King Authur And the Knights of the Round Table

Title: King Authur And the Knights of the Round Table
Author: Marcia Williams
Illustrated: Marcia Williams
Published: Candlewick Press, Cambridge Massachussetts
Date: 1996
Summary: These are the stories about King Authur and Authurian legends that have an interesting twist that is shown by pictures.
Age Level: Elementary and Upper Elementary (3-6)
Strengths: This version of the Authurian legends are a good version for Elementary students because the readers can see what happened. I do like the mixture of water color and ink. I think what is very interesting is the way the images are displayed. This is not made up of only one story but a few of the most important ones that a lot have heard. I like how the images are displayed like a comic strip going from left to right with the text on the bottom of each image (or frame). I think the combination of the text helps the readers understand the images in order to know what is going on. I also like the different characters and their dialogues. When the characters speak, there is a line and perhaps silly and sarcastic dialogues. Merlin is probably the funniest.
Concerns: Though the dialogue is funny, the sarcasim may be a little too much, for the students may not understand (especially if they have never heard of the King Authur Legends before). Also, you don't know if the dialogue is spoken or if it's a thought. The faces of the characters never change as well (lack of different expressions), so if there were no text, then the reader might be confused of what was going.
Comments: I think this is for students who have a background knowledge of King Authur so they understand the stories. This is a great graphic story that one can enjoy and laugh out loud, because not only will they be learning more about the legends but they can enjoy the sarcasm and silliness.