselves entirely too seriously. This is just plain good fun and well written too. Enjoy yourself!

The Sword in the Stone is a truly wonderful book. It is the classic story of young King Arthur, but told in greater depth and detail, and filled with wonderful, humorous characters. The tale so many times retold suddenly becomes fresh and original, as T.H. White's stunning narrative sweeps the reader into the world of Midieval England, and makes the old story come alive in a new and delightful way. Never before has anyone been able to make the old characters of Arthur and Merlyn, Sir Ector and King Pellinore come alive in such a real and fantastic way. The story is brought to life, and is better by far then the traditional telling of the tale. White does not only tell the simple story of the sword in the stone- here he tells the story of the boy who pulled it out. He goes back and tells us about the growing up of this boy, that we might better understand why it was he that was meant for this destiny, and what it was that shaped him for this task. And throughout the entire story, the book sparkles with humour, wit and charm, which is all the better because it is told in Old English. There are too many books these days written in modern language, using slang and twentieth century dialect, so the Sword in the Stone is a delightful change of pace. And while the Old English sounds perfectly authentic, it is not overly used, and is never difficult to understand. My nine year old sister understood it perfectly, when I read it to her. All in all, this story is the best retelling of any Arthurian legend that I have ever read. I would encourage anyone who has an interest in King Arthur to read this book.

I'm only in the middle of the book, but it is fantasic! My school teacher is reading the same book and can't put it down. She even reads in the middle of class! This is an amazing book to read and I am so wanting to read more and more every day. It's wonderful and an adventure with every new page. If you are most enterested in King Arthur then read it. It will tell you more then enough info about King Arthur. It is one of T.H.White's most fantasic and fanous story. It was amazing!

I thought that The Sword in the Stone was a good book but was very, very unexciting book. It had a plot line that was uneventful and I lost interest constantly. The book had a good idea behind it but the final result was rushed and in need of detail. The book started out nice and slow describing life in the middle ages but as the middle to the end comes along, the best parts seem to leave as fast as they come. Wart, the main character, was seemed to be too childish for his age and his upbringing. He is constantly making choices that cause the book to loose its charm and originality. Merlin has a certain appeal to him and does not and is not getting the attention and time he disserves. Through out the plot line there was description (a little bit here a little bit there) and they were very good. But you can't make a good book on a couple of good parts. The middle ages theme was great and I thought it gave it some spunk, The author tells mindlessly of every thing of a young boys life in the middle ages. During the book there was some parts that were not rushed -and almost dragged out- but otherwise were not in enough detail for you to get the picture and understand it fully. In conclusion I think that The Sword in the Stone had the right though but was too rushed to its point across.

The Sword in the Stone is about King Arthur, as a boy called Wart, between the ages 10 to 16. Wart grew up in the castle of Sir Ector, with Sir Ector himself, and his son Kay. Wart is taught by the famous wizard known as Merlyn, how to be a man. Merlyn sends Wart on many magnificent and magical adventures, transforming him from one creature to the next and sending him on spectacular journeys and quests all through the land.

The Sword in the Stone was a book that was easy to pick up and get right into, but also easy to put down and feel like you could almost fall asleep if you read one more page. It would change from interesting to dull consistently throughout the book. There were parts that were very detailed, and exciting, but other parts that were very boring, and hard to understand.

The detail was so incredible that as you read you feel as though you are right there with the characters. The details help you to imagine things like Merlyn's blue and gold-starred robe to the exact movement of the sneaky snake as he approaches Wart. The exciting parts of the book tell fantastic fantasy stories that let your imagination run wild. The "Wizard Duel" between Madame Mim and Merlyn goes on for page after page as the two struggle to defeat one another. They use their enchantedpowers and fight for hours on end, until Merlyn thinks of a despising plan, and takes care of Madame Mim once and for all.

There are parts in the book that start to get boring and can lose your attention quickly, but as soon as you are about to put the book down,Merlyn has once again performed his magic, and Wart is experiencing yet another splendid adventure. There was a part where Wart and Robin Hood travel with their army to fight against the Anthropophagi (a wild variety of ferocious beasts). They walk throught the woods for days before reaching their destination. This really bores an interested reader. There were many sections of the books that seemed confusing to me. I didn't understand the part where Merlyn transforms Wart into a bird and Wart flys down to the barn to talk with the other birds and hawks. The birds were talking nonsense words that were very hard to catch on to. I must say though that The Sword in the Stone was very appealing to me, despite the parts that I struggled to understand and read through.

The Sword in the Stone is about a young boy called the Wart and all the interesting things he learns. His tutor, a magician named Merlyn, changes the Wart into many different animals. While he is an animal he learns there are many ways to look at life. He realizes life beyond castle walls is different and harder than most would think. The Wart becomes a well-educated young man who is very gentle but not afraid to stand up for what he believes. The book was very enjoyable because it always kept me guessing and had a good plot. The book kept me interested becasue the chapters never started slow and climaxed toward the end; for the most part the entire chapter was fun to read. I wanted to keep reading because the plot was never dull. In one chapter the Wart is on an adventure with Robin Wood; then in the next chapter he is watching an exciting jousting match. If you like a strong plot and exciting chapters, you will really enjoy this book.

The book "The Sword In The Stone" written by T.H. White was a very exciting and interesting book. The book was about a young boy named The Wart brought up in a wealthy family of his father, Sir Ector, and his brother, Kay. He met a wizard who became his tutor but not any ordinary tutor. This tutor, Merlyn, turned The Wart into different animals and what-not to give Wart the greatest adventure of his life. I really liked this book because it was really exciting and kept you on your toes. The adventures that Wart was faced with were exciting, fun, and entertaining. One of the adventures that I liked the most was the first one The Wart was sent on. He was turned into a fish and seemed so vulnerable then because he needed to learn how to swim and to get used to the water. It was exciting! Even when the book started to get a little bleak the author would always come back with a new, fun adventure to keep you on your toes. There was only one point that I didn't like. The author would spend one out of about every five chapters just describing the scenery and the place they were in. That got rather monotonous to read.

I would recommend this book to a skilled reader but no one under the age of ten. This book was wonderful and fun-filled, and if you love excitement and fantasy this is a book for you!

ALWAYS, Ken