Gilgamesh

Rating:
Summary: Touching version of Man's first epic
Review: I got this book out of the children's section of our localpublic library and now am trying to get my own copy.

There is justsomething about this book, the way that it tells the story ofGilgamesh and his best friend, Eikkidu (sp?); their battles with the magical bull; the original story of the Flood; how the first walled city was built; the troubles with Ishtar; and other tales of the dawn of history, that touches my heart. The author is showing us mankind's childhood, and she tells the story with simplicity. Her illustrations remind us of the stone carvings and other artifacts of Mesopotamia, yet somehow they convey movement and expression beautifully.

The story of Eikkidu is my favorite. God creates him, and leaves him asleep in the forest. When Eikkidu wakes up, he does not know he is a strong man, and runs away from the first rabbits and small animals that he sees. Gilgamesh eventually finds him and befriends him, and the two become inseparable. Eikkidu becomes more or less civilized, but never, if I remember correctly, can bring himself to eat meat. When Eikkidu dies, Gilgamesh goes to the underworld to bring him back. A lovely, lovely story from the time and place of Zarathrustra, the sage who taught us to call God "Friend."

For the sake of honesty, though, I must admit that my children didn't enjoy it as much as I did. Though they did read it, they might have enjoyed a more violent, colorful version. Still, the story and the illustrations of this version are historically accurate and, I would think, better art, and children have to be exposed to those things for awhile before they learn to appreciate them.

Rating:
Summary: A shame it has gone out of print
Review: This is the best re-telling of the earliest epic of mankind, that I have seen for children. At just over 100 pages, it gives a much fuller sense of the story and its intricacies than Ludmilla Zeman's version. (Although her illustrations are much better). As a supplemental/part-time home schooling mother (I supplement what my children learn in school), I think this book is the best place to start any child's study of history and literature. (Mine started with this book at age 6.)

Rating:
Summary: A necessary book for everyone
Review: Why this has gone out of print I do not know. This version of the story can be read to a child over the course of about 7-10 nights. Better than Zeman's version, this story fleshes out details that make the actions of the characters much more understandable.

For example, when Gilgamesh rejects the goddess Ishtar, who has decided Gilgamesh should be her next husband, in Zeman's version you really have no sense why he rejects her. Marrying a goddess seems like a good thing, but for some unexplained reason Gilgamesh doesn't go for it. In Bryson's version however, she spells out Gilgamesh's reasons; Ishtar, once she has the attention of the one she desires, grows tired of the hapless soul and then she destroys them. Suddenly Gilgamesh's action makes sense.

In another example, Zeman leaves out any reference to Ninsun, Gilgamesh's mother, while in Bryson she is an important character whom Gilgamesh seeks out for advice.

This story is a wonderful tale. Bryson's retelling gives us insight into characters who lived 5000 years ago. She makes it possible to understand their to way of life. Where else can you read about heroes who bear bronze swords and seek out the man who survived the flood?