Category: | Our Mythical Childhood Survey

Johnny Capps , Julian Murphy, Howard Overman

Jason, a twenty-first-century young man in search of his lost father, travels in a submarine through an under-ocean portal and ends up on the shores of the ancient city of Atlantis ruled by King Minos. He befriends a yet unrecognized mathematical genius/geek Pythagoras and a prizefighter past his prime, Hercules. In this version of the Minotaur myth, victims for the monster are picked from among the inhabitants of the city in a lottery. Pythagoras draws a black stone, but his friends try to save(...)

audiovisual

YEAR: 2013

COUNTRY: United Kingdom

TAGS: Admetus Aeson Alcestis Anabasis Ariadne Ariadne’s brother Atalanta Baby Oedipus Baucis Cassandra Circe Daedalus Destiny Destiny – prophecies, attempts to cheat them Furies Hecate / Hekate Heptarian Heracles / Herakles Hercules High priest of Poseidon Icarus Jason Jason’s mother Jocasta Katabasis Laius Medea Medusa Melas Melas’ adoptive daughter Minos Minotaur Oedipus Oracle of Poseidon Oracles Orpheus Pandora’s Box Pasiphae Pasiphae’s nephew Philemon Pythagoras Tartarean Campe Telamon Thanatos Therus Tiresias Underworld Underworld – souls of the dead

Séverin Millet, Michel Piquemal

Fabulous Mythological Tales [Récits fabuleux de la mythologie]

The book begins with two short introductions (each signed separately by the author, clearly a reprint of the introductions published in the two-volume first edition) explaining why the author decided not to rely on various mythologies but rather go back directly to sources, i.e. to ancient authors who transmitted mythological stories. As a result, Michel Piquemal produced a collection of myths divided in two parts (volumes in the 2006 editions): Des héros et des monstres [Heroes and Monst(...)

literary

YEAR: 2006

COUNTRY: France

TAGS: Amphitryon Arachne Ariadne Atalanta Bellerophon Daphne Demeter Europa Greek mythology Heracles / Herakles Icarus Io Leda Lernaean Hydra Midas Myths of origin Narcissus Oedipus Orpheus Pandora Paris Pegasus Penelope Perseus Phaethon Prometheus Psyche Pygmalion Pyramus Sisyphus Theseus Thisbe Zeus

Robert (Bob) Blaisdell, John Green

Favorite Greek Myths: In Easy-to-Read Type

This short anthology of Greek myth is divided into six chapters, with mini sub-chapters within these. 1. Gods and Titans – The stories of Kronos and Ouranos and of Zeus’ war with the Titans.The Story of Prometheus: How Prometheus stole fire and Pandora opened the box. The Story of Persephone: The abduction of Persephone. 2. Hercules – How Hercules carried out labours to become immortal. 3. Heroes and Monsters – Divided into multiple hero stor(...)

literary

YEAR: 1995

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Achilles Agamemnon Ariadne Athena/ Athene Bellerophon Daedalus Echo Epimetheus Eurydice Hades Helen Heracles / Herakles Hercules Icarus Jason Jocasta Kronos / Cronus Medea Medusa Minotaur Narcissus Odysseus/ Ulysses Oedipus Orestes Orpheus Pandora Paris Pegasus Penelope Persephone Perseus Prometheus Theseus Zeus

Andrey Valentinov

Gray Kite [Серый коршун]

Nurgal-Sin, the main character, a Babylonian mercenary ("a gray kite”, which is, according to Valentinov, a name for Babylonian elite troops), has almost forgotten his true name, Cleoterus, as well as his native country, Achiyava (Valentinov uses the Mycenaean form of toponym, with digamma). The well-trained and highly-experienced officer has too few good memories of his native land to feel nostalgia: he was sold into slavery as a small child. However, he suddenly finds himself to be (...)

literary

YEAR: 2000

COUNTRY: Russia

TAGS: Electra Hades Hereditary curse Human sacrifices Laius Mycenae Oedipus Orestes Poseidon Zeus

Ryan Madison

Hercules’ First Six Tasks: Short Stories Teens to Young Adult

In this installment we have a part of Hercules’ adventures mixed with other historical figures such as Alexander the great. There is no decisive chronological development for the narrative. Hercules receives different tasks from Zeus and on the way he meets all kind of people, such as the mysterious King Phillip, the king of his home-land; he also meets Helen and Alexander, and Oedipus’ family.(...)

literary

YEAR: 2013

COUNTRY: Australia

TAGS: Alcmene Alexander Antigone Augean Stables Deianeira Erymanthian Boar Eurystheus Hades Helen Helios Hera Heracles / Herakles Hercules Hippolyta Hydra Iolaos Nemean lion Oedipus Omphale Sphinx Stymphalian Birds Thespius Zeus

