The Adventures Of Odysseus

by Neil Philip, Peter Malone (Illustrations)

Retells the adventures of the hero Odysseus as he encounters many monsters and other obstacles on his journey home from the Trojan War.

Genres: Greek Mythology, Fiction, Childrens, Mythology, Classics

80 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1997

About the author

Neil Philip is a writer, folklorist and poet. He is married to the artist Emma Bradford, and lives in the Cotswolds, England. Neil loves words, poetry, and the art of storytelling in all its forms. Among his many books are A Fine Anger, Victorian Village Life, The Cinderella Story, The Penguin Book of English Folktales, Mythology (with Philip Wilkinson), The Great Mystery, War and the Pity of War, The New Oxford Book of Childrens Verse, The Tale of Sir Gawain, Horse Hooves & Chicken Feet, and The Adventures of Odysseus. Neil has contributed to numerous journals, including The Times, and Signal: Approaches to Childrens Books, and has also written for stage, screen, and radio. His work has won numerous awards and honours, including the Aesop Award of the American Folklore Society and the Literary Criticism Book Award of the Childrens Literature Association. Outside of the storied world, Neil is passionate about cats, art, music, France, food & wine, and friendship.

Reviews

[❅ Lyn Nguyen · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was written well! But the more I learn about greek mythology the more I'm wondering why we even bother reading it!! I honestly don't like Odysseus. I've read many versions of The Odyssey though I'm glad that this one was much cleaner of a read!

[John Rimmer · Rating 3 out of 5]

Read it to the boys, and it was enjoyed by all. Led to a few "adult conversations" regarding Odysseus' moral flaws and sexual deviancies (shacking up with two different goddesses while claiming to be pushed forward on his quest due to his love for his wife Penelope...not buying it).

[Helen · Rating 5 out of 5]

I am preparing for my Greek Trip next July, so I will visit the classics as well as other novels set in Greece.
Odysseus is a true hero, demonstrating the grace of one who serves Zeus. He won the war against Troy and longed to go home. Yet, on the way home, he was still quite confident in his own strength and in one battle harmed Poseidon’s son, a Cyclops. Therefore, Poseidon cursed him for having struggles the entire way home. At each storm and beached place, Odysseus uses wisdom and leans on the graces of hospitality. He finally reaches home and there with his son, Telemachus, defeats his wife's suitors, who have been bullying her and the court.
Genuine hospitality is an important value for the Greeks. Odysseus treated almost everyone on each island he was marooned on with courtesy and respect, expecting the same in return. I have found that true in other more recent books with the setting of Greece, also. One must welcome strangers, beggars, rich and poor, in for food and shelter. And the lesson is pointed out in the story of Odysseus.

[Rocio Vega · Rating 3 out of 5]

This would be a good book to have 5th or 6th graders read in the classroom. I would use this book to have the students work on finding the main events that happen in the story and being able to put them in sequential order.

[Kat · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Adventures of Odysseus is a retelling of classic Greek myths by Neil Philip. The book contains a collection of eleven tales organized in a fashion so that they form one cohesive story. Odysseus travels home to Ithaca from Troy where he encounters Gods, Sirens, monsters and more. This book is serves as a great introduction to Greek mythology, while giving the tales a new spin with some changes here and there.

Upon opening the picture book there is a map that outlines the voyage of Odysseus. Following the map, there are two pages dedicated to the depiction of the immortals and mortals with their names and titles. This chart of characters was extremely handy to refer to due to the number of characters mentioned throughout the chapters.

The illustrations by Peter Malone are beautiful and incredibly detailed, especially on the artwork of animals. Peter Malone did a wonderful job using blues and golds. Some of the artwork throughout the book even spans two full pages, which is good for showing to a class of children. However, the text is long and it would probably be best - if reading to a class of elementary age children or having them read it - to only read one or two chapters/stories at a time.

Overall this book is child-friendly and appropriate for elementary students and older. There is some violence and mature content, as there is with a lot of Geek myths, but otherwise the book is a suitable read for children.

[Diane · Rating 5 out of 5]

My 10-year old son read this book & enjoyed it a a lot. I did not get the chance to read it, but would like to sometime. He said it was very interesting, like an adventure book, and he read it in just a few hours (72 pages). He couldn't put it down!

[Lani · Rating 3 out of 5]

I told my daughter one of the stories of Odysseus at bedtime and she loved it (Who knew Cyclops would be such a hit). This version looked like a good children's version, which it was, with some editing by me. (Odysseus' adventures are not exactly G or PG rated).

[Julie · Rating 3 out of 5]

Getting ready for that trip to Greece I picked this one up to read to Michael. The story was enjoyable enough that I'm going to listen to The Odyssey.

[Charlie Beck · Rating 3 out of 5]

Retelling of the Odyssey for older children. Lots of text.

[Erin · Rating 5 out of 5]

J.J. loved it