The Gods and Goddesses of Olympus

by Aliki

Long, long ago in ancient Greece, people began telling wonderful stories to explain the mysteries of life. These myths featured gods and goddesses, mighty beings who look human but have amazing powers and live forever. Now you can meet these extraordinary characters and hear their legends, brought to life again by Aliki in this splendid, panoramic look at the amazing stories and characters of Greek legend. "[Will meet the] demand for basic information on the gods and goddesses at the primary level."—BL. "Aliki's fans will welcome her introduction to these famous Greeks."—SLJ. 1994 "Pick of the Lists" (ABA)

Genres: Mythology, Picture Books, Childrens, History, Ancient History, Greek Mythology, Folklore

48 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1994

About the author

Aliki has written and illustrated many books, both fiction and nonfiction, loved by readers throughout the world. The books were inspired by a word, an experience, or the desire to find out. Aliki lives in London, England.

Reviews

[Christy Hall · Rating 4 out of 5]

We bought this book for our daughter a few years ago to introduce her to the Greek myths we love so much. Recently, the hubby found a series on Amazon about the Greek myths. While we watched the episodes, daughter dear got the book out to do some fact checking.

It’s a pretty good introduction to the Greek creation story and the basics of the 12 Olympians. There are enough pictures to keep a little one interested (recommended ages 4-8). Although, not sure you can get milk from a goat’s horn - that particular image made me laugh. The stories are pretty G-rated, which is good. The author chooses her favorite myths to relate, so it’s fun to discuss the variants afterwards. Good book for Greek mythology beginners.

[hailee]

okay so i found this in my closet and i would read this every day when i was little 🥺🥺

[Samantha · Rating 5 out of 5]

Clearly laid out, this beautiful adaptation of traditional Greek myths for children, with full page illustrations throughout, first tells the creation story of the ancient Greeks, then follows with the individual description and stories of each of the traditional Greek gods and goddesses. At first I was quite taken aback with the illustrations because all of the gods and goddesses looked so similar; however, when I discovered that they had been adapted from Greek vase paintings and sculptures, I liked them much better. Some of them were very detailed and colorful, and I liked how the illustrations matched the plot, making it easier to follow the sometimes confusing myths. Again, like other traditional tales I have read, these story lend themselves to being read aloud. I have always been a fan of the Greek myths, because they are such fascinating tales, so I enjoyed reading them in this format.

[Dolly · Rating 3 out of 5]

Our girls are big fans of Greek Mythology and we've read enough books for them to be able to recite the different Gods and Goddesses off the top of their head. In particular, we really enjoyed reading the book D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths. It's been awhile since we've read some of the myths, though, so I thought this book might offer a bit of a review.

The colorful illustrations and simple biographical information about each of the Immortals is both informative and entertaining. Some of the stories are summarized, but only briefly. I can't say that we learned anything new reading this book, but it was fun to read aloud. We enjoyed reading this book together.

[What April's Reading · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a great book to quickly introduce the gods and goddesses of ancient mythology. The color pencil art/illustrations are bright and fun and easily compliment the stories.

[Shanna Gonzalez · Rating 3 out of 5]

This is a nice little introduction to the Greek pantheon of gods. This book is very engaging for young children, with well-written text and appealing illustrations laying out the basic events of these stories in a way that is understandable to an elementary audience. Readers are invited to enter into the story world in the author's afterword:

"The next time you hear a clap of thunder, or feel the wind, or see golden wheat swaying in the fields, or hear exquisite music, what will you think? Is that Zeus shaking his thunderbolt, or Hermes flying past? Is it Demeter playing with her Persephone? Is that Apollo's song filling our ears? They are still with us."

Parents may want to use caution in introducing religious-mythological stories before children are strongly rooted in their own faith. This particular book is presented in a way might encourage the immature reader to interpret the stories as being literally true, and this may cause confusion about the differences between this mythology and the claims of their own faith. Additionally, many of the Greek myths involve violent and abusive behavior, bitter feuds, and sexual immorality or abuse, which may merit adult discussion.

