Summary
In this first of a new series that imagines the childhoods of mythical heroes and heroines, Odysseus, Prince of Ithaca, is kidnapped by pirates. Outwitting his enemies with the help of his friend Mentor, a spoiled princess named Helen, and her outspoken cousin Penelope, Odysseus finds out what it takes to be a hero. Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.
Publishers Weekly Review
The team behind last year's The Queen's Own Fool launches the Young Heroes series with a rollicking adventure starring a 13-year-old Odysseus, prince of Ithaca, who meets his match (and future wife) in Spartan captive Penelope. Drawing on the Iliad, the Odyssey and "what archeologists have told us about the [Greek] civilization," Yolen and Harris imagine the youth's formative quest. No previous knowledge of ancient Greece is necessary, and readers may well be entertained by the fast-paced and sometimes slapstick antics of crafty Odysseus (who develops a crease between his eyebrows when he's "about to come up with an outlandish excuse lie, fib, wile for doing something he'd already decided to do") and his cautious friend, Mentor. Together they do battle with pirates and inadvertently rescue Penelope and her cousin Helen of Troy; form an alliance with Silenus, the amorous satyr; and organize a perilous rescue mission against Ladon, the serpent with 100 heads in Crete's infamous labyrinth. The authors weave in legends, such as Siren and Daedalus, as well as surprising tidbits (e.g., the Greek nobility's illiteracy). The new spin here is that Penelope accompanies Odysseus on his adventures, often acting more heroic than he; by giving this champion a worthy heroine who complements his strengths and even compensates for his weaknesses, the authors may well draw boys and girls in equal numbers and send them clamoring for more Greek myths. Ages 8-12. Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved. From: Reed Elsevier Inc.
Copyright Reed Business Information
Author Biography
Jane Yolen is one of the acknowledged masters of fantasy today. She is the author of more than one hundred books for children and adults. Her young adult novel the devil's arithmetic won the Jewish Book Council Award. Her children's book owl moon, illustrated by John Schoenherr, was awarded the Caldecott Medal; her fantasy novels sister light, sister dark and white jenna were both short-listed for the Nebula; and she's won the Nebula twice for short stories. She has also won the World Fantasy Award, the Christopher Medal, and the Golden Kite Award. Jane Yolen lives with her husband in western Massachusetts and St. Andrews, Scotland Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.
Table of Contents
|
1. Hunting the Boar |
1 |
|
2. First Blood |
8 |
|
3. The Old Thief |
16 |
|
4. A Hero's Tale |
23 |
|
5. Dangerous Voyage |
33 |
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Distributed by Syndetic Solutions, Inc.
