Merlin

.This is not an easy read because it is not in narritave form, but it is loaded with the information you need to draw your own conclusions.I had the distinct privilege of helping Dr. Goodrich prepare two of her books and she gratiously gave me mention in them, Guinevere and Priestesses. I have also counted her as a close personal friend for over 25 years and am familiar with her writing style and research methods, sometimes spanning many years on site in England, Scotland, Wales, France, and Ireland. Norma is fluent in ancient French, Latin, and the Celtic languages. She has free rein in the archives of the University of Paris and the research centers of Aachen, Germany, as well as the major universities in the United Kingdom. In short, she is more than qualified to do her research from the original manuscripts rather than rehashing the works of more recent writers, as so many other "experts" have done.Other revierwer are quite right in saying that Norma's writing is difficult to read. To many it appears disjointed, but her style is that of a researcher, not a novelest or story teller. More than once I have suggested to her that it would be helpful to the lay reader to put a final chapter in each of her books summarizing in narritive form her beliefs and conclusions based on her foregoing research chapters. She agreed that it might be helpful but she never followed through, preferring to leave it up to the readers to form their own conclusions based on her research. The subject matter is so esoteric and sparse, and so far into the distant past of the dark ages that details must often be teased out of legands and peripheral contemporary resources. Like her other works Merlin must be read then re-read for true understanding of the man and the world he lived in.Norma's books have been used in law classes to illustrate the way cogent arguments should be made for or against a premise. Her readers are the jury and are obliged to form their own conclusions based on the evidence and arguments she presents.Many readers don't like this approach, preferring to be led by the hand, but I find it refreshing.

Merlin is the second book by Goodrich that I've read. Ms. Goodrich's writing is intelligent and impressive. It's interesting to read a book that considers the Arthurian legend to be a historical reality, and Ms. Goodrich comes up with lots of evidence to back up her claims. The best part of this book, in my opinion, is "The Prophecy of Merlin" and the author's explanation of it. Merlin must have lived! Reading this book made me a believer.

Nutshell review: This is not what I think most people would call a "summer read", but if you're willing to wade through copious footnotes and rigorous, meticulous research, you'll definitely be rewarded. The Man surpasses the Myth!