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Summary: A treasure from my childhood.
Review: This book has been in print for at least 40 years. It was my introduction to Greek mythology when I was in elementary school in the early 60s. Now, a very educated middle aged man who has read Homer, Hesiod, Ovid, the Athenian playwrights, and all the great literature based on the mythology, I can tell you that 75% of my basic knowledge of these myths still comes from my devouring, re-reading, absorbing D'Aulaire in what can only be called a child's fantasy paradise. I have no children, but if I did and could gift them as I was gifted, I would count myself a successful parent if I did nothing more than introduce them to this book. The gorgeous illustrations are still burned in my memory. How any team of writers could depict Kronos devouring his children, Arachne being transformed into a spider, and so forth, and not make it frightening to a small child--well, this book is a miracle. Check it out and may your family cherish it.
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Summary: Timeless Book of Tales
Review: I first read this book when I was twelve years old and it affected me so much that ten years later I still have a deep and abiding love of Greek mythology. A ratty, paperback copy I found at Salvation Army still holds *the* place of honor in my Greco-Roman collection, usurping The Odyssey, The Iliad, Edith Hamilton, and Robert Graves.What originally struck me as so fantastic (and still does) is that the D'aulaires don't write down to their audience or edit out details important to the original myth that some parents might not approve of. The end result? An all ages storybook and mythological primer that no one should be ashamed to own. The drawings are an acquired taste, falling somewhere between Classical pottery paintings and Art Deco, but they do grow on you. My only quibble is that there's no pronunciation guide, which can really hamper you if this is your first exposure to these stories. Buy this for for your children or even for yourself, you will never regret it.
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Summary: Greek Myths
Review: I thoroughly enjoyed this book. It accurately portrayed many of the better known myths with wonderful pictures. I highly enjoyed reading this book even though I have not previously enjoyed the Greek myths, but this book brought them out in a fun and insightful way.
I would reccomend this book to anyone who is just starting to learn about the myths. However, if already know about the major gods you probably don't want this one since it doesn't go very deep.
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Summary: Should be required reading!
Review: I checked this book out of the library dozens of times as a child. The stories and intrigue of the Greek pantheon, combined with the outstanding illustrations, make this book a must-read for any child (or adult) with more than a passing interest in history, or religion or mythology. To this day, not having seen the book in nearly 20 years, I can recall vividly the illustration of Argus with his hundred eyes, standing in Hera's chamber. Or Athena, springing fully formed from Zeus' head. Another thing I like is that the authors didn't sugarcoat any of the Greek myths, which were as red in tooth and claw as Nature herself. To me, that would have destroyed the impact and power of these stories. This book is truly a classic of kids' literature.
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Summary: Great Book, even better on tape
Review: These stories hold my 6-year-old spellbound, as well as the rest of the family! Consider getting the audio version, though, read by Paul Neuman, Kathleen Turner, Matthew Broderick and Sidney Poitier. Talk about great listening! Their readings are fantastic. And you don't have to worry about properly pronouncing all those Greek names!
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Summary: Obliged to Read!
Review: My 5th grade teacher gave this book of myths to me as a present. Ever since I read the book and saw the illustrations, I have treasured this book. For a long time I then kept it safely locked in my cupboard. I never actually had time to look back again at the magnificent drawings and pictures. Now that I am in 8th grade though, I thought I might as well read the inspiring stories all over again and again I enjoyed it tremendously. For me, it is one of the most remarkable books ever written. It is not only enjoyable but a good learning experience as well. I have learned so much from reading just these few stories that I now know more about Greek mythology than my grandfather does. This book is almost like an encyclopedia only meant for myths and legends. I recommend this book for adolescents as well as adults. Children will be able to understand the stories very clearly once they get a hold of this book. In my opinion, the illustrations in this book were so vivid you could almost understand the stories without any text. In conclusion, I truly believe that D'Aulaire's Greek Book of Myths is one of greatest books ever written and illustrated. As the years go by, I will return to this book once again and read it all over again.
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Summary: Nothing better!
Review: A rare gem in the science fiction/fantasy genre, this series has a female heroine, Lyra. We follow Lyra throughout the series as she encounters intense mysteries and drama. Although this is a fantasy book series, it is superbly written and is excellent in making the reader become so engrossed that they nearly forget where they are. I would use these books with high school, reluctant reader girls, since it's an excellent story about a girl who saves the world. They would learn from this book that girls are also craft, witty, and brilliant. Another group that I would recommend this series to are advanced high school readers as I believe these books have direct references to Paradise Lost and also make general remarks on religion. In fact by the final book, your idea of religion is completely obscured. I think it would be interesting for them to do a compare/contrast with Paradise lost of perhaps how the series develops a theme of religion. 9. D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths by Ingri D'Aulaires and Edgar Parin D'Aulaires
Copyright 1980, Bantam Doubleday Dell
Great book to build a reading unit around
One of the major things that was lacking in my education through college, was any sort of introduction to Greek Mythology. Although we seem to now steer clear of any kind of old literature ("dead white men"), I believe Greek Mythology is an important part of a person's reading repertoire. There have been many situations (not to mention Jeopardy questions) where I'm at a complete loss because I never learned Greek Mythology. My friend recently introduced me to this book, claiming his copy was so worn out from repetitive readings his parents provided him and his brothers. What an excellent find this book is! I would use this book in the classroom and read these aloud to the students. I believe it would be a great idea to have a Greek Mythology unit where we use this book as our base reading, and have the kids explore other Greek Mythology books. I think children at first will think Greek Mythology is boring, yet they would soon find out that it is all around them. They could have a good time finding things in their neighborhoods that relate like street names, restaurant names, etc. and perhaps write some report on their findings.
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Summary: Great for the younger reader
Review: I still have my copy of this book from my early childhood. It's a wonderful introduction to Greek mythology for the younger age groups. It doesn't go into tedious detail that most children would find boring, but it covers important highlights of major myths. It is a very whitewashed version of the mythos -- especially the story of Hera and Zeus, but since it's geared towards younger reader, that's only appropriate. This book is a great way to get children interested in the classics, in mythology itself. Highly recommended.
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Summary: Beautiful illustrations...
Review: But the text is lacking. I found it dry and facile at times. There were few explanations for why the gods would hate each other so much, other than the idea that they had to control the earth or the land in some way. This sets the basis for hierarchical systems of thought found in modern-day Greek society, long before the domination of the female gender took full force (around that time there was still a fair amount of female influence, archeological sources tell us) and ideates that we all need to look forward to future wars as a way of life. This is a nice, large volume, though. You'll like the drawings.
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Summary: Absolutely the best intro to Greek Mythology for a young per
Review: I received this book when I was 8 years old and it started my great love and appreciation for Greek Mythology. One of the greatest features of this book is its wonderful organization. It begins at the beginning (Gaia and Uranus), chronicles the Titans, the major Olympian gods, "minor" gods, and heroes. The stories flow chronologically and the authors make many references back to earlier sections without any confusion. The stories are told at a beginner level but without a feeling that a lot is missing from them as can happen in Edith Hamilton's Mythology. The art is appealing and nervous parents will be pleased to know that the pictures are at an appropriate level for young people. Also som of the more risque sections are dealt with without omitting important information. In the story of Perseus, Zeus does the Golden shower of light transformation to appear in Danae's room and she becomes his bride. Cute isn't it? Just knowing the information in this one book was enough to give me an edge over fellow college students and professors (yes professors) in ancient history and humanities classes. For some reason most of teh American public seems to get their informationon mythology from te film Clash of the Titans (a movie I guiltily enjoy by the way).
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