Children's & Young Adult book reviews by a rather odd duo.
Posts tagged Ancient Greece
Oh my Zeus! Is that a Greek god in that book?!
January 21, 2012
by Jenny
The Son of Neptune by Rick Riordan
Really? you must be asking yourselves. Rick Riordan? Hasn’t the whole world pretty much reviewed his books, like, years ago?
Well, yeah.
But hey, I loved the books! (Also, I’d rather review The Son of Neptune than clean my room.)
On the off chance that nobody here has read (or heard of) the Percy Jackson series, here’s a brief overview: ancient Greek gods and goddesses are real, and they never disappeared–they’ve followed the rise of Western culture and currently reside on Mt. Olympus over the Empire State Building. Percy Jackson–main character, obviously–discovers he’s a “hero” or Greek “demigod”, a half-mortal, and his father is Poseidon, which turns out to be problematic. After a brief time at Camp Half Blood, he and his new friends are off on a quest full of mythical beasts, minor deities, and worldwide catastrophe. It’s rollicking good fun, incredibly smart, and impressively accurate on the ancient history/mythology level. Alas, after five books, the series was done.
But wait! There’s more! (more…)
Ancient Greece from a Porcine Perspective
March 10, 2011
by Jenny
The Pig Scrolls by Paul Shipton
*Great for fans of Percy Jackson and mythology!*
Here’s the thing: Gryllus is a pig. Literally. You see, he was a crew mate for Odysseus on the way back from the Trojan war, and when they hit Circe’s island… well, you know the story. The thing is, when all the other guys got returned to human form, Gryllus thought, Gee, snuffling around for food all day? Sleeping? Not working? Now this is the life for me!
Until, that is, the day he was captured by some snot-nosed guys who decided to make some money off of a talking pig. Along comes some hilarious pig-hosted dinner theater, a pimply teenage Homer, and an assistant prophetess from Apollo’s temple, Sibyl, who claims that Gryllus is destined to save the world (including those pesky gods and goddesses). Off he goes–kicking and screaming and proclaiming he really isn’t that interested in hero duties–on a riotous journey through ancient times with a great cast of characters, some familiar and some a little more unique.
Through Gryllus’ narration–cheeky, self-important, and more than a little exaggerated–Shipton keeps the laughter and action going along the whole adventure. Awesome, snarky lines will have kids and adults alike rolling on the floor, such as “puzzlement crossed the big lad’s face, like a cloud across the moon on a night when the moon is looking especially puzzled” and “[he] wasn’t the brightest–clearly several Spartans short of the full three hundred.” (more…)