I'll confess that this was the first literary piece of Arthurian Legend that I read. I was a young adult at the time. After reading this I have gone on to read a number of other versions of Arthur's world. I've taken them all at their own worth and they have contributed to my Arthurian "knowledge". However I will say that I've used T.H. White's version as the benchmark for all others. This is an incredibly well written and presented story of Arthur. And as the title of this review says. It is the beginning point of all modern Arthurian Legend coverage for me and all others are measured by it. Read The Once and Future King/Book of Merlin, learn all the names and places, timelines and events. This will give you the basis for going on to explore any/all other Arthurian works.Following this I'd recommend Mary Stewart's trilogy. But only after you read Once and Future King/Book of Merlin first.