Pretty good. The start of the book is a little dry. From what little I know of Dunsany I'd guess it was a later book. His use of language is far less flowery than in some of his work and was a bit difficult for me to get the flow of at first. Once the book got going though it was very, very good. I could also easily see reading this to a kid. If you like fantasy, this is a good one to start with. Look online if you don't mind reading. It should be out of copyright in most places, although I'm not a lawyer ;). ( )

In a different world, and a different time, "The King of Elfland's Daughter" is a fantasy novel that came before fantasy was even an actual genre. Lord Dunsany, an Irish writer & poet, known heavily for his short stories, was a one of a kind talent in his time -- painting new, lush, imaginative worlds with strange an engaging characters and plots. To put it as clear as possible, Mr. Dunsany crossed the boundaries of twilight when it came to creative writing, and is in many ways, a pioneer of the genre itself. Written before more mainstream and well known fantasy works such as The Hobbit and Lord of the Rings, "The King of Elfland's Daughter" is a beautifully written fairy tale of elves, unicorns, princesses, magic, and so much more.

Set in the vale of Erl, "The King Of Elfland's Daughter" starts it's tale with one of our main characters, Alveric, who is sent beyond the fields we know; into the world of faerie. His mission, assigned to him by his father and lord of erl, is to cross the border of twilight and bring back the elven princess of Faerie for the purpose of enchanting Erl with magic -- breaking it free from its mundane, all-to-worldly existence. Well, all goes well quite fast..and the story starts as many would end -- with a happily ever after -- or should I say, where the happily ever after would start. Though unlike most books where the happily ever after is on the closing page, THIS happily ever after is brought to the forefront just within the first few chapters, and soon goes sour, and that, in essence, is where the heart of the story begins and lies. The experience after the happily ever after.

Filled with beautiful, descriptive, and poetic imagery, "The King Of Elfland's Daughter" is a book that should not be devoured -- but savored. Lord Dunsany is a true story teller, and wraps this unique tale with a complex writing style of his own -- one that archaically paints the picture -- bringing the words and characters and actions to life. Enhancing them with a certain kind of magic – the magic of wonder, imagination, and power. While some may find his style a bit much -- perhaps, a bit TOO descriptive or wordy, I found it enchanting in it's own right -- for without this special touch, the story would not have been as majestically effective.

Aside from the brilliant writing style, and poetic feel of this lovely piece, I also must point out that I enjoyed the contrast between Elfland and Erl. The distinct variation in time, in motion, in change. While Elfland stood nearly changeless, frozen in it's perfective beauty, the real world went on and withered, and died, and bloomed, and prospered. The sun would rise, and then set. The stars would come out – the moon would grace the sky. And while the people of Erl longed for the ageless beautify of the magnificent Elfland, other creatures in Elfland we're equally fascinated and entranced by the beauty of change – the beauty of the fields WE know. I liked this concept – the concept of the grass always being greener on the other side, and how true it really is.

In truth, "The King of Elfland's Daughter" is not for everyone. At times the story seemed to be plod along a bit slowly, and on some nights, after such hectic days with so many thoughts and words rolling in and out of my mind, I found keeping focus on this story a bit tough -- for reading this novel without concentration rather disturbs the experience. But all in all, I found this to be a great and interesting read -- a fascinating look into what fantasy really was and how it started -- and how it became the phenomenon that it is today. And while this in itself, made the read interesting -- I found the story to be fulfilling and the characters to be engaging in their own right – especially the troll, Lurulu (yes I must add this, I did love him).

As I close this review, I'll say this -- if you're a fan of Fantasy and want to see how it, in many ways, came to be -- check this out. If you enjoy poetic, enchanting stories that truly rely on the beauty of writing itself – the magic of creating real worlds and characters through the use of language and words -- bringing them to life -- making them real to us, for that momentary read -- then check this out. As said, “The King Of Elfland's Daugther” is not to be devoured. It is to be enjoyed -- savored -- experienced. While reading this novel, I truly felt like I was having an experience, and I hope that you, after reading this, will take the time to do so as well. It is, in my mind, well worth it. So travel now beyond the fields we know, and experience the magic that is deeply entwined with this fantastic book. If you have the patience and desire to read a true fairy tale, one that not only captivates but inspires, then you will NOT be disappointed. I wasn't! ( )