If a child outgrows the reading level of Aliki's book before they are ready to engage its content, they might do better with Rosemary Sutcliff's stories, which include a more full-orbed presentation of the great Greek stories, directed toward a more mature audience. Alan Lee has masterfully illustrated two of these, Black Ships Before Troy: The Story of The Iliad and The Wanderings of Odysseus: The Story of The Odyssey, making them quite appealing to older-elementary and middle-school readers. (Black Ships Before Troy, however, does contain one example of mild nudity.) For more detailed reviews of Sutcliff's books, please see The Children's Hour.

[Rebecca S. · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was probably my favorite book as a kid. I picked it up almost as soon as I could read (it was probably the amazing illustrations.)I checked it out every time we went to the library. At one point I had it memorized.

This book hooked me on mythology, and I blame it for my degree in Anthropology (which should have just been a degree in Classics.)

The illustrations are amazing, and the myths inside are kid-friendly without actually changing the myths. This book is just like my childhood in book form.

I saw Disney's Hercules in the theater and told my mom all the stuff that was wrong thanks to this book.

[Bernadette · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great first read for kids on mythology. Doesn’t get too much into the gory details. The illustrations are detailed and inviting.

[Sarah · Rating 5 out of 5]

*unfinished

Traditional Literature: Myth

Characters: Greek gods-- Gaea, the Earth; Uranus, the sky; Hecatoncheires, Cyclopes, and Titans, children of Gaea and Uranus; Cronus, the youngest titan; Rhea, Cronus' sister; Zeus, child of Rhea and Cronus; Amaltheia, a nymph-goat; the Curetes, Zeus's guards; Metis, Zeus's wife, the Goddess of Prudence; Cronus' other chilren, Destia, Demeter, Hera, Hades, and Poseidon; Zeus' children; Aphrodite, the Goddess of Love

Setting: Ancient Greece, including Tartarus and Mount Olympus

Intended Audience: elementary students; grades 2-6
Interest level: elementary and middle school students

Curriculum ties: Ancient Greece, Ancient Rome, mythology, creation stories, social studies, politics, ethics

Summary: The first part of 'Gods and Goddesses' tells the story of how the Olympians earned their thrones on Olympus. It begins with Gaea, the Earth, growing out of a dark space named Chaos, giving birth to Uranus, the sky, and having children with Uranus. Uranus threw all of his children except the 12 Titans into the deepest pit in the Underworld, but the youngest Titan, Cronus, fought back and overthrew Uranus, replacing him as the Lord of the Universe. Cronus was terrified that his own children would defeat him, so he swallowed each one as it was born. Cronus' wife tricked him with the last child, giving him a rock to swallow, and hid the child, Zeus, who was raised by gentle woodland nymphs and a nymph-goat named Amaltheia, and who grew into the strongest of all the gods. Cronus was tricked and threw up his children, who were unharmed, and joined together with Zeus to rage war against and defeat Cronus and the Titans. Eventually, Zeus and his brothers and sisters were each given positions as gods and goddesses, and Zeus shared his powers with them, his children, and Aphrodite. They all reigned from Olympus, where they lived forever.

After this back-story, the book devotes a 2-page spread to each of 14 main gods/goddess; one page has a brief synopsis of their myth, along with a colorful picture. The other page next to it has a full-page colorful illustration. The last pages of the book show all 14 gods/goddesses in thrones next to each other (except Hestia and Hades, they are pictured below the throned gods/goddesses), and it ends with an explanation that these are just a few of the many Greek myths.

Personal response: The stunning illustrations and detailed history and myths make this a valuable introduction to Greek gods, goddesses, and mythology. The book prefaces the myths by explaining that they are how one population explained the Universe-- these are not presented as facts, or as fiction, but rather as stories that the Ancient Greeks told (and believed) to explain the mysteries of life. This collection may garner interest and inspire students to further pursue a study of mythology, or may simply satisfy their curiosity about basic Greek mythology. No matter the case, it is difficult to imagine a student picking up "Gods and Goddesses" and not at least skimming it cover-to-cover.

