Country: Italy | Our Mythical Childhood Survey

Manuela Adreani

Aesop’s Fables includes twenty fables drawn from Aesop, accompanied by Adreani’s surrealistic and dreamy paintings.* The collection features less famous stories, including The Fox and the Donkey in a Lion’s Skin, The Lion and the Stag at the Spring, and The Frogs Ask for a King, rather than the widely known fables, such as The Hare and the Tortoise, The Lion and the Mouse, and Town Mouse and Country Mouse. Foxes, donkeys, lions, frogs, and various species of birds feature in mo(...)

literary

YEAR: 2017

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Aesop Aesop’s Fables Aetiology Zeus

Emanuele Luzzati , Gianni Rodari

Atalanta. A Maiden in Greece of Gods and Heroes [Atalanta. Una fanciulla nella Grecia degli dei e degli eroi]

Atalanta. A Maiden in Greece of Gods and Heroes is an illustrated children’s novel in which Gianni Rodari recounts the myth of Atalanta by combining a respectful reading of the tradition with a rewriting imbued with his characteristic fervent imagination. The protagonist of this story is Atalanta, daughter of King Iasus of Arcadia, who is repudiated at birth and abandoned on a mountain by order of her father who desired a male heir to the throne. Little Atalanta is saved and suckled b(...)

literary

YEAR: 1982

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Argonauts Atalanta Calydonian Boar Diana Golden Fleece Hercules Jason Medea

Hugo Pratt

Corto Maltese. The Golden House of Samarkand (Corto Maltese, 7)

The Maltese adventures typically involve a mission to locate an item of some sort within a challenging environment. In this, the seventh instalment in the series, Corto has heard tell of a manuscript by Lord George Byron the poet which Byron's friend, Edward Trelawny, hid on the island of Rhodes. Corto is on Rhodes to retrieve the manuscript. He locates it without too much difficulty and it contains a map to the "Great Gold" - the treasure of Alexander the Great, which is in the Go(...)

literary

YEAR: 1974

COUNTRY: France Italy

TAGS: Alexander the Great Architecture Bible Cassandra Golden Fleece Greek History Jason Narcissus

Giorgio Cavazzano , Gigi Proietti, Alessandro Sisti

Donald Duck and the Ducks of Capitoline Hill [Paperino e le papere del Campidoglio] (Mickey Mouse [Topolino], 2144)

The edition used in this entry was the Portuguese version.Paperino e le papere del Campidoglio is a stand-alone story which forms part of the Topolino (Mickey Mouse) series released in Italy in 1996. The story begins with a close up of Donald Duck dressed in Roman armour and guarding a statue of “Margarida Formosus”* while some tourists in the background visit the area. The story then progresses to the modern day. We find Donald Duck doing household chores while hearing his(...)

literary

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Barbarians Capitoline Hill Centurion Narcissus Praetorian Guard Temple of Jupiter Capitolinus

Cinzia Bigazzi, Celina Elmi

Homer for Fun: The Odyssey [Omero per gioco – L'Odissea]

This book is part of the Le Novelle della Cipolla series, which provides abridged myths accompanied by lavish illustrations. This book relates the voyage of Odysseus (called in the book by his Roman name, Ulysses), from the end of the Trojan War till his safe return to Ithaca. After opening with the council of the gods, the story follows Telemachus and Penelope and we first meet Odysseus on Calypso’s island. Thus the narrative follows the plot of the Homeric epic quite closely. Odysseus is(...)

literary

YEAR: 2010

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Aeolus Athena Calypso Charybdis Circe Odysseus / Ulysses Penelope Polyphemus Poseidon Scylla Telemachus Tiresias Zeus

Riccardo Francaviglia

Myths in Sicily: Thunderbolts 2 [I miti in Sicilia: I fulmini, 2]

This book (the second of a 2-book series) explores the Greek myths that are found in Sicily. The myths narrated in this volume are: the abduction of Persephone and the creation of the seasons; Arethusa and Alpheus; stories about Heracles: his birth and the creation of the Milky way when he bites Hera’s breast, his struggle with Erice and his tasks to bring the golden apples and Cerberus; the birth of Hephaestus; the escape of Daedalus and Icarus.The focus is on the Sicilian connections to (...)

literary

YEAR: 2015

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Alpheus Arethusa Artemis Cocalus Daedalus Demeter Erice Hades Hephaestus Hera Heracles Hercules Icarus Labyrinth Minos Persephone Thetis

Riccardo Francaviglia

Myths in Sicily: Thunderbolts I [I miti in Sicilia: I fulmini, 1]

This book (the first of a 2-books series) explores the Greek myths that are found in Sicily. The myths narrated in this volume are: the creation of the world and the struggle between Titans, Gods and Giants; Odysseus in Sicily (Polyphemus, Aeolus, Scylla and Charybdis); Daphnis and Nomia; Artemis and Orion; Acis and Galatea. The focus is on the Sicilian connections to the myths (places, natural phenomena). Each story is accompanied by an illustration and also includes extra information boxe(...)

