Beautifully illustrated book with classics paintings, King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table covers well known aspects of the Arthurian legend. Perfect read if you wish to lean more about the tale.

A really nice summary of Arthurian myths complemented with imagery from a wide variety of artists. The book provides details of the Arthurian legend from a variety of sources and authors and would provide a good starting point for anyone interested in learning more about these and would fit particularly well in a high school environment.

Essentially it does what it says on the tin, shame the pictures are black and white though.

An excellent volume providing a comprehensive look into the legend of King Arthur and the knights of the Round Table. Starting from the historical perspective and discussing potential figures (such as the Roman soldier Lucius Artorius Castus) who may have been the "real" King Arthur, this book delves into the many legends of King Arthur, from very early ones recorded in Geoffrey of Monmouth's Historia Regum Britanniae, all the way to Malory's Le Morte d'Arthur and even modern adaptations in film and television. The copious photographs and illustrations make the text come alive (they are all black-and white though; colour would have been more visually appealing and highlighted the richness of the artworks depicted). A great read or handy reference for fans of Arthurian legends, young and old alike!

This was an interesting, enjoyable and thorough exploration of the Arthurian myths and legends, including some historical background, a summary of three main versions of the stories, and some comments on the legacy of the Arthur legends and how they are referenced in more modern culture. While the summaries of the stories were useful (particularly for those, like me, who weren't aware of the differences, or some of the more obscure parts of the stories), they did at some point seem to take on the feel of someone recounting a dream ("and then this random inexplicable thing happened, and then this person did this bizarre thing, and then this person just died for no obvious reason...").

With thanks to Netgalley and the publisher for a copy of this book in return for an honest review.

This is not my typical sphere of interest, but I decided to give this book a chance and I am glad I did. I know some stories from general knowledge, but nothing much, so I enjoyed reading the book and learned a lot about King Arthur and the knights of Round Table. There wad a lot of information in this one book.

This book was not revolutionary on the ideas of King Arthur but the way they conveyed the information was attractive to people who enjoy the subject and history. Nothing excessive about the information, was not an overload for people unfamiliar with the subject but detailed enough for current history buffs and Arthur lovers.

An interesting book that presents all the different legends about King Arthur. It drags at times but it's interesting.
Recommended.
Many thanks to the publisher and Netgalley for this ARC, all opinions are mine

King Arthur the Knights of the Round Table is an interesting and well curated monograph on the origins and comparisons through history of the Arthurian mythos and legends by Martin J. Dougherty. Due out 16th Aug 2022 from Amber Books, it's 224 pages and will be available in paperback format.

This is a comparative, roughly chronological, look at a number of legends and works of literature in the Arthurian canon, from ancient through to the modern day. The book is well illustrated throughout with artworks from illuminated manuscripts and classical works of art. The book is a solid resource for the information, of course, but is also greatly enhanced by the inclusion of the illustrations.

Four stars. It would be a good choice for public or school library acquisition as well as for inspiration for calligraphers and students of art.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.

Thanks to NetGalley and the Publisher for this ARC. This was a very interesting book, I like learning about Arthur's myth but it got old after a while. Really not for me unfortunately

The majority of this book was a summary of the various myths of King Arthur, starting with Geoffrey of Monmouth's "Kings of Britain" through Christian de Troyes to Malory to the present day adaptations. So people who have only vague ideas about Arthur and want to learn about the development of the story/stories over time will appreciate this, including the historical change from being more the adventure story to the focus on Christian values, depending on what the writer's agenda of the time was. I ended up finding the first chapter the most interesting, where author Martin J. Dougherty summarized the different figures who could have been the basis for the "historical Arthur", as well as some summaries of different arms and armor of the time periods the Arthur stories are usually told/painted/filmed in.
A wide range of material, highly illustrated, not too scholarly to put off those just looking for some basic information.

I received an ARC of this book from NetGalley in exchange for an honest review

The Arthurian legend has fascinated me since I was a kid, and I’ve read many of the modern versions of the story. So,when I saw King Arthur and the Knights of the Round Table was available, I was drawn to a book that examines the history behind the legend.

The book is a well written evaluation of the King Arthur story, and reviews the most likely probability that Arthur never existed, and the reasons why. The author also extensively (sometimes in too much detail) summarizes many of the Arthurian epics written in the Middle Ages, and briefly touches upon the modern books, films and TV series that tell Arthur’s story..

Recommended for those who are interested in the story behind King Arthur legend.

My thanks to the publisher and to Netgalley for providing an ARC of the book.

A bit draggy in spots but interesting nonetheless. The author writes in a way that compels the reader to keep reading.