What do you do when the world has lost its balance and your heroes are gone? 

Lev Grossman’s bestselling novel, The Bright Sword, is an Arthurian epic for our troubled times, the story of an idealistic young knight who arrives at Camelot ready to serve, only to find that King Arthur is dead and the Round Table is in shambles. With a rag-tag band of lesser knights and misfits, he sets out on a quest to make this ruined world whole again. 

Described as a “thrilling new take” by The Washington Post and “wonderful” by the Wall Street Journal, The Bright Sword is the latest work by the author of the New York Times-bestselling Magicians trilogy. 

Grossman will join Laura Miller, Slate books and culture columnist, to discuss the lasting power of our oldest myths and how to write about hope, heroism, and the dream of a better world.

Free event

Photo credit Beowulf Sheehan

Lev Grossman is the author of eight novels, including the bestselling The Bright Sword, an epic retelling of the story of King Arthur. The Bright Sword earned praise from George R.R. Martin and Rebecca Yarros, and the New York Times said it “resoundingly earns its place among the best of Arthurian tales.” He’s also the author of the #1 New York Times bestselling Magicians trilogy—The Magicians, The Magician King, and The Magician’s Land—which has been published in thirty countries and was adapted as a TV show that ran for five seasons on Syfy.

Lev has written two novels for children: The Silver Arrow, a New York Times, Wall Street Journal, People, Apple and Amazon Best Book of the Year, and its sequel The Golden Swift. He also wrote the screenplay for the movie The Map of Tiny Perfect Things, which was a finalist for the Critic’s Choice awards.

Laura Miller is books and culture columnist for Slate. She was a co-founder of Salon.com, and her work has appeared in the New Yorker, the New York Times, the New York Review of Books, Harper’s, and many other publications. She is on the steering committee of the Word festival and lives in Blue Hill.