Goddess of Yesterday

Rating:
Summary: Characterizations and detail to setting are wonderful
Review: A whole new view of Helen of Troy, the woman whose face launched a thousand ships, is delivered through the eyes of Anaxandra, a sailor's daughter masquerading as a princess after being captured by invaders. Not just a pretty face, Helen is a shrewd and poisonous viper, suspicious of the new girl in her home. Anaxandra/Calisto comes to love her new home and makes quick friends, but trying to stay one jump ahead of the lovely yet black-hearted adulteress queen is exhausting. Will her impostering secret be discovered? And if so, how will she fare?
Cooney offers an exciting and rich tale of love and war amid the backdrop of ancient Greece. Historical detail immerses the reader into the story, and insight into customs and religion makes this a strong choice for school curriculums. Several Greek myths are retold throughout the story from Anaxandra posing as Medusa to Zeus's many conquests. Characterizations are excellent. May have a limited audience of Caroline Cooney fans and Greek mythology buffs, pair with McLaren's Inside the Walls of Troy (Atheneum, 1996) and Adele Geras's earthier Troy (Harcourt 2001) for discussion.

Rating:
Summary: Sing, Goddess, Sing . . .
Review: An excellent and exciting view on the Trojan war.

To the reader that said 'things just don't happen' in the sense that it was inaccurate for Hector and Andromache to be married at fifteen, that is an ignorant statement. Because life expectancy was very short in the ancient world, many girls were married at thirteen or even twelve.

Rating:
Summary: Wonderful novel that brings the Trojan War to life.
Review: Anaxandra is the only daughter of the chieftain of a small, unnamed island in the Aegean Sea. When she is just six years old, she is taken as a hostage by Nicander, king of Siphnos. She ends up being companion and friend to his crippled daughter Callisto. Six years later, Siphnos is raided by pirates, and Anaxandra is the only survivor. When Menelaus, king of Sparta, stops his fleet of ships at Siphnos to investigate, Anaxandra lies to save herself. She takes on the identity of the dead princess Callisto. Menelaus takes her home with him to his palace, where she befriends his children, in particular his daughter Hermoine and his baby son Pleis. But she is also terrified by his wife Helen, who knows the truth, that Anaxandra is not Callisto. When Helen runs off with her lover, Prince Paris of Troy, and determines to bring her two younger children along, Anaxandra disguises herself and goes in Hermoine's place, to save her friend, and protect Pleis. She manages to get herself and the baby safely to Troy -- where a great war is about to begin, and they are in more danger then ever before. I absolutely loved this book, and I highly recommend it book to young adult readers with an interest in the Trojan War, or Greek mythology in general. Anaxandra is a wonderful character, and her narrative brings the world of Ancient Greece and Troy to life.

Rating:
Summary: A Masterpiece
Review: I am an avid reader of Greek Mythology and I really enjoyed this book for its different perspective about Helen of Troy.
Anaxandra is six years old when she is taken from her small island home by King Nicander to be a friend to Callisto, King Nicander's sickly daughter on the island of Siphnos. There Anaxandra dwells for six years. When she is tweleve her island is raided by pirates and every one on the island besides her is killed or taken captive.
When King Menelaus of Sparta comes to the island to investigate, Anaxandra assumes the identity of Callisto (who is presumed dead) so that the King will take her to Sparta with him.
But Queen Helen, Menelaus's dangerously beautiful but cruel and self-absorbed wife, does not believe that red haired Anaxandra is dark haired Callisto and seeks to be rid of Anaxandra.
When handsome Paris comes to carry Helen off, Anaxandra poses as Helen's daughter so she will be able to go to Troy with them and take care of Helen's only son. She must use all her wits to survive in Troy with Helen and Paris seeking to rid themselves of the only heir to the throne of Sparta and the young Anaxandra taking care of him.
I really enjoyed this book because it is such a great retelling of the "kidnapping" of Helen from a young girl's perspective.
Caroline B. Cooney does a great job of rendering the personalities of both Helen and Paris and it makes a great read.