[Oliver · Rating 5 out of 5]

In the beginning, there was only Chaos. Out of Chaos, grew Gaea, the earth god. Gaea had the sky Uranus, for a son. Uranus and Gaea married and gave birth to lots of children. They gave birth to 12 titans. They also gave birth to Cyclops and Brontes. Uranus did not like the Cyclops because they were ugly and put them in a pit called Tartares. Gaea was very angry and gave one of the titans, Chronos, a sickle. She told Chronos to kill Uranus with the sickle. When Chronos killed Uranus he became the lord of the Universe. Chronos married one of his sisters, Rhea. They had many children. Chronos thought that when the children grew up, they would try to overthrow him. Whenever a child was born, Chronos swallowed the child whole. Rhea was horrified. She hid the youngest son and gave Chronos a rock in a blanket instead. Chronos swallowed the rock in the blanket whole. She named the boy Zeus. He grew up from the care of nymphs. He became the most powerful of gods. Rhea was still angry at Chronos for eating the children. She gave him a potion that made him spit out the children. After that there was a war. It was called the Titan War. In the war Cyclops made Zeus a lightning bolt. They made Poseidon a three pronged spear that split the seas. They made Hades a helmet of darkness. After the war, Zeus was declared the king of gods. he formed Olympus. He let Hades and Poseidon join Olympus. Zeus was declared ruler of the sky and earth. Poseidon was declared ruler of the seas. Hades was declared ruler of the underworld. After a long time, there also Artemis, Apollo, Aphrodite, Hermes, and the goddess of marriage. That is the story of the gods of Olympus. You should read it!

[Ebookwormy1 · Rating 3 out of 5]

Vivid illustrations accompany simple stories of the Greek pantheon. While this is a simple, helpful, introduction, I think the stories (gods eating their children, adultery, etc) need context particularly for children that are either sensitive or inquisitive.

The first chapter features the Greek creation account. Following this, each layout features about a half page of text in a two page spread for each of the god's/ goddesses.

Parents can point out that these gods and goddesses have more in common with sinful and fallen humanity than with the God of the Bible. Another good example of "...Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of the immortal God for images resembling mortal man and birds and animals and creeping things." Romans 1:22-23

A valuable resource for homeschooling that all my students (even guests) rave about!

See also,

Tales from the Odyssey, Part 1, Osborne, 2010
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths, D'Aulaires, 1962
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Allison · Rating 3 out of 5]

This was a very interesting book. It was very simple but informing. If a classroom was reading about Gods and Goddesses of Olympus, I would recommend this one. The pictures after every sentence made it easy to follow along with and were at a great level of illustration. This book is well written for children. The sentences were not too long and made everything very clear and understandable. I liked how the author chose to describe each of the Gods and Goddesses on different pages, this would prevent the kids from getting confused. The different colors in the book would keep a child's attention because they are bright yellows, blues, greens, and reds. When I was younger and in school, I was never interested in reading about Greek Mythology but I think that if teachers were to introduce the subject using this book as an aid, it would make the subject more interesting.

[Keegan Taylor · Rating 4 out of 5]

My kids also loved this mythology book. They mostly read it/looked at it by themselves. It's structured somewhat like an Encyclopedia of the gods. My kids have been really interested in mythology while we've been reading about the Greeks in Story of the World. This book is so great because it's simple. It's somewhat like the beginning of D'Aulaire's mythology with an explanation of who each of the gods are. The= kids sort of made up a game for themselves trying to identify the gods on the cover -- when they couldn't remember who was who they would go hunt for the god inside of the book. My six-year-old could read it and my four-year-old would sometimes listen to him and sometimes sit and look at it on his own.