literary

YEAR: 2015

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Acis Athena Cronus / Kronos Daphnis Gaia / Gaea Galatea Heracles Hercules Nomia Odysseus / Ulysses Ouranos / Uranus Polyphemus Rhea Zeus

Manuela Adreani

Odyssey [Odissea]

The book is based on the plot of the original Homeric epic – it is the story of Odysseus, who after the fall of Troy wanders the seas trying to come back to his home island of Ithaca. At the same time on Ithaca, Odysseus’ son Telemachus and his wife – Penelope, are struggling with the suitors who attempt to force the Queen into re-marriage. Telemachus decides to leave Ithaca to find some news about his father. Odissea in the adaptation of Giorgio Ferrero, presents the same thre(...)

literary

YEAR: 2016

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Aeolus Antinoos (Penelope's Suitor) Argos (Dog) Athena Calypso Charybdis Circe Cyclops / Cyclopes Demodocus Eumaeus / Eumaios Eurymachus Helen Hermes Iros / Arnaios Ithaca Laertes Menelaus Nausicaa Nestor Odysseus / Ulysses Odyssey Ogygia Olympus Penelope Polyphemus Poseidon Pylos Scylla Sirens Sparta Tiresias Trojan Horse Troy Zeus

Celina Elmi, Valentina Orlando

Ovid for Fun, vol. 1: The Labyrinth of the Minotaur, Daedalus and Icarus [Ovidio per Gioco, 1: Il labirinto del Minotauro, Dedalo e Icaro]

At the beginning of the book, there is an index of characters with accompanying pictures and a short description. This book focuses on the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur and on Daedalus’ escape from Crete with his son, Icarus. With the story of Daedalus and Icarus, the author begins her narrative with a lesser-known part of the myth, with Daedalus, who is envious of his nephew Acale’s talent, pushes him off a cliff. Athena intervenes and turns the boy into a partridge. Daedalu(...)

literary

YEAR: 2012

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Ariadne Bacchus Daedalus Icarus Labyrinth Minos Minotaur Theseus

Carlo Lorenzini, Enrico Mazzanti

The Adventures of Pinocchio. Story of a Puppet [Le avventure di Pinocchio. Storia di un burattino]

The Adventures of Pinocchio. Story of a Puppet narrates the quest of a wooden animated marionette, Pinocchio. It all starts with the best known incipit of all time: “Once upon a time, there was… “A king!” my little readers will say right away. No children, you are wrong. Once upon a time there was a piece of wood.” *And so, we are at once catapulted into the shop of a carpenter, Master Antonio, called Master Cherry because the tip of his nose was always (...)

literary

YEAR: 1883

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Aesop Aesop’s Fables Apuleius Demiurge Lucian of Samosata Metamorphosis Plato

Sabina Colloredo , La Tram

The Beauty of Medusa and the Other Faces of the Myth [La bellezza di Medusa e gli altri volti del mito]

The Beauty of Medusa and the Other Faces of the Myth is an illustrated children’s novel which retells some of the most popular myths from an unusual point of view. It is divided into six short chapters, where the author gives voice – in the order of appearance – to Medusa, Minotaur, Pandora, Polyphemus, Persephone, and Phaeton, all of whom tell their story first-hand. Medusa grows up with an alcoholic violent father, described as a monstrous being, and a beautiful but surl(...)

literary

YEAR: 2019

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Acis Aphrodite Ariadne Athena Clymene Demeter Epimetheus Eros Galatea Hades Helios Medusa Minos Minotaur Oceanus / Okeanos Odysseus / Ulysses Pandora Persephone Perseus Phaethon Polyphemus Poseidon Theseus Zeus

Celina Elmi, Valentina Orlando

The Iliad: Homer for Fun [L'Iliade – Omero per gioco]

As is it noted on the book’s cover, “this series of abridged books certainly doesn’t intend to replace the originals of the classics they represent, but rather aims to render them accessible and attractive for young people (and… also not-so-young)”. This is a perfect summary of the series, which incorporates the mythical stories with the help of visually attractive and highly colorful illustrations on each page; the text is written on top of these paintings which c(...)

literary

YEAR: 2014

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Achilles Agamemnon Aphrodite Apollo Athena Hector Hecuba Helen Hera Menelaus Paris (Trojan Prince) Patroclus Poseidon Priam Thetis Zeus

Laura Paoletti , Ali Smith

The Story of Antigone [La Storia di Antigone]

Ali Smith’s The Story of Antigone follows the familiar plot of the play by Sophocles. Prior to the beginning of the play, Antigone’s brothers, Eteocles and Polyneices, are leading the opposing sides in the Theban civil war. The two brothers kill each other at the same time and Creon declares that Eteocles was the rightful king of Thebes and will be honoured and that Polyneices is a rebel and will be denied holy rites of burial. After the death of her brother, Antigone goes against th(...)

literary

COUNTRY: Italy

TAGS: Antigone Chorus Creon Eteocles Fate Gods Haemon Ismene Polyneices / Polynices Sophocles