Rating:
Summary: Goddess of Yesterday
Review: I honestly didn't think that this book was something to get very excited about. The plot was very slow moving and I noticed that the author puts in details that we don't really need to know. In my opinion, Caroline B. Cooney didn't do a really good job of keeping the reader's attention. I also didn't like how horrible things continued to happen to the main character, Anaxandra, forcing her to lie and cheat in order to survive.
Despite all these things, I gave the book three stars out of five because I liked finding out how the Ancient Greeks lived and about the gods that they worshiped. When I read about what was actually true in the book, I thought that it was really clever of Caroline B. Cooney to be able to work all these facts into the book. I wouldn't exactly recommend it to anybody who wants everything in the book to be true, it is an historical fiction book after all. I would probably recommend it to someone like me who doesn't know that much about Greek history and is simply looking for an interesting book to read.


Rating:
Summary: Heartfelt
Review: Josh Aaby
This novel is an epic story based on a little girl taken from her family by a king and taken to his homeland. Throughout the novel the young girl, Anaxandra, begins her journey from the moment she steps onto her king's ship (she generally calls all of the kings she ends up living with her own), and her journey ends in a battle of great proportions.
Anaxandra spends most of the story under the name of a fallen princess -Callisto- who is murdered along with her family and kingdom by a band of pirates. She is rescued by another King and that is when the novel's pace begins to quicken and the reader is drawn into a world of love- for child, for man, and for god/goddesses- and also despair and disappointment.
The novel is set in the time of the Trojans and visits kingdoms including among others. This is a novel to be enjoyed by many people in various age groups in that it could be both a love story and an adventure. I would recommend this book to anyone willing to try something new, and who knows? Maybe somebody else will like it also. It was a big surprise to me that I found it so interesting.

Rating:
Summary: "Truly I have been Lucky in my Kings"
Review: There is a huge range of novels out there concerning the Trojan War and the men and women whose lives were changed by the great event - so many books in fact, that it is difficult to find one that doesn't feel stale and predictable (after all, no author can really make shocking twists and turns in a war whose outcome is already known). Like books concerning the King Arthur legends, the Trojan War as a subject for a book is rapidly becoming dull.

So it is refreshing to find now and again a book that deals with this subject, and is actually *interesting*, suspenseful and surprisingly good. Such is Caroline B. Cooney's "Goddess of Yesterday". Although all of the mythological details and events of the War are correct (at least as far as I could see), the author brings new personalities to well-known characters, thoughtful insights on blasphemy and the nature of gods, and a likeable young heroine that blends so easily into the events leading up to the War that one might be surprised not to find her mentioned in ancient sources!

Anaxandra is the beloved daughter of a chieftain father in a small rocky isle, taken away from her home and family as a tribute/hostage of King Nicander, who places her in his own household as a companion to his own crippled daughter Princess Callisto. Despite homesickness, Anaxandra adjust to her new life, only to have it shattered once more by pirates who plunder Siphnos. Thanks to an ingenious disguise, Anaxandra is the sole survivor, and when the ship bearing King Menelaus pulls in to investigate, she lies to ensure her future: telling the King of Sparta that she is the Princess Callisto.

Under this new identity, she is taken to Sparta where she mingles with the family of the king: his beautiful but dangerous wife Helen, his cheerful daughter Hermione, his two elder sons, and baby Pleisthenes. It is there of course, that the inevitable happens: Prince Paris of Troy arrives in Sparta, and when Menelaus is called away to his grandfather's funeral, Paris and Helen set sail once more for Troy...taking baby Pleisthenes and Anaxandra (again under a false identity in a bid to save Hermione's life) with them...

