The Ill-Made Knight - TH White

⭐ 7.5/10

This is now the third entry in White's Arthurian retelling (and another banger title). Rather than continuing the story of Arthur, this tells the story almost exclusively from Lancelot's perspective. This was totally the right choice, and I really loved most of this book. 

This one is definitely less childish than the first, and far more interesting than the second. In this book, we have characters that are unique and have complex motivations and have to make difficult choices. I would still definitely call this a kid's book, but not one that modern kids would enjoy (nor are they probably super appropriate). It mostly deals with adult subject matter as the thrust of this book is the love affair between Lancelot and Guinevere. And it's actually pretty compelling! I think this relationship is painted in a pretty interesting way, not some shallow affair, but one with some substance and nuance. 

Still, I can't say I actually loved this book. There are still several chapters where my brain refused to pay attention, and again despite an amazing reading performance on audio, I found it hard to follow at times. I think it would be easier reading physical, but the whole thing is very long that way. 

So it's a little hard to put a rating on this. I think it's my favorite so far, but I can't say I was ever super invested. It's beautifully written, something similar to The Hobbit, but a little more abstract. It's more interesting, but less funny. It's a fun retelling, but also losing the formality makes it lose that sense of majesty. 

I dunno! I like it, and yet a part of me can't wait till it's over. I've begun part 4, and that is shaping up to be my favorite overall, but again there are still those chapters that I don't follow at all.