This book is really helping me round out my knowledge of Greek myths. I never get tired of reading about Theseus & the Minotaur, or Perseus & Medusa, or the stories of Artemis or Dionysus. But there were so many stories that I was unfamiliar with too! I read about Bellerophon, who tamed Pegasus with the help of Athena, and fought the Chimera, a fire-breathing beast. The book carries such wonderful details, like this: 'The Chimera hissed like a serpent, bleated like a goat, and as she opened wide her lion's jaws to roar, he thrust the lump of lead down her throat. Her flaming breath melted the lead and it trickled into her stomach and killed her.' I also loved the story of Melampus, Bellerophon's cousin, who was known for his kindness to animals. The story accounts that the animals 'licked his ears so clean that he could understand the language of all animals'. I loved the more sensitive stories, like that of Selene, who is the moon. This book just captures the sentiments so perfectly with its illustrations & descriptions. 'Slowly she drove her milk-white horses across the sky, and her pale moonbeams fell gently on the sleeping earth...'. One of my favorite illustrations is that of Pandora's page. The beautiful colored pencil drawings reveal the things that escaped from the box: drudgery, scheming, old age, distrust, lies, envy, accusation, despair, deceit, scolding, fibs, gossip...etc. I also love the colorful illustration of Aphrodite, being born out of the sea foam over a beautiful sunset.

Pure awesomeness radiates from this book. HAVE TO HAVE IT!!!!!!!!!!!It has beautiful artwork, the details are amazing, and now that i've read this book, I'm crazy about greek mythology.

I remember a version of this anthology being around when I was a child- many, many moons ago. A wonderful overview of the many stories and personalities of the colorful dieties that graced the top of Mount Olympus and the lands below and beneath it. Perhaps a bit much for the very young, but a good overview for the older kids. With beautiful pictures throughout, we are introduced to Hermes, Aphrodite and Mercury, and the exciting tales of Hercules as well as the woeful story of Daedulus and his overconfident son, Icarus. This is an excellent way to introduce a child to where those many new versions of the old myths came from. ( )

This was my introduction to Greek mythology, and the things in this book stayed with me through high school, college and even grad school. When I got this book as a gift in fifth grade, I became obsessed with the Greek myths, read it over and over until I had them memorized, and then read them again. The cover began to tear away and the spine began to crack, so it didn't make the journey with me to Chicago, but this book will always be one of my childhood favorites. ( )

The bright colors were really nice, but the images were so steroetypical for mythology. I like giving the children more alternative images and stories and also more opportunity to lead the children with their own imaginations.