Category: | Our Mythical Childhood Survey

Shoo Rayner

Jump for Glory is the third in author-illustrator Shoo Rayner’s Olympia series of chapter books, which show what life was like for ordinary children in Ancient Greece. It features a boy named Olly, whose father runs the gymnasium where the great athletes train, and who dreams of being an Olympic champion. In Jump for Glory, Olly and Spiro (his ‘arch-enemy’) watch the athlete Makedon practising the long-jump: he runs, holding a large stone in each hand, then as he(...)

literary

YEAR: 2011

COUNTRY: United Kingdom

TAGS: Olympia Sinis Theseus

Kate McMullan , Denis Zilber

Stop that Bull, Theseus! (Myth-O-Mania, 5)

This is the fifth book in the Myth-O-Mania series. In this series, Hades is the narrator who promises to tell the whole truth about the Greek myth; he claims that his brother Zeus is a myth-o-maniac (that is, a liar) and that he fabricated the myths and wrote his version so that he and his children will appear noble and praiseworthy. In this book, Hades reveals the truth behind the myth of Theseus and the Minotaur. Hades claims that the Minotaur was actually Zeus’ grandson (Pasiphae w(...)

literary

YEAR: 2012

COUNTRY: United Kingdom

TAGS: Aegeus Aethra Ariadne Cupid Daedalus Dionysus / Dionysos Furies Hades Icarus Labyrinth Medea Minos Minotaur Poseidon Procrustes Sciron Sinis Zephyrus Zeus

Robert Byrd

The Hero and the Minotaur: The Fantastic Adventures of Theseus

In this lavishly illustrated story of the ‘adventures of Theseus and his friends’ (endpapers), Robert Byrd explains the origins of Theseus’s birth and childhood, watched over by the sea-god Poseidon. His exploits as a child include standing up to Heracles, who enters the city of Troezen clad in the skin of a lion and lifting the boulder to find the golden sandals and sword of his father, King Aegeus (pp. 5–6). Excited by adventure, and the dream of meeting his father, The(...)

literary

YEAR: 2005

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Aegeus Aethra Ariadne Cercyon Daedalus Dionysus / Dionysos Icarus Minos Minotaur Poseidon Sciron Sinis Talos (Automaton) Theseus

Crispin Boyer, Andrew Elkerton

The Maze of the Menacing Minotaur (Zeus the Mighty, 2)

This book continues to follow the adventures of Zeus the hamster, Demeter the grasshopper, Athena the cat, Ares the pug, and Poseidon the pufferfish, who live at the Mount Olympus Pet Center in Athens, Georgia (Book 1). The store’s caretaker, Artemis (or Artie), listens to the "Greeking Out" podcast which retells the story of Theseus and the Minotaur and our furry friends listen to it as the wise words of the oracle and prepare for action.In this instalment, the group is battling(...)

literary

YEAR: 2020

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Ares Ariadne Athena Chronos Demeter Harpies Minotaur Olympus Periphetes Phineus Poseidon Sinis Theseus Zeus

Geraldine McCaughrean

Theseus

The book unfolds the adventurous life of the Athenian hero Theseus from his birth to his old age. We learn of his different exploits and acts of bravery (slaying giants, fighting the Minotaur), as well as his mistakes and flawed relationship with others (the Amazon queen Hippolyta, his son). Through the story of Theseus expedition to Crete, to fight the Minotaur, two more characters are introduced, Daedalus and Icarus. Their story, especially their fatal flight is interwoven with Theseus’ (...)

literary

YEAR: 2003

COUNTRY: United States of America

TAGS: Aegeus Aethra Ariadne Athena Athens Crete Crommyonian Sow Dionysus / Dionysos Heracles Hercules Hermes Hippolyta Hippolytus Icarus Labyrinth Medea Medes Minos Minotaur Periphetes Phaedra Poseidon Sciron Sinis Theseus Zeus

Natalia Kapatsoulia, Filippos Mandilaras

Theseus [Ο Θησέας (O Thīséas)]

This book aims to educate young learners about Theseus, presenting episodes from Theseus' life in a compact and entertaining manner. The textual and visual narrative starts with Theseus’ parents, Aegeus and Aethra, and ends with the hero’s long rule as a wise king of Athens. The plot unfolds like a fairy tale, appropriate for a story about the four kings mentioned: Aegeus, Theseus, Pittheus, and Minos. There is constant action, and we move on swiftly from one event to(...)

literary

YEAR: 2008

COUNTRY: Greece

TAGS: Aegeus Aethra Ariadne Athens Crete Marathon Midas Periphetes Procrustes Sciron Sinis Sounion Troezen