When the darkness crowds beyond the door, and the logs on the hearth burn clear and red and fall in upon themselves, making caverns and ships and swords and dragons and strange faces in the heart of the fire, that is the time for storytelling.

Come closer then, and listen.

So begins The Road to Camlann, the third volume in Rosemary Sutcliff's King Arthur Trilogy. Doesn't it just give you a delightful shiver? The first and second books, The Sword and the Circle and The Light Beyond the Forest, are told with same deft touch that characterizes all of Sutcliff's work.

It's been years since I last read these classic Arthurian stories. She remains very faithful to the originals (at least, as faithful as one can be to a tradition that has so many variants), without the major reinventing that has become so fashionable these days. Arthurian stories are always interesting to adapt for younger audiences because of all the lusty scandals, but she handles these well, not shying away from the events but not making them explicit, either.

Sutcliff's stories are peopled with individuals who live and breathe. Nimue is mysterious rather than sinister, Guinevere, Arthur, and especially Lancelot are rendered believable and even understandable in their everlasting love triangle, and many of the other knights are given little touches of personality that add an extra dimension to their characters. This volume will probably be my children's first serious foray into these stories, and I couldn't think of a better place for them to start. Recommended. ( )