The main character, 'Hercules', is a pre-school-aged child in the modern era. His father tells him to 'Play nice', but he answers that he is 'not nice. [He] is strong'. Hercules knocks over a toy monster and scatters toy soldiers. He then knocks down blocks that his little sister is playing with. Hercules is remorseful about making his sister cry. He rebuilds the pyramid of blocks. An image then suggests that his sister is about to knock them over; the story ends with the two reconciled and sharing a hug. A one-page summary of the myth of Hercules' labours follows, written at a somewhat different register, as if for an adult or older child (of c. 4–8).

This book is part of a beautifully illustrated series that creatively transposes ancient myths into the real-life scenarios faced by pre-school-aged children. Subtle ancient-style features are included in the design of each volume in the series: a brightly-coloured Greek key runs vertically along the cover beside the spine; the series name is written on a scroll, with the 'S' of 'myths' written in a jagged, inscription-like style; on the spine, the main character is shown standing upon a Doric column, with the name of the book written on the column, and the image of the character atop a column is repeated in the interior title-page. 

A theme, or moral lesson, is included in each volume in the fore-notes in the style of a dedication. In Play Nice, Hercules!, the dedication is 'To fixing mistakes with strength and kindness.' This plays out in the book through Hercules rebuilding his sister's block pyramid – an act of kindness if not of strength. It is implied that Hercules learns that his strength must be tempered by kindness and consideration. It is arguable that the child characters learn only to counter aggression with aggression, as their relationship is shown to be restored only once the sister knocks down Hercules' pyramid; however the purpose of this analysis is not to discuss the book's effectiveness at communicating moral lessons. Antiquity has provided a model here, with Hercules' destruction of his sister's playthings as a stand-in for ancient Hercules' destruction of his family, while the rebuilding of the toy-block pyramid reflects the labours undertaken in a quest for forgiveness for that act of violence. This connection is reinforced through naïve illustrations upon the blocks which each represent a labour:

• Nemean lion – lion head
• Hydra – snake
• Golden-antlered deer – stag
• Boar – boar's head
• Augean stables – sheep
• Stymphalian birds – blue-bird
• Bull of Crete – long-horn bull
• Diomedes' horses - horse
• Amazon belt – gold-centered belt
• Geryon's cattle - cow
• Golden Apples – apple
• Cerberus – dog

The summary of the myth at the end of the book offers a list of the labours, meaning that even adults who do not immediately recognise the significance of the blocks' illustrations are likely to identify it once they have read the summary. This may simply enrich their experience of the book, or potentially enable them to draw out the significance in conversation with the child-reader.

Other aspects of antiquity are drawn into the illustrations. The monster Hercules strikes is a cyclops, while the toy soldiers that he scatters are depicted in an ancient style, with some open-face plumed helmets and some Corinthian style ones, all holding shields and either swords or spears.

This series introduces very young children to some of the names and images associated with antiquity, preparing them for encountering these images and characters again in different contexts. At a very fundamental level, these books also act on and communicate the idea that ancient mythology contains concepts that can help in children's development – social, moral, and emotional. The families in the books come from a range of ethnicities, with the implication that classical myths can be for anyone, regardless of their ethnic background. Children at the outer edge of the age bracket for these books can also enjoy the summary that comes at the end of the book, which creates the opportunity for an early encounter with the sophisticated concept of characters reappearing in different contexts and stories, and stories working on different levels – things which are likely to stimulate thought and a nuanced approach to stories and story-telling.

Blanshard, Alastair, Hercules, a Heroic Life, London: Granta Books, 2006.

Rawlings, Louis, and Hugh Bowden, Herakles and Hercules. Exploring a Graeco-Roman Divinity, London: Classical Press of Wales, 2005. 

Stafford, Emma, Herakles, London: Routledge, 2012.

Weinlich, Barbara, "The Metanarrative of Picture Books: ‘Reading’ Greek Myth for (and to) Children", in Lisa Maurice, ed., The Reception of Ancient Greece and Rome in Children’s Literature. Heroes and Eagles, Brill: Leiden, 2015.