When retelling such a well-known story, it is impossible to change important events in the tale (scholars would get too stroppy), but the personalities of the people involved are always up for grabs. Cooney creates an interesting version of Helen, as a painfully beautiful demi-goddess, utterly cruel, cold, manipulating, and revelling in the blood of the soldiers who die for her sake. It's a shocking change from the usual somewhat reluctant follower of Paris, who would walk the walls in agony over the deaths below her. Hector and Andromache's characterisations I am less fond of: he's too heavy-set and gruff, and she's too frivolous and giggly. Cassandra, however is captured perfectly as the hysterical, but beloved princess in the tower, and Cooney instigates a very clever plot-twist in the details of her curse (that her prophesies are never believed), that caught me completely off-guard!

There are a few details that bothered me: Anaxandra often beseeches the deity that gives name to the book: 'the goddess of yesterday', but who this figure actually is and how she fits into the pantheon of Greek gods remains unknown. The same complaint lies with the use of Medusa as a "good-luck charm", and did anyone else think that Anaxandra's romance with Euneas was a little abrupt? One horse ride and she's in love?

Furthermore, there are alot of plot threads left hanging - does Anaxandra meet up with Euneas again? Cassandra hints that her parents are still looking for her - so does she ever meet them again? Does she have her revenge on the pirates of the twisted fish? And for someone who knows absolutely nothing about the Trojan War, they will be left dangling with absolutely no information on what happens to any of the characters - Cooney ends the book, so to speak, just when it seems like it's beginning. An epilogue fills in these blanks, but I would have liked to hear it from Anaxandra's point of view (plus Cooney forgets to mentions that Aretha is eventually rescued by her grandsons after the sack of Troy).

But all in all, Caroline B. Cooney has written a clear, beautifully descriptive story of an engaging young woman caught up in events much larger than herself, as well as a reworking of the traditional myths, and a reasonably accurate depiction of ancient Greek life. In terms of novel based on this "Trojan genre", this one is one of the best.

Rating:
Summary: Goddess of Yesterday
Review: This is a beautifully written story about mythological Greece. The style is very compelling, written from a young girl's perspective.

Anaxandra lives happily on a small, unknown island, the favorite child of her father, a pirate. One day, King Nicander of Siphnos comes to take her away to be a companion to his crippled daughter, Callisto. Six years later, Siphnos is attacked by pirates, and Anaxandra is the sole survivor. When King Menelaus' ships land on the island to investigate what happened, Anaxandra is mistaken for Callisto-she does not correct the King of the mainland. Menelaus takes her back to Sparta, where the god-touched Helen knows she is not really Callisto. Before Helen can do anything, though, Prince Paris arrives from Troy. Struck by love, Helen helps Paris sack her own city while Menelaus is elsewhere. They sail off to Troy, and at the last minute Helen decides to take her daughter, Hermione, and her baby son, Pleis. When Hermione's nurse asks Anaxandra to step in as Hermione, Anaxandra once again has to change her identity. In Troy, they prepare for war, while Anaxandra discovers the delights of this god-swept land--riding horses and falling in love, among others. But the gods punish those who steal birthrights...will Anaxandra be able to please the gods and save herself?

This is a very uplifting story-I was actually in tears at the end from the sheer beauty of it. Anaxandra experiences so much pain, and through it all she keeps herself whole. Amazing.

Rating:
Summary: WOW!
Review: This story is told by Anaxandra, a sialors daughter who was tooken hostage at age six. She becomes the playmate of King Nicander's daughter Callisto. Six years later the island of Siphnos is ruined by pirates. Only Anaxandra lives by putting an octopus on her head and acting like Madusa. Nine days later King Menelaus arrives at Siphnos. Anaxandra claims to be Calliso and is taken to Sparta to once agian be a playmate for Menelaus' daughter Hermione. But Helen, Menelaus' wife sees through her but Menelaus don't believe her.
When Prince Paris of Troy visits Sparta to pay his pay blood respects to Appolo for stabbing a little boy he falls in love with Helen and Helen goes willingly to Troy and even gives Paris all of Sparta treasures. Once agian Aaxandra/Callisto must betray a princess, Hermione who does not want to go to Troy. She is saved by King Priam of Troy who will not let Helen harm her. But when war breaks out between troy and the Greeks Anaxandra must find a way out with Helens two year old son Pliesthens.
This is a very good book!!!!!