Hercules (World Mythology Series)

Children's Literature

As part of the World Mythology series, Capstone Press has put together a wonderful collection of six books that highlights some of the more well-known Greek and Roman mythological characters. This commentary on Hercules tells the story of this war hero, believed by the Greeks and Romans to be the strongest man who ever lived and who became the go who granted people luck on their quests. A basic overview on mythology, past and present, is also provided, along with pictures of famous drawings and artifacts, a glossary, a further study section, and a map of Ancient Greece. Overall, this is a great way to introduce young readers to the world of mythology and how early man explained many of the phenomena happening in the world around them. It also gives readers insight into where certain perspectives, clichés, and beliefs that are still prevelant in our culture today came from. 2003, Capstone Press, Ages 10 up.
— Sheree Van Vreede

School Library Journal

Gr 3-5-Each volume introduces its subject, gives information about the Greek and Roman pantheons, tells a few stories about the god or hero in question, and finishes with brief sections on "Mythology Today." The titles have a two-item list for further reading, a Web site (the same one in all three books), and an index so abbreviated as to be functionally useless. Each page of text is matched with a full-page illustration, generally either a classical piece of sculpture or a period painting. For example, Zeus features artwork by Paul Cezanne, Benvenuto Cellini, and Dante Gabriel Rossetti, among others. The prose is generally clear but somewhat lackluster, and though the information is adequate to introduce these figures, there is relatively little background on the cultures that produced them, leaving the myths without a firm cultural context. The glossaries contain 9 or 10 terms, most of which are defined in context. Attractive and nonthreatening, these are acceptable introductory books. Their greatest utility may lie in moving students on to more complex treatments of Greek and Roman mythology such as Fiona Macdonald's Gods and Goddesses in the Daily Life of the Ancient Greeks (2002) and Peter Hicks's Gods and Goddesses in the Daily Life of the Ancient Romans (2003, both Peter Bedrick).-Ann Welton, Grant Elementary School, Tacoma, WA Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.