Lisl Weil

King Midas’ Secret and Other Follies

An illustrated retelling for children of four key Greek myths: King Midas’ Secret; Narcissus; Icarus; The Sphinx. Each story is retold as a humorous cautionary tale. The introduction emphasizes the strangeness of ancient Greece, with speaking flowers and fabulous beasts, and "When the gods came down from Mount Olympus, life in this strange land became even stranger. You could never be sure the bull you saw was not a god in disguise. But the people were the same as they are today. Some(...)

literary

YEAR: 1969

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Apollo Daedalus Icarus Midas Narcissus Oedipus Pan Sphinx

Caroline S. Ewing , Shari Lewis

One Minute Greek Myths

This is a picture book anthology for young readers which presents key figures from classical mythology. The introduction implies the stories are meant to be read aloud to children by parents. The tone and word choice are fun, light and simple. Modern slang and pop cultural references are used to make the stories more relatable to the audience. Every chapter has one to four brightly coloured illustrations. Most chapters are two pages long, with the idea presumably being that each can be read in o(...)

literary

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Arachne Ariadne Daedalus Echo Hercules Icarus Jason Juno Jupiter Medea Medusa Midas Minerva Narcissus Oedipus Perseus Pluto Prosperina Theseus

Nicolas Presl

Priape

The story is set in Greco-Roman times. A child is born to a family living in the city. It is a boy with an extremely large penis – the family is horrified. The father orders the newborn Priapus to be abandoned in the wild. A shepherd finds the boy and decides to rise him together with his own son. Unfortunately for the boy, he is mistreated by his foster father and bullied by his foster brother. On top of that, the foster brother wins the heart of a girl that Priapus is attracted to. In de(...)

literary

YEAR: 2006

COUNTRY: Switzerland

TAGS: Anagnorisis Antigone Greek homosexuality Greek mythology Greek religion Greek tragedy Oedipus Priapus

Eric Freeberg, Diane Namm

Roman Myths

Retelling of classic Roman myths meant for ages 7-9 with one illustration per story. Following the stories, the author includes questions for discussion about each story. The stories in the book:The Oak and the Linden TreePrometheus and IoAtlas and the Eleventh Labor of HerculesRomulus and RemusEscape from TroyThe Golden BoughCupid and PsycheMinerva and ArachneOedipus and the SphinxOtus and Ephialtes(...)

literary

YEAR: 2014

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Aeneas Aeolus Amulius Apollo Arachne Atlas Baucis Carthage Cerberus Ceres Charon Crete Cupid Dei Consentes Diana Dido Elysian Fields Ephialtes Faustulus Field of Mourning Garden of Hesperides Golden Bough Greeks Harpies Heracles / Herakles Hercules Io Italy Janus Juno Jupiter Lares Lemure Loba Manes Mars Mercury Minerva Neptune Numina Numitor (King) Nymphs Oedipus Otus Ovid Penates Philemon Prometheus Psyche Remus Rhea Roman mythology Rome Romulus Saturn Sibyl of Cumae Sphinx Styx Temple of Vesta Thebes Titans Trojan Horse (wooden) Troy Twelve Labours of Heracles Underworld Venus Vesta Vulcan

Marisa De Castro, Mark Weinstein

Shall we go to Delphi? [Pame stous Delfous?]

Here we have a guide to Delphi in central Greece, one of the most sacred locations for the ancient Greeks (my translation), as we read in the opening page. Mythology, archaeology and art history feature prominently in this booklet, accounting for the site’s significance. (...)

literary

YEAR: 2009

COUNTRY: Greece

TAGS: Antinoos Apollo Artemis Asclepius / Asklepios Biton Charioteer Daphne Hadrian Kastallia Spring Kleobis Korai Kouroi Leto Oedipus Omphalos Orpheas Pan Phaethon Polyzalos Pythia Sphinx Stadion Temple of Athena Polias Theatre Themistocles Tholos Zeus

Christophe Blain, Joann Sfar

Socrates the Half-Dog (Series): Heracles [Socrate le demi-chien. Héraclès] / Odysseus [Ulysse] / Oedipus in Corinth [Œdipe à Corinthe]

A trilogy about a special super-hero, Socrates, the half-dog, half-philosopher, whose father was a dog belonging to Zeus and whose master was Heracles. Each of the volumes centres on a different mythological hero: the first on Heracles, the second on Ulysses, the third on Oedipus.Socrates’ powers make him similar to humans – he can think, talk, and even read, while claiming that his philosophy is based on doing nothing – eating when hungry, sleeping when sleepy, and following t(...)

literary

YEAR: 2002 / 2004 / 2009

COUNTRY: France

TAGS: Athena/ Athene Circe Corinth Cyclops / Cyclopes Destiny Heracles / Herakles Ithaca Odysseus/ Ulysses Oedipus Penelope Poseidon Socrates Telemachus Twelve Labours of Heracles Zeus

Sharona Guri

Stories from the Greek Theatre [Sipurim Mehatheatron hayevany, סיפורים מהתיאטרון היווני]

