THE LEGEND OF KING ARTHUR-A-TOPS
by Mo O'Hara ; illustrated by Andrew Joyner
Arthurian legend takes a trip to the Cretaceous in this rollicking reptilian reinterpretation.
O’Hara and Joyner follow up their Romeosaurus and Juliet Rex (2018) by going farther back in time to the dino days of yore. Three dinosaur squires in training for knighthood attend the Festival of the Stone. There, knights from far and wide attempt to pull a horn from a stone in the hopes of being crowned king or queen if they succeed. All fail until the clumsy-but-plucky triceratops, Arthur-a-tops, manages the deed. Befuddled by the crowd’s jeering response, Arthur then accidentally lodges his own front horn into the stone. Fortunately, a little help from his friends helps him become the king everyone deserves. O’Hara peppers the old tale with some nice updates, making Guinevere a “fast and fearless” raptor and squire. And transforming Camelot’s cast to dino equivalents is a snap, since all it takes is to add an “o-saur” here or an “a-tops” there. Joyner’s art gives the enterprise the jollity a tale chock-full of knights and terrible lizards deserves—until a flaming asteroid appears in the very last scene….
Truly this contains some knights to remember.
(Picture book. 4-8)