[Heidi · Rating 2 out of 5]

This book is very well done. However, I wasn't comfortable reading it to my kindergartener. It's not really the book's fault, more that Greek mythology is weird, gross, and disturbing if you are coming from a Christian perspective. The pictures of Chronos eating his children and scary scenes of Hades were what made this book a "no" for me to read to my 5 year old. I was looking for something simpler that just included the names of gods and goddesses and their symbols, dominions, etc. I will definitely keep this in mind when my kids get older.

[Ruth Ann]

I learned that first Gaea (the earth) gave birth to Uranus (the sky). Then together they had many children, the first twelve who were known as the Titans. After Uranus threw the Cyclopes and the Hecatoncheires into Tartarus, Gaea was furious and urged the titans to overthrown their father. Cronus, the youngest was brave enough. He married Rhea and they had several children. This book tells about the gods and goddesses and how they came to live on Mount Olympus.

[Wendy Gardiner · Rating 4 out of 5]

Begins by describing the gods and goddesses origins and ascension into power in quick summary. Then, one a double page layout, describes each of the Olympian gods such as attributes and relationship to other gods/goddesses. Given the interest in the Rick Riordan series this could be a good companion piece--regardless, it's a great reference. Interesting to read, concisely written, and beautifully illustrated.

[Deanna Sutter · Rating 4 out of 5]

Why 5 stars? (Besides Aphrodite being slightly exposed). This book was a great, easy children's book that explained the creation of the Greek Gods. I've always heard about "the Titans," but I hadn't read anything that explained how they fit into the whole time frame.

So I thought this was a great over all look at the Greek Gods from the VERY beginning.

[Marie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Great as the first book to introduce Greek mythology. Has map in the front, the creation myth, and then a double page spread on each of the 12 gods enthroned on Mt. Olympus. My daughter uses it as a reference when we read the myths to remind herself who the major players are. Gorgeous paintings, too! No pronunciation guide, though.

[Renee · Rating 4 out of 5]

My son was just introduced to greek mythology and seemed really interested so I went to the library and checked out 10-15 books of all varieties, this was the only one to grab his attention. So many of the other ones were too much like a text book with fun pictures so they were too dry to really pull him in.

[Jane G Meyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a part of our collection of Greek myths. The kids go back to this book all the time, and we even use it as a resource when we're sitting at the dinner table talking about mythology... I think the illustrations are especially enticing.

[Andrea · Rating 4 out of 5]

The first half of this book tells the story of the creation of the world that involved the Greek gods and goddesses, and the second half devotes a page to each of the major gods and goddesses. The pictures are beautiful and the story is engaging.

[Amy · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was the right level of (great) illustration to story for us, just getting into the greek myths. The pictures are just cartoony enough to be less threatening (when the guy eats babies/throws them up) but not so cartoony to be frenetic/dumbed down. We were quite entertained!

[Lindy · Rating 5 out of 5]

As a young girl I loved reading Mythology, and this book helps me a lot at my school. It makes me remember the god, and goddesses names, and a little bit of Greece. It also tells the scary monster, and brave heroes/heroine.

[Kathryn Eder · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book as beautiful illustrations and it tells the stories about the Gods and Goddess of Olympus. Telling the story about Zues and then all the other Gods and Goddess each have a page that tells their story. Great book for a classroom, especially when covering Gods and Goddess in class.

[Molly · Rating 4 out of 5]

My first book by Aliki and my first book on mythology. This is a great, simple introduction to Greek mythology with lovely illustrations kids should enjoy.

[Lynlee4 · Rating 4 out of 5]

Easy to understand. Fantastic graphics.

[Temoca · Rating 4 out of 5]

I keep this in my classroom and we use it all the time.

[Ruth Barone · Rating 4 out of 5]

Not comparable the the De'Aulaire's book of Greek Myths but still a nice, compact overview of the gods and goddesses and their associated mythology.

[Jesse · Rating 5 out of 5]

ireally liked this book it.it explains who were they sons of. and why they are gods.really reccomend this book to you

[Theresa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Gods and Goddesses of Olympus
Aliki
a shortened story of the myth legends