The Parliament of Erl wants to be ruled by a magic lord because they want Erl to have a place in history. The King believes they have asked for a foolish and dangerous thing, but he will bow to their will. The King sends his son to find Elfland and there to find a wife. When the son falls in love with the King of Elfland's Daughter, Parliament has their wish. Further, where love reigns, everyone is happy. But it is always wise to be careful what you wish for, because you might get it. Lord Dunsany's writing style as beautifully lyrical as a Shakespeare sonnet. The plot and storyline may not seem as fresh as they did in 1924, but that is only because Dunsany wrote such a marvelous tale that it has reused by many others. The story of these star-crossed lovers "may not be told of but only in song."

This book really caught my eye, but it has turned out to be a disappointment. It is just plain odd, and not in a good way. There were things about it with potential, but what remains most strongly with me are the things that were irritating.

The author has a habit of repeating phrases ad nauseum. The phrase "the fields that we know" must have occurred hundreds of times; I think there are single pages where it was used close to a dozen times.

The portrayal of elfland (the author always says "elfland", never "faerie") is one of complete stasis. Not only does nothing interesting ever happen, except on the very rare occasions when the hero finds his way across the border, literally nothing happens at all. In one scene, the king of elfland sits on his icy throne with his daughter on his lap, and for decades (literally) they stare off into space. In part, nothing ever happens because there are no elves to speak of. Initially, there are six -- the king, his daughter, and four guards -- but after the first appearance of the hero, only three remain, and one of those had to be resurrected.

And any hint of grandeur is lost in inexplicable cuteness. The worst trials that the hero faces in the enchanted forest are grasping ivy and pine trees that chase him by trudging through the soil. The trolls, so-called, stand about three feet tall and live in a pigeon loft.

This is not a book I’d recommend to someone looking for a fantasy novel. Did I enjoy it? Yes. Recommend it to friends? No.

If you are a scholar, or someone who enjoys a read where the language, itself, is the object, or even if you’re a complete-ist reader who’s going to read every fantasy work every written, you’ll come to this on your own and that’s fine; you will probably enjoy this. If none of those apply, then I think this is a book likely to disappoint.

The cynical side of me says that it gets such an overwhelming number of 4 and 5 stars because nobody wants to diss a book that’s viewed as a seminal work. The thing about a seminal work is that, just because something was first, doesn’t mean that it will be enjoyed by those whose tastes were formed by the fiction of several generations later —there’s a reason that most of the Dickens canon is no longer as popular as it was in Victorian England. I despise the pendants who smugly brand everyone with less "cultivated" tastes as philistine: reading should be a pleasure, so I recommend people find what they like and read it.

Essentially, I think the book will likely be just too dated to be read coming into to the genre cold. The writing is very beautiful in a lyrical way. However, the somewhat archaic style…flowery, dreamy, languid…can require an effort of will. There are long descriptive, sometimes repetitive, passages with very little dialog in the story.

The characters will appear thin by modern standards. Our literature tends to describe characters fully, drawing the reader in to invest in the characters. Dunsany’s characters are much more remote, much like Elfland, itself. You are not allowed inside them. In some sense, I reacted to them as if they were part of the landscape we were viewing, rather than inhabitants within it.

The plot will also seem a bit simple to the modern reader. The basic plot of “boy gets girl, boy loses girl, boy gets girl” is, perhaps, no more light-weight than “hobbit gets evil artifact, hobbit destroys evil artifact, world is saved.” However, the latter epic was fleshed out with truly evil bad guys, mythic creatures, and substantial adventures. The King of Elfland’s Daughter really has none of that. The challenges facing Averil would seem like minor inconveniences to a “modern” hero. It’s a fairy tale with very little extra flesh in the way of surprise or excitement added.

Actually, it’s that fairy tale-ness that provides one of the best aspects of the book. The ending was not the “happily ever after” we’ve come to expect (and, sometimes, be bored by). Just like a fairy tale, it brought home a point of morality that was delightful.

I enjoyed this book. I liked the sensation of floating along on a dream that I got when reading it. However, I won’t recommend it to friends asking—I’ll let them find it on their own. ( )