See sample pages from this book at Wink.
Did you think the classical Greek myths were a dry read? Think again. Written from the perspective of a high school kid, and in the same style as the novels of the same name, the book is a rollicking good read. Narrator Percy Jackson, the irreverent son of the god Poseidon and a mortal woman, brings the stories of Greek Heroes to the level of teenagers by using the language of a teen. It pokes fun at the ancient Greek heroes with pull quotes such as “Shooting Hermes in the butt was always good for a laugh,” and chapter titles like Phaeton Fails Driver’s Ed.
The Greek myths are, in a word, violent. But the lopping off of heads, the infidelities and petty jealousies of the gods are sanitized for family reading by the language used. As Percy describes it, “Greek Myths have a lot of gross stuff in them.” For example, the conception of the Minotaur – “Persiphae was walking past the royal bull pens as quickly as possible to avoid the smell when she happened to glance at the king’s prize white bull. She stopped in her tracks. It was true love. Okay folks. At this point, feel free to put down the book and run around in circles screaming ‘EEEEWWWWW!'”
I will admit – I learned things I had not known from other readings of the Greek myths, and I giggled crazily over many points in the telling of the myths and the new perspectives given to these heroes – Theseus has ADHD – who knew?
The physical book itself is beautiful. The hardcover mimics the color and shape of more expensive hand-bound and sewn journals. The large coffee-table book size and colorful slip cover is attractive. There are full-page painted pictures as well as columnar graphics that illustrate highlights of the story. The second of its kind, with Percy Jackson’s Greek Gods being the first, this book is just pure fun to read.
– Carolyn Koh
Percy Jackson’s Greek Heroes
by Rick Riordan (author) and John Rocco (illustrator)
Disney-Hyperion
2015, 416 pages, 9.2 x 12.2 x 1.2 inches