Many generations of young readers have enjoyed The White Stag because it emphasizes drama and conflict and moves very rapidly. In fewer than one hundred pages, Seredy covers about a hundred years at a gallop. The Huns are presented as harsh and violent, but as having become so from trying to escape hardship. Nimrod worries about the welfare of his tribe, and Bendeguz’s loss of his beloved wife and consequent rearing of Attila without compassion teaches a juvenile audience that adults may be harsh because they have been hurt and disappointed by life.

Although Attila is notorious in Europe as an invader and destroyer, Seredy gives little idea of what his victims suffered. Historians agree that Attila was militarily successful primarily because the peoples that he conquered were weak and unorganized. Regardless, the passages that discuss war are told vividly but with an eagle’s-eye view, as it were. Seredy uses sweeping verbs and calls upon such heroic imagery as black horses and swinging swords. She describes the warriors’ laughter and songs, which makes the battles seem almost like games. The author depersonalizes the victims of the Huns by calling them “the enemy,” and she shows them scampering for shelter rather than being killed. She writes that the Huns left such destruction in their wake as smoking ruins and desolate fields, but young readers who have no real-life referent for such things may not visualize the real human cost of war. The passages describing battles therefore will neither frighten young readers nor cause them to lose sympathy for the protagonists. Seredy also does not explain precisely how the Huns waged war or survived in the field. Young readers instead will probably focus on the prophecy and the glorious destiny awaiting the Huns.

The major appeal of the story lies in the personalities that Seredy depicts. Nimrod is an admirable father figure who gives his life for his people. Hunor and Magyar receive less character development. They are noble and heroic, and their visionary quest and marriage to the Moonmaidens, who are essentially fairyland figures, are romantic and fantastic but not depicted in a profound way. Bendeguz, meanwhile, arouses awe as an angry, bellicose man; the volume seems to rise during his scenes. Attila, likewise, is bold and warlike, but he is shown chiefly as a youth. Because he receives no love from his father, he discovers inner resources that strengthen him. Because of the romanticization of the characters, the story works better as a folktale of gods and heroes than as a historical biography.

Children like reading about animals and will enjoy how Seredy associates each of the major characters with eagles. She also colors the Huns’ journeys by describing the wild bears, wolves, and panthers they see in the wilderness, rather than by discussing the prosaic details of nomadic life. The White Stag itself is a fabulous beast that confers honor and the magic of destiny by singling out the Huns and Magyars for a promised land. Seredy’s story also features many children, as well as romantic figures such as the Moonmaidens and the princess Alleeta, so that young readers will not grow bored with a steady diet of adult politics and warmongering.

As many legends do, the tale of the White Stag emphasizes personal sacrifice. In a moving scene, Nimrod sacrifices his favorite horse in order to plead for a divine sign to help his people. Bendeguz loses his beloved wife and becomes a sad and bitter man. Attila must learn to avoid all weakness, sacrificing an appreciation of the value of human life in return for human ambition. Juvenile readers will realize from these scenes that life exacts its costs.