The book offers a selection of synopses of Greek dramas , as well as an explanation about Greek theatre, including information about tragedy and comedy and different definitions relating to the theatre). There is even an historical background of 5th century BCE Athens in order to place the plays in their correct historical settings.The plays are divided by dramatist and each has his own introduction: Aeschylus: Prometheus Bound; Agamemnon; The Suppliants; Seven against Thebes. Sophocles: (...)

literary

YEAR: 1996

COUNTRY: Israel

TAGS: Aeschylus Agamemnon Antigone Aristophanes Cassandra Creon Eteocles Euripides Haemon Io Iphigenia / Iphigeneia Ismene Jason Lysistrata Medea Oedipus Plutus Polynices Prometheus Sophocles Tiresias Zeus

Terry Denton

Story Maze (Series, Book 2): The Eye of Ulam

The second in the Storymaze series follows the surfing adventures of Nico, Claudia and Mikey through parallel worlds and across the universe. Nico is competing in the World Surfing Championships against a surfer named Hercules, when help is requested by their Duryllium friend Icon, who is in the midst of a battle with his brother Vidor over the throne of their kingdom. They find and save Icon, who has been blinded and left for dead on the battlefield and take him to a gingerbread cottage in the (...)

literary

YEAR: 2001

COUNTRY: Australia

TAGS: Ammit Blindness Chorus Cyclops / Cyclopes Ganesha Gods Graeae Sisters Hercules Horus Ithaca Maze Nike Oedipus Olympic style games Prometheus Quest Ra Sisyphus Underworld

TED , Tim Hansen, Melanie Sirof

TED-Ed Lessons Worth Sharing, Series Behind the Curtain: 1) Music and Creativity in Ancient Greece / 2) The Battle of the Greek Tragedies

Music and Creativity in Ancient GreeceThe video states that contemporary society is obsessed with music – it is present in our religion, entertainment, emotional expression. Things worked this way also for ancient Greeks, even more so, as importance of music in their lives makes us “tame by comparison.” Then the ancient myth about Muses is introduced: they were the deities inspiring the artists and each of them had a specific area of interest, which included not only musical ar(...)

ephemeral

YEAR: 2013

COUNTRY: Online

TAGS: Aeschylus Athens Chorus Greek music Greek theatre Greek tragedy Muses Music Mythology Number of actors Oedipus Philocles Poetry Sophocles Thespis

Ola Rotimi

The Gods Are Not to Blame

A first baby, male, is born to king Adetusa and Queen Ojuola of Kutuje. As tradition demands, they take him to the shrine of Ogun for blessings and for the divination of his future. Baba Fakunle, a purblind great seer who is called in for the divination pronounces: “This boy, he will kill his father and then marry his mother”. To avoid these evil events in the land, and with the consent of the parents, the priest of Ogun ties the boy’s legs with a string of cowries and hands hi(...)

literary

YEAR: 1971

COUNTRY: United Kingdom

TAGS: Incest Oedipus Sophocles

Sulari Gentill

The Hero Trilogy (Series, Book 2): Trying War

Following immediately from the events of Chasing Odysseus, the second book of the trilogy, Trying War, continues the adventures of the young Hero and her adopted brothers, Machaon, Lycon and Cadmus. When they arrive home to rejoin the Herdsmen who live outside Troy, they find Mount Ida under attack by Amazons. The warrior women take Hero captive; a new journey begins as her brothers set out to rescue her, taking with them the nymph Oenone, Paris’ abandoned wife, and the wolf Lupa who had s(...)

literary

YEAR: 2012

COUNTRY: Australia

TAGS: Absyrtus Aeëtes Alcippe Amazons Ares Deideimara Electra Eumenides Furies Hecate / Hekate Iphigenia / Iphigeneia Jason Lykomedes Medea Oedipus Oenone Orestes Pan Pantheon Paris Poseidon Theseus Troy

Wisecrack , Jared Bauer, Greg Edwards, Jacob Salamon, Joseph Salvaggio

Thug Notes (series): Homer’s Odyssey / Dante’s Inferno / Oedipus The King / Julius Caesar by Shakespeare

Homer’s OdysseyThe video, introduced as “keepin it epic with Homer’s Odyssey,” starts with the briefest possible – and undoubtfully colloquial expression-rich – synopsis of the poem: how Odysseus (presented, as all the other characters, with the use of photographs of ancient sculptures) was absent for 20 years from Ithaca, where his son Telemachus and “sexy wife Penelope,” harassed by “108 shady hustlas,” were waiting for him; how Calyp(...)

ephemeral

YEAR: 2013

COUNTRY: Online

TAGS: Athena/ Athene Brutus Classical reception Classical tradition Homer Julius Caesar Katabasis Odysseus/ Ulysses Oedipus Penelope Poseidon Roman republic Sophocles Thebes Tragedy Virgil