Each entry contains full bibliographical information, an account of the Arthurian content of the work, and an overview of the work's publication or performance history. A separate index volume provides eight separate guides to assessing and ordering the information in the Annals, with indexes of People: authors, editors, translators and illustrators; Characters; Titles; Genres; and Keywords and more.
Since the Middle Ages the Arthurian legend has held a place in the Western cultural tradition similar to that of Classical mythology - as a body of stories, characters, themes and symbols capable of adaptation to changes in cultural values while preserving a continuity of subject matter. The Arthurian Annals document the tradition chronologically in all its manifestations in English from before 1250 to 2000. They are broad in scope, embracing both the literary classics of the tradition and lesser known works: plays, poems, adaptations, and sequels. This unique work constitutes a genealogy of the tradition in English in all its manifestations -- there is nothing comparable to it in print.
The Arthurian Annals are a unique and unrivalled resource for research in Arthurian and Medieval studies. It will find its market in academic libraries in the Anglophone world, particularly in the US, and its readership among academics, students, writers and enthusiasts of the tradition.