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A review by literaryelephant
Avalon High by Meg Cabot
adventurous
funny
lighthearted
mysterious
tense
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
2.0
Teen rating: 5 stars
Adult rating: 2 stars
This book had its place back in the day; it was the first modernized Arthurian retelling I ever read and I'll always appreciate it for sparking my interest, but it doesn't hold up as well in 2021. First, despite the protagonist's age (17), she reads like she's 13, and the writing leans much more toward MG than YA- it seems a book meant to be read by young girls fantasizing about being older girls. Unfortunately, despite the first person perspective, the protagonist also reads like a teen written by an out-of-touch adult. I doubt even in 2006 there were many teens using words like 'guff' or 'malarkey' or apologizing for 'startling' each other. The payphones and landlines are fair given the pub date but now seem dated and awkward.
The concept itself is promising- King Arthur and his inner circle reincarnated as popular high school students with modern problems- but it's lazily delivered. The 'forces of darkness' are presented as a vague, simplistic evil, the rationalization for Will being a reincarnated Arthur is that the names of his friends, dog, and boat echo King Arthur's original crew, and a show of strength is all that's required for Good to triumph over Evil. Most frustrating is how much the story relies on and reinforces stereotyping- the characterization is of the extremely basic cardboard-cutout variety (your standard vapid cheerleader and brainless jock and troubled golden boy) and the MC's commentary (tall girls are destined to stand alone by the guac at parties because the boys want to flirt with short girls, for example) only furthers the cliches. The only really good bit here is the MC constantly declaring that her Arthurian namesake was lame for committing suicide over a guy who didn't love her back- although a twist in her role in the reincarnation removes her ability to rewrite that woman's story for a better outcome, and in any case she proves she's just as willing to die for the guy she loves, so it's hard to get properly excited about what should have been at least one very positive message here.
Ultimately, Cabot is a popular author who's provided a lot of teen entertainment in her time, but this particular book is probably best left back in its own era.
Adult rating: 2 stars
This book had its place back in the day; it was the first modernized Arthurian retelling I ever read and I'll always appreciate it for sparking my interest, but it doesn't hold up as well in 2021. First, despite the protagonist's age (17), she reads like she's 13, and the writing leans much more toward MG than YA- it seems a book meant to be read by young girls fantasizing about being older girls. Unfortunately, despite the first person perspective, the protagonist also reads like a teen written by an out-of-touch adult. I doubt even in 2006 there were many teens using words like 'guff' or 'malarkey' or apologizing for 'startling' each other. The payphones and landlines are fair given the pub date but now seem dated and awkward.
The concept itself is promising- King Arthur and his inner circle reincarnated as popular high school students with modern problems- but it's lazily delivered. The 'forces of darkness' are presented as a vague, simplistic evil, the rationalization for Will being a reincarnated Arthur is that the names of his friends, dog, and boat echo King Arthur's original crew, and a show of strength is all that's required for Good to triumph over Evil. Most frustrating is how much the story relies on and reinforces stereotyping- the characterization is of the extremely basic cardboard-cutout variety (your standard vapid cheerleader and brainless jock and troubled golden boy) and the MC's commentary (tall girls are destined to stand alone by the guac at parties because the boys want to flirt with short girls, for example) only furthers the cliches. The only really good bit here is the MC constantly declaring that her Arthurian namesake was lame for committing suicide over a guy who didn't love her back- although a twist in her role in the reincarnation removes her ability to rewrite that woman's story for a better outcome, and in any case she proves she's just as willing to die for the guy she loves, so it's hard to get properly excited about what should have been at least one very positive message here.
Ultimately, Cabot is a popular author who's provided a lot of teen entertainment in her time, but this particular book is probably best left back in its own era.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Gun violence, Infidelity, and Violence
Minor: Suicide