Books: Arthurian Cocktail

THE WITCH IN THE WOOD—T. H. White—Putnam ($2.50).

This book is a sequel to The Sword in the Stone, shows faintbrained, sweet-natured King Arthur confronted with the first problems of his position: how, with horn-rimmed Merlyn's help, to defeat rebellious kings; how to enlist Might in the cause of Right. Half-fantasy, half-burlesque, like its predecessor it mixes wisecracks and Morte d'Arthur, scrambles legend and topical satire. While her husband King Lot is away fighting Arthur, Queen Morgause, comic symbol of the egocentric wife, attempts the seduction of lovesick King Pellinore (3.2 Don Quixote)...