The Once and Future King

By: T. H. White

Narrated by: Neville Jason

Length: 33 hrs

Publisher's summary

The complete "box set" of T. H. White's epic fantasy novel of the Arthurian legend. The novel is made up of five parts: "The Sword in the Stone", "The Witch in the Wood", "The Ill-Made Knight", "The Candle in the Wind", and "The Book of Merlyn".

Merlyn instructs the Wart (Arthur) and his brother, Sir Kay, in the ways of the world. One of them will need it: the king has died, leaving no heir, and a rightful one must be found by pulling a sword from an anvil resting on a stone. In the second and third parts of the novel, Arthur has become king and the kingdom is threatened from the north. In the final two books, the ageing king faces his greatest challenge, when his own son threatens to overthrow him. In "The Book of Merlyn", Arthur's tutor Merlyn reappears and teaches him that, even in the face of apparent ruin, there is hope.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

©1939, 1940, 1958 T. H. White (P)2008 Naxos Audiobooks

Critic reviews

AudioFile Earphones Award, 2009

"For those who have never read these five books, prepare to be surprised by their adultness, their laugh-out-loud humor and tongue-in-cheek commentary on modern life; for those who know them well, prepare to be delighted with Neville Jason's transcendent reading. The lovely timbre of his narrative voice, his rhythmic, easy pacing and host of individual characterizations transport listeners into White's weird and wonderful otherworld as quickly as Alice slipped through the looking glass. This long production is so entrancing that one wishes it would never end." (AudioFile)

best book ever

This is one the greatest novels in the English language. There are passages that bring me to tears and shivers at the same time because they are so beautifully written. Merlin telling Wart that the best thing for him to do is to learn something (and then why) and the description of Gwenivere coming to grips with the nature of adult womanhood come to mind. You will find your own favorites. Just finished my second reading. The first was 40 years ago. It was even better the second time.

good overall story

i think it was a good saga overall i agree it was a book to long but for me ot was the first book i couldn't get into the sord in the stone i found all the kids voices gave me a headache but after thay was great and the last novel is kinda out there some of the stuff thay talk about makes it a must listen

Amazing book read beautifully.

This book caught me off guard in more tham one way. You can hear in the way it is read how much Neville Jason loves this book, and it is infectious.

Not really a children's book.

The first book the "Sword in the Stone" is very much like the Disney movie. I suppose the movie was adapted from this book. With the exception of some cursing, this first book would be acceptable for children and hold their interest. This first book is magical and full of childish adventure. I would attribute this to Mr White's writing style rather than the actual legends of Arthur. The other books which follow are much more adult in content and story line and seem to follow the traditional accounts of the Arthur stories. It seems that many adults are writing reviews which indicate they enjoy these books themselves.
I did find the Arthur saga interesting and an older child (teen) who is particularly curious about the legends would find this writing more entertaining. I found it enlightening, being an American, to gain a greater understanding of the coming together of the diverse influences which formed the culture of the British Isles. I began to wonder what role the Arthur stories might have played in bringing these people all together as one nation. Arthur belonged to the people; his character is noble while not infallible.
There is debate as to whether these stories are purely legend or if they are rooted in any real truth. I began to wonder about the original writers and their purposes if they be historical fact or to write for a different purpose.
Some of the stories even bear similarity to biblical stories. With Arthur being similar to King David and Lancelot similar to Samson. Most writers of the dark and middle ages. were religiously trained. Was this a creative way to train the people in catechism or make them more accepting of Christianity.

A bit long, but a fascinating take on a legend

I read this book decades ago. I only remembered the first part so decided to re -read it. I still loved the first part. I found some of the third part to be quite tedious, but I was also fascinated with the author's reflection on politics. When I realized when the author wrote the book, I could see how clearly he compared the current day politics with King Arthur's legend. Of course reading it in my teens, I would not have recognized this as a political treatice.
Overall I enjoyed this book very much. The narration was excellent. There are some rather boring parts that seem to go on and on. I'm sure the novel would be edited much differently today. The author's treatment of King Arthur was most entertaining especially the first and last parts. Loved Merlin's council of animals.

A book to make you think

Great details about The life of King Arthur. The adult topics are PG rated. I wish there was more written about Excalibur.

I listened twice!

This is an amazing book. So appropriate for our modern times. I can't imagine a better narrator. Loved it!

2022 is the perfect time to start this

White wrote a beautiful story that is as relevant today as it was in the post-WW2 haze. I think a lot of people could benefit from this beautiful reading of the story.

This version IS complete and unabridged

I almost passed over this version due to one of the reviews which stated this version is abridged. I read this book in highschool and wanted to enjoy it again, so I purchased it on Audible. This Audible version is the full version which includes The Book of Merlyn which describes King Arthur becoming an ant, among other things. It wasn't left out as one reviewer stated. They must have forgotten that it was separate from the other transformations and must not have finished.
*edit* After a little research, I discovered that White had written The Book of Merlyn later and then revised all his previous books to include an antiwar theme. When he revised them, he took out "the ant" and "the geese" and put them into The Book of Merlyn. This was his original intended version of the series but it wasn't published till later due to paper shortages during the war. You can still find both versions of the book. This Audible version is the entire series of books as White intended them to be and is unabridged. I hope I explained that alright.
This book is cannon, even more so than JRR Tolkien's LOTR. The Once and Future King has become foundation and the incredible reference book for all modern Arthurian Legend and many other fantasy books. I surmise that Tolkien even adapted White's Merlyn into his Gandalf.
I recommend this book for all ages. It is well written and engaging. It is a loose adaption of Sir Mallory's work from hundreds of years ago.

Wildly Fantastical and Magical

For the most part I was entranced by the magical fantasies of this book. I will say I did get lost in some of the sideway paths the author took in order for Arthur to discover the lessons he needed. When in the moments of Camelot I felt the intensity of the characters and loved, ached, and cried when they did.