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Apr 16, 2008

Laura rated it:

Anaxandra is taken from her home island when she is six, so that she can be a companion to Princess Callisto. Six years later, her new home island is attacked by pirates and she is the sole survivor. She takes on the identity of Princess Callisto and is taken to Sparta with King Menelaus. This is how she becomes involved with Menelaus' wife, Helen of Troy, and the following war.

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Dec 16, 2009

Nikki rated it:

Just finished reading this for the second time (April 2008). An absolutely incredible book. Definitely one that should not be judged by its (unfortunate) cover. The research alone that went into the setting of this book makes every page an amazing experience, but I also love love love the characters and the plot is so compelling. I want to read it over and over.

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Jan 03, 2010

Beth added it

A whole new view of Helen of Troy, the woman whose face launched a thousand ships, is delivered through the eyes of Anaxandra, a sailor's daughter masquerading as a princess after being captured by invaders. Not just a pretty face, Helen is a shrewd and poisonous viper, suspicious of the new girl in her home. Anaxandra/Calisto comes to love her new home and makes quick friends, but trying to stay one jump ahead of the lovely yet black-hearted adulteress queen is exhausting. Will her impostering More...

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May 12, 2011

WillowBe rated it:

The cover of my book was much more prosaic- an irish looking red haired girl on the cover. I enjoyed this. Be aware, this is a book for 13 and up. The realities of being female in such a time. The heroine is physicallly still a child, so escapes sexual violence. But her life and livelihood are always tenuous. Characters are murdered, in great detail, cruelty happens, innocents are cast adrift. But given that i have read several Roman/Greek era books, the gritty realism is all part of the " More...

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Apr 21, 2009

Shayla rated it:

I loved this book! It was different from the usual Trojan War books that i've read. One of the main differences is that Helen is a "Bad guy" and that this book sides with the Greeks rather than the trojans.

The book is about Anaxandra, a slave that is brought from her home to a kingdom to play with the king's crippled daughter Callisto. The kingdom is attacked and Anaxandra is the sole survivor. She is found by King Menelaus and is taken to Sparta under the alias of Callisto More...

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Nov 14, 2010

Jessica rated it:

This book confirmed my theory that Helen of Troy was a spoiled ... um ... witch. Just think about this: you've been told your whole life that you are the most beautiful woman alive. That you are the daughter of a god, and more beautiful than the goddesses in heaven. Kidnapped repeatedly by eager suitors, married to a king . . . what kind of person would this make you?

The answer, according to Cooney: a horrible person. A person who thinks the world revolves around you, and doesn't More...

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Aug 20, 2011

Laurie rated it:

I wish I could give this book 4.5 stars. I really enjoyed it. Great story! I loved how the author enterwinded fact with fiction. The book had me on the "edge of my seat" as it were, for the entire last half of the book up to the very last page. She ended it nicely. I wasn't left wanting but the last 50 pages, at least, were intense!

If you are a mythology fan I HIGHLY recommned it!

1 comment like (2 people liked it)

Sep 01, 2009

Sandra rated it:

This engaging and educational retelling of the story of Helen of Troy is told from the point of view of a young (13 years old) captive who has a definite viewpoint on Helen. The novel paints this fatal princess in the most dire of terms as the young captive lives and survives adventures that run the gamut of ancient world experience: watching friends killed, learning to use a sling and to ride, making choices with often far reaching results, communicating with ancient gods, experiencing love. More...

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Mar 08, 2011

Tara rated it:

Absolutely loved this book. Anaxandra's story was engrossing, providing an outsider's view of the Trojan war that managed to balance both the war itself and Anaxandra's own personal story, without it feeling as if either one of these was being favoured. I do have to say that I didn't like how cruel Helen was, and yet, I appreciated the different persepective and the validity of it. I guess I'm just more of a romantic going off in my little fairytale of Helen in a loveless marriage escaping with More...

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Oct 11, 2011

Beth rated it:

Cooney, a prolific and well-known author, has written a gripping historical fiction that captures the life or death adventures of a young teen caught in build-up to the Trojan War (as told in the Illiad). She does an excellent job of showing how the rustic girl matures into a woman, and makes the battle scenes feel breathless and bloody. The blooming romance in the last third of the book is very chaste. Which is fine, since the main action is constant: the heroine struggles to save her life a More...

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Jan 12, 2012

Terri rated it:

Goddess of Yesterday, by Caroline B. Cooney was a pleasant surprise! Beautifully written the pre Trojan war and early days of the Trojan war told through the eyes of Anaxandra, a hostage princess who assumes the identity of Callisto - the dead daughter of the King who took her as hostage.

When fate thrusts her into the care of Menelaus and under the cold, watchful eyes of Helen, Anaxandra is forced to watch every word she speaks, and every action no matter how small.

Ms. Coon More...

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Jul 30, 2009

Gail rated it:

"Taken from her home on an Aegean island as a six-year-old girl, Anaxandra calls on the protection of her goddess while she poses as two different princesses over the next six years, before ending up as a servant in the company of Helen and Paris as they make their way to Troy." And then it gets even more exciting!
I had been avoiding this book because the cover is so bizarre and unappealing. However, I found it a real page-turner and a book that could interest kids who like Th More...

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Jan 01, 2011

Arec rated it:

First off, I should say that I absolutely love Greek mythology. I do not consider myself sufficiently schooled in the subject, but it is a passion of mine. I do not, however, like reading about the Trojan War. Therefore, I was a bit iffy when I request this book from book swap on goodreads.com . After reading it, I was pleased that the novel barely touched on the war.

There are so many thing that I love about this book that I don’t know if I can even fit it all into one review. I norm More...

