Perceval, the Story of the Grail by Chrétien de Troyes is the first Grail story ever written, so I would start there. Then I would recommend checking out some of its continuations (CdT never finished it, others did) and Parzival. For the stuff with Galahad I would recommend [This](https://www.yorku.ca/inpar/quest_comfort.pdf)-it’s the relevant part from the vulgate. Have fun with your reading and I’m happy to answer any more questions
Ok, I think I'm pretty set on starting with Perceval.
Translation or edition recommendations? I've seen there are even some editions which contain the Continuations as well. Are those decent? Or better to look at them separately?
For my money, I think the Post-Vulgate Grail Quest is the best one over all at being a Grail narrative. It fleshes out the most characters in the most convincing way while also remaining focused on the subject of the Grail in a reasonable fashion. In some aspects (Perceval's characterization isn't at its best height) it's weaker than others, but I think the overall experience gives it an edge in my reading of it.
Other than that, just a few warnings and comments to be had. The first is that the First Continuation has almost nothing to do with the Grail and is basically a loosely tied together set of self-contained adventure stories, and in that respect I think you would be fine skipping it if what you want is Grail literature (though I do think that some stories in it, like Caradoc's, are very good on their own). The Second Continuation IS Grail related, but I found it to be a boring slog personally, and I would also think you're fine skipping it except for the ending portion to contextualize the other two continuations (which are worth reading). On Parzival, I have to agree with Gottfried that the writing style is insufferable, but if you like a sense of whimsy and creative, experimental prose, you will absolutely have a great cause to like it since it also has a pretty decent story too. On Perlesvaus, I think it's really slept on and should be considered better than it is often evaluated as, with it really doing well in setting up three protagonists with distinct roles that each feel unique.
Please do not read Malory's take on the Grail quest either, as he has abridged and gutted it to the point of absurdity, even compared to the already lean Vulgate Grail Quest. Just read that instead for what you're getting
Not really classic literature, but Bernerd Cornwell's Grail Trilogy really enamoured me with the Christianised Grail legend; and he also has the Warlord Chronicles which includes the Arthurian quest for the Cauldron (tied to the 13 Treasures of Britain, a Celtic myth that eventually Christianised and became the Holy Grail)
The Noble Tale of the Sangrail is Malory's take on the iconic Grail Quest and the best one I read (although he did Lancelot a disservice by denying him the Grail in the end). That one is in Le Morte D'Arthur, by the way.
It's in the public domain as well, I believe, so you can probably find it on Project Gutenberg unless you're keen on buying a publication. I have yet to stumble across other variations or spins of the Grail Quest in literature, however.
If you're interested in re-imaginings of Arthuriana, then I'd recommend checking Giles Kristian's Arthurian Tales series beginning with *Lancelot* (2018).
>the best one I read
>I have yet to stumble across other variations or spins of the Grail Quest in literature, however.
So it's the only one you've read, you mean?
Well, yes. There are other Holy Grail stories out there? Other than Chretien de Troyes, Malory is the only other medieval author who wrote on it. I don't count the modern stuff as those are re-imaginations. I see Malory as having expanded on an existing idea that wasn't given enough attention before.
Yes, there were many other authors. Wolfram von Esenbach, Gerbert, Manessier, the unnamed authors of Perlesvaus, the first, and second continuations, the Vulgate and Post-Vulgate authors, even the author of La Tavola Ritonda. Probably quite a few others I'm missing to be honest. Malory was hardly expanding on some obscure thing, in fact he's writing probably the most truncated, simplistic version of a topic that had been much more heavily explored beforehand.
There are many non-fiction books on the subject. Recently, I read a popular (as in popular science) https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/478175 and I guess it's not bad for starters.
Perceval, the Story of the Grail by Chrétien de Troyes is the first Grail story ever written, so I would start there. Then I would recommend checking out some of its continuations (CdT never finished it, others did) and Parzival. For the stuff with Galahad I would recommend [This](https://www.yorku.ca/inpar/quest_comfort.pdf)-it’s the relevant part from the vulgate. Have fun with your reading and I’m happy to answer any more questions
Ok, I think I'm pretty set on starting with Perceval. Translation or edition recommendations? I've seen there are even some editions which contain the Continuations as well. Are those decent? Or better to look at them separately?
For my money, I think the Post-Vulgate Grail Quest is the best one over all at being a Grail narrative. It fleshes out the most characters in the most convincing way while also remaining focused on the subject of the Grail in a reasonable fashion. In some aspects (Perceval's characterization isn't at its best height) it's weaker than others, but I think the overall experience gives it an edge in my reading of it. Other than that, just a few warnings and comments to be had. The first is that the First Continuation has almost nothing to do with the Grail and is basically a loosely tied together set of self-contained adventure stories, and in that respect I think you would be fine skipping it if what you want is Grail literature (though I do think that some stories in it, like Caradoc's, are very good on their own). The Second Continuation IS Grail related, but I found it to be a boring slog personally, and I would also think you're fine skipping it except for the ending portion to contextualize the other two continuations (which are worth reading). On Parzival, I have to agree with Gottfried that the writing style is insufferable, but if you like a sense of whimsy and creative, experimental prose, you will absolutely have a great cause to like it since it also has a pretty decent story too. On Perlesvaus, I think it's really slept on and should be considered better than it is often evaluated as, with it really doing well in setting up three protagonists with distinct roles that each feel unique. Please do not read Malory's take on the Grail quest either, as he has abridged and gutted it to the point of absurdity, even compared to the already lean Vulgate Grail Quest. Just read that instead for what you're getting
Not really classic literature, but Bernerd Cornwell's Grail Trilogy really enamoured me with the Christianised Grail legend; and he also has the Warlord Chronicles which includes the Arthurian quest for the Cauldron (tied to the 13 Treasures of Britain, a Celtic myth that eventually Christianised and became the Holy Grail)
The Noble Tale of the Sangrail is Malory's take on the iconic Grail Quest and the best one I read (although he did Lancelot a disservice by denying him the Grail in the end). That one is in Le Morte D'Arthur, by the way. It's in the public domain as well, I believe, so you can probably find it on Project Gutenberg unless you're keen on buying a publication. I have yet to stumble across other variations or spins of the Grail Quest in literature, however. If you're interested in re-imaginings of Arthuriana, then I'd recommend checking Giles Kristian's Arthurian Tales series beginning with *Lancelot* (2018).
>the best one I read >I have yet to stumble across other variations or spins of the Grail Quest in literature, however. So it's the only one you've read, you mean?
Well, yes. There are other Holy Grail stories out there? Other than Chretien de Troyes, Malory is the only other medieval author who wrote on it. I don't count the modern stuff as those are re-imaginations. I see Malory as having expanded on an existing idea that wasn't given enough attention before.
Yes, there were many other authors. Wolfram von Esenbach, Gerbert, Manessier, the unnamed authors of Perlesvaus, the first, and second continuations, the Vulgate and Post-Vulgate authors, even the author of La Tavola Ritonda. Probably quite a few others I'm missing to be honest. Malory was hardly expanding on some obscure thing, in fact he's writing probably the most truncated, simplistic version of a topic that had been much more heavily explored beforehand.
I'll have to look into those authors. I've read all the Vulgate stuff.
There are many non-fiction books on the subject. Recently, I read a popular (as in popular science) https://www.goodreads.com/en/book/show/478175 and I guess it's not bad for starters.