BOOK RECOMMENDATIONS FOR GREEK MYTHOLOGY
by Anri
In this article, I will talk about good books about Greek and Roman mythology.
Greek Mythology is the stories that the ancient Greeks told. In my opinion, learning about Greek (and Roman) mythology will increase your vocabulary and knowledge in a number of things, since the ancient Greeks and Romans have a huge influence on the modern world. There are planets, cities and buildings of Greek and Roman name origin.
Number one: Books by Rick Riordan (Percy Jackson and the Olympians, The Heroes of Olympus. Trails of Apollo). These books are not only awesome adventure and action stories, but they teach SO much about Greek mythology!
If you read these books (read in order listed above!), then you might want to start reading Rick Riordan’s Greek Mythology guides. One is called: Percy Jackson’s Guide to Greek Gods. In this book, Percy Jackson, one of the main characters in Rick Riordan’s books, tells the ancient Greek stories of the gods. He talks about the twelve major gods: Zues, Hera, Dionysus, Artemis, Apollo, Hephaestus, Hermes, Ares, Aphrodite, Athena, Posiedon and Demeter. Percy (Rick Riordan) tells the reader about how all of these gods were said to be born, or created. He also talks about the Greeks' story of the creation of the world. I love these guides because they taught me a lot about Greek mythology. If I were to rate this book I would give it an eight out of ten.
Number two: D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths by Ingri and Edgar Parin D'Aulaire. I received this book for my birthday last year. I remember being so excited.
Reading this book has increased my knowledge about the Greek myths. D’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths tells about Greek Myths in first person. The book is divided into different parts. You can learn about the minor gods and the Olympians (the twelve major gods).
Not only does this wonderful book talk about the gods, but the tales of great heroes like Perseus and Theseus. The reader learns about the tales of the rich kings and lovely princesses and queens. This is why I think this book is a really book to read! If I were to rate this book I would give it a nine out of ten.
Number three: Legendary Ladies by Ann Shen. This is another book I got for my birthday (my friends know me well). Legendary Ladies by Ann Shen is a guide to fifty different goddesses from all around the world. Though there are a lot of Greek goddesses in the book it tells the most well known stories of each goddess. The illustrations are also by Ann Shen. They are extremely beautiful and give the reader a good idea of what people think that goddess looked like (like what the Ancient Greeks thought Athena looked like). If I were to rate this book, I would give it a nine out of ten.
Number four: Greek Myths and Mythical Beasts by Selene Nicolaides. This book is rather thin. Although it is a picture book, it is packed with information. Just like in Legendary Ladies, the illustrations are very detailed. A lot of the pictures are photographs, while others are more detailed and look handwritten. Some of the photographs are of beautiful art work like The Birth of Venus by Sandro Botticelli and Greek vases with You learn about all the Olympians and even some minor gods. The past few book fairs at our school have had this book. Plus, it comes with a pretty cool necklace! If I were to rate this book, I would give it an eight out of ten.
I hope you liked this book recommendation! These are all really good books that I think you should read! Remember, learning this stuff will get you really smart!