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Feb 28, 2010

Rebecca rated it:

Anaxandra is the only daughter of the chieftain of a small, unnamed island in the Aegean Sea. When she is just six years old, she is taken as a hostage by Nicander, king of Siphnos. She ends up being companion and friend to his crippled daughter Callisto. Six years later, Siphnos is raided by pirates, and Anaxandra is the only survivor. When Menelaus, king of Sparta, stops his fleet of ships at Siphnos to investigate, Anaxandra lies to save herself. She takes on the identity of the dead princess More...

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May 31, 2011

Silvio rated it:

About the buildup and beginning of the Trojan War, as seen by an obscure pirate's daughter. This main character, separated from her family at the age of six, through a series of misfortunes winds up at Sparta and later Troy under different fake identities. She doesn't conform perfectly to ancient Greek female stereotypes, but gender is not central as it was in Nobody's Princess. The portrayal of Helen is extremely negative, more like in Women of Troy than Homer. In fact, she and Paris are the v More...

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Aug 11, 2009

Dan rated it:

I'm no classicist, but I flatter myself that I know a bit more about ancient Greek history than the average Joe. But Cooney gave me a completely new perspective on the character of Helen, Paris and Menelaus. They became, for want of a better word, believable. As is so often the case, a wonderful book has been relegated to the YA shelves just because the protagonist is a young girl. Don't let that label keep you from reading this excellent tale. [Audiobook note: At first, I thought the narra More...

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Jan 02, 2011

Drianne rated it:

A YA book about the Trojan War from women's perspectives. Why are there so many of these? Anyway, this one was actually really entertaining, even if it did have some silliness about Medusa. The hostage Anaxandra disguises herself as two different princesses during the time just before the Trojan War. Easy read, very entertaining, no irksome errors.

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Apr 11, 2011

Tony rated it:

Being something of a fan of greek myth especially "The Iliad" I enjoyed this quick read because it introduced me to a lot of the central characters of that story. Following Anexandria frome one place, family, crises, even name to another was quite the adventure in itself. A good story about loyalty,identity, family and ones place in the world.

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Jun 22, 2011

Jo rated it:

Excellent story telling skills. I absolutely loved that Anaxandra was fascinated by what names meant throughout the story, and how the author tied that in with her assuming several aliases. I've always been fascinated by the character of Cassandra, and was delighted that she played an integral part to the end of the book.

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May 16, 2008

Kristyn added it

This book is sort of like a historical fiction book because it talks about how a girl is separated from her family and than travels fomr place to place under someone elses name. This book also talks about the trojan war, which i find very interesting. This book portrays Helen(of Greece and Troy) as a mean and very egotistical person. It seems like she is an evil person who cares of nothing but her own pleasure. I find that hard to believe because she was suppose to be a delicate and beautiful wo More...

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Jan 30, 2010

Ashley rated it:

I don't think this book was anything special, but it was entertaining. It's definitely a different side of Helen than is generally painted- she's crazy. The story line was interesting, but there wasn't much depth to the story, or to the characters. It wasn't bad, but it could have been done so much better.

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Jun 21, 2010

Sarah rated it:

Anaxandra takes on the identity of a princess to save herself, right before the Trojan War. This was fabulous. Beautifully imagined and written, wide in scope but tight in plot. It reminded me of The Thief series - it lacked the twists but had all the intrigue and a storyline that grabbed me.

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Jan 22, 2009

Kay rated it:

This was assigned reading for my daughter in 5th grade. She loved it so much that she urged me to read it. I loved it. A good story, well told. Rings true psychologically, and is also a great adventure. Catches you up on the Trojan War if you missed that in school.

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Mar 22, 2009

Celeste rated it:

I didn't realize that this book was about Greek Mythology when I took it home. Actually, I only got it because a friend of mine had read it once. I enjoyed the plot surrounding the main character, which drew lines of fictionalization into Greek Mythology.

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Nov 27, 2010

Corinne rated it:

A nice book containing the first years of the Troian war, the "Iliad", from the viewpoint of a young girl. In this version, Helen is a very hateful person, but nontheless nobody can resist her beauty - even though her character is really bad! Even Anaxandra, the young heroine is thralled by her. The only thing which should have been left out is the love story. I felt that the author just added it to give the story more appeal - but the story is interesting enough without it anyway.

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Dec 02, 2010

Jessica rated it:

I recently read this one over again, and didn't like it as much as I did in early high school. While it was still enjoyable, it was a little strange to see a 12 year old girl acting as mature as Anaxandra did. She seemed way older, and the fact that she had a thing for a man at least double her age near the end was just yuck. And the fact he was in to her! EEEWWW.
Um, anyway.
I kind of wish she had stayed in Menalaus and Helen's court longer, and seen more of Helen hating her t More...

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Apr 15, 2010

Julia rated it:

I totally loved this book, it was great learning even more than I already knew about Greek Mythology, and getting a different opinion of the usually, "sweet and innocent," Helen. I totally loved Anaxandra, she was so brave!

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Jul 31, 2009

Maya rated it:

this book is soooooooooooooooooooooooo good! i read it last yr. its knda long, but i <3ed it. its adventure/romance. its about this girl whos dad is a pirate and she gets stolen and i dont want to ruin it, so just read it!

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Dec 01, 2008

Michele rated it:

This has a Greek mythology background and is set in the time of Helen of Troy. I haven't read much of this time period before but I really liked it. It's a young adult novel too so it's clean and easy to read.

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Dec 01, 2011

Kristyn rated it:

What an amazing book! I bought this book for a buck and now I can't wait to read more from this author. The story kept my attention, was simple to follow, and the characters were well rounded and fully developed.

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