These books are so enjoyable. I feel like I enjoy each one more and more. And in Parsifal’s Page, Morris does a great deal more with character development than he usually does as both Parsifal and Piers (but mostly Piers) learn and grow throughout the story, until they’re both completely changed from the beginning.
I’ve read a few stories about the Holy Grail, but I didn’t recognize anything from this one. Once again, Morris’s author’s note is revealing and informative, but I wasn’t sure whether the king in the castle with the bleeding thigh was in Chretien de Troie’s story, or if Morris made it up. The Holy Grail book I read before didn’t have that (at least, not that I remember), but I assume that Morris, who seems to know his King Arthur, is following correctly (or adding enough mystical flair so that it fits with the King Arthur legends).
I love how Morris keeps bringing back his beloved original character, Terence, and Gawain, and he does it in such a way so it doesn’t ever seem as if he’s falling back to what works. Terence is mysterious, almost too mysterious in this one, but Gawain is as delightful as ever, and Parsifal is downright funny. Some of the mysteries and questions raised in the beginning are almost too obvious, so the reveal seems too long in coming, but the adventure as a whole is great fun, and as knowledgeable and respectful towards the Arthur legends as Morris has always been.
Leaf's Reviews 