Bound To Stay Bound

Booklist - 10/01/2023 In this lighthearted update on Arthurian legend, young Morien has a series of humorous adventures as he searches for his father, Sir Aglovale. With his princess mother in North Africa, brown-skinned Morien tames a dragon in Timbuktu, surfs with crocodiles on the Nile, and even vanquishes vegetables at dinner! Curious about his father, Morien travels to England to find him. While the cartoon-style digital illustrations depict a historical setting, the language is more modern. The knights he meets are somewhat silly, ready to fight over anything. Morien easily wins each challenge, but he is homesick and misses his mother. He is about to give up when he meets Sir Lancelot and Sir Gawain. Joining their quest to locate King Arthur brings success to Morien, who eventually finds his father and becomes a knight himself. It is in the friendship, and friendly banter, of Lancelot and Gawain that Morien finds his lasting place and happy ending. Pair with other modern quest tales such as 2018's Knights Club, by Shuky, or 2019's Max and the Midknights, by Lincoln Peirce. - Copyright 2023 Booklist.

School Library Journal - 11/24/2023 Gr 1–3—In this gleefully updated reworking of an obscure 13th-century Arthurian legend, Prince Morien, "brave and clever and true," receives tutelage in taming dragons and surfing the Nile on crocodiles from his intrepid "Moorish" mom, and then sets out from North Africa to find his white father, Sir Aglovale, who left when he was a baby. After defeating one tiresomely aggressive knight after another, he meets Sirs Gawain and Lancelot on the road, battles the latter to a draw, then forthrightly joins his new "questing buddies" to rescue not only his dad, but also the king himself from captivity—enjoying both an amicable reunion and a well-earned place of his own at the Round Table. Though not much for accurately depicting arms, armor, or other knightly detail, such as the proper way to hold a falchion, Glenn generally places her dark-skinned young hero in properly noble poses and captures the light tone of this tongue-in-cheek exploit. VERDICT Younger fans of knightly deeds will enjoy this version of an unjustly little known tale with its glimpse of a slightly more inclusive Round Table.—John Edward Peters - Copyright 2023 Publishers Weekly, Library Journal and/or School Library Journal used with permission.