This retelling of classic Greek myths is given a fresh spin and an interesting slant as the stories are told to Little Owl by her grandpa as they take flight over the sites where the stories take place - their own journey an added tale to the collection of classics retold within.
The idea of the tales being told on a journey follows on from a map of Ancient Greece at the start detailing their route, and is continued in sections that separate the tales within into geographical locations: Athens, Mount Parnassus, Across the Sea and even into The underworld, as we learn about the legends, characters, monsters and myths that they encounter and which occur along the way.
The story is cleverly separated, with the narration of the journey story of grandpa and Little Owl in a different font to the retellings of the classic myths themselves, and the beautiful illustrations, maps, family trees and borders adding colour and detail to the stories throughout. The stories themselves are retold in vivid descriptive detail, and in language more accessible than many versions of the tales provide - a great introduction to these legendary tales for younger readers to enjoy.
A wonderful compendium of classic tales in an enchantingly attractive and accessible format - this is a beautiful and already popular addition to my classroom library, loved by both this teacher and children alike!!
Thanks to Flying Eye books for the review copy of this book - their website is https://flyingeyebooks.com/ and they are on Twitter as @FlyingEyeBooks
Author Dr. Marchella Ward is on Twitter as @LuxMea
Illustrator Sander Berg can be found as @sanderdraws and at www.sanderdraws.co.uk
Review by Rich Simpson (@richreadalot) September 2020