It has been claimed that more books have been written about King Arthur than any other character in English Literature.  If that is so, it must be hard to find an original slant to put on the story.

Robert Leeson's The Song of Arthur manages to, through two variations.  Firstly, the narrator is Taliesin, a character of legend himself, but here Arthur's celebrated bard.  Secondly, Arthur is a man, a historical figure.  The magic and the myth come through people's wonder at his success as a warrior and king and from their desire for a hero.

Or does it?  Leeson manages to leave the question very open.  Is magic just a normal part of Arthur's life, through the druids and witches and enchantments, or does the whole story just seem magical to an audience desperate for a dream?

The book is written in a series of episodes, like a storyteller or bard giving his audience a medley of their favourite tales.  Taliesin's poetic voice is always present, not as a forced structure of lines and rhymes, but through images and word pictures that create the world of Camelot, Arthur, Lancelot and Guinevere.

This is the book's real strength, because it could be assumed that everyone should know the story anyway; the events cannot be changed.  Therefore, Leeson concentrates on the impressions and the scenes rather than the actions and lets Taliesin become our eyes for Arthur's unfolding tragedy.

The Song of Arthur gives a new and very interesting twist to the Arthurian legends by letting the reader decide how much magic is there in the story and how much is in our own eyes.  It is a thoroughly enjoyable twist for fans of English Literature's greatest hero. 

Review by David Beagley

© 2000 David Beagley