Ingri d'AulaireRezensionen

Independent reading level grades third through sixth
Traditional lit - myth or legend

The beautiful illustrations one has come to expect in all the d'Aulaire books. But their chosen media and style were better suited to other subjects. It seems like any narrative where the characters wear tailored outfits is going to have less appealing illustrations. That's why "Pocahontas" and "Leif the Lucky" and even "Abe Lincoln" are books that are far easier on the eyes than "Columbus" or "George Washington".

Were there really bison in Virginia!? The skunks, the squirrels, and the beavers are all excellent, as expected.½

An accessible and beautifully illustrated introduction to Greek mythology.
Caldecott Award-winners.½

This is a great beginner-level introduction to Norse mythology, as the stories are somewhat simplified, but clear and entertaining.

I absolutely loved this book as a kid! It's a great introduction to Greek Myths. It covers the 12 Olympic gods, a few Chthonian (Persephone and Hades), as well as important minor figures like Pan and Echo. The book also has a section for the descendants of Zeus, including Heracles and Oedipus. It's worth noting that these myths are a bit sanitized for kids. Some details are left out or minor things might be changed to make them more appropriate. The art style is a bit dated, but I think it still helps express certain parts of the story well. This book kickstarted my life long love of mythology and really got me invested in Greek myths specifically.

I loved this book as a child. I can still recall looking at the pictures, sitting in my little chair in the school library.

My children loved this book too and I am happy to add it to my shelves.

As would and should be expected of Greek mythology, many of these stories are violent and cruel.

love the cast of narrators, well done.

This beautiful book taught me Greek Mythology and also the concept that there was more than one way to approach the past. I should let another kid have it but it reminds me of my childhood.

6STSFNG2

This book will highly engage any reader! It is full of the fascinating myths of the Gods and Goddesses, mythological creatures, and heroes of ancient Greece! Beautiful illustrations complement the magical tales.

The beautiful decorations on the illustrations really make this book. As a child I loved especially the dramatic illustration of Leif with the dragon figurehead. I was surprised to find that Leif lived in very historical times, maybe only 50 years or so before the Norman conquest of England.½

Just like with the Abe Lincoln biography there are lovely illustrations of essentially American animals, e.g., raccoons. Pocahontas's people live in houses made of bark, and Pocahontas is free to do all the things.This is why I loved the book as a child, probably. The lithographs are outstanding! But I'm so perplexed by the fact that the Queen of England does the inviting and yet there is also a King of England. When did Pocahontas end up in England? During whose reign? I'm not going to look this up on Wikipedia, on principle. Maybe there's another book out there? I bet there is!

Independent reading level: Grades 5-9

An illustrated biography of Pocahontas. One warning for sensitive readers: Some men are killed in their sleep, early in the story.

An illustrated biography of Abraham Lincoln; tactfully stops reporting prior to the assassination, and so is safe for sensitive children to read.

An illustrated biography of Benjamin Franklin.

D'aulaires's book of greek mythology was one of my favorites, so of course I had to read this. There are not nearly enough of their charming illustrations in this one, but the stories are so charming, adaptations of an older translation, that I don't mind. (Some are 'new' translations-- the book was originally published in 1938-- but most are adapted from the George Webb Dasent Translation of the collection of Asbjornsen and Moe.
A number of these stories I remember appearing in Little Golden Books from my childhood, but many are new to me. They include:
Herding the King's Hares;
The Ship that went by Land as By Sea;
The Quern that Stands and Grinds at the Bottom of the Sea (which I know as "Why the Sea is Salt");
The Maid on the Glass Mountain;
The Widow's Son;
Lord Per (similar to Puss in Boots);
Soria Moria Castle;
Per, Paal, and Espen Cinderlad;
Cinderlad and the Troll;
The Big Bird Dam;
Kari Woodenskirt (Cinderella-like);
Why the Bear is Stumpy-Tailed;
East of the Sun and West of the Moon;
The Three Princesses in the Mountain So Blue;
The Three Bushy Billy-Goats;
Tatterhood;
Dapplegrim;
Gudbrand on the Hillside;
The Hen Trips in the Mountain;
The Three Aunts (a flax-processing cousin of Rumplestiltskin);
Doll in the Grass.

Cinderlad, in these stories, is not the same as Cinderella-- his cinders come from lazing around the hearth rather than doing heavy work. A number of these stories are reminiscent of Russian fairy-tales, but whether they came from Russia or went there, or have a common Rus source, I couldn't say. As usual in a collection of this kind, there are repeating themes and tropes, though some (like Tatterhood and the Big Bird Dam) are unique.

This is a favorite children's / Young Adult book of Greek Mythology, telling the stories of all the gods. While lacking the wonderful illustrations which the hard cover book is known for, the trade off of the audio book is that it has the benefit of providing pronunciations for those difficult names of mythology. All in all, a good introduction and background for the Greek myths.

Not as good as "Norse Gods and Giants"; still good, though. The audio version, which includes celebrated narrators, is not worth the trouble, since it's the illustrations that make the book.

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Second review: What a difference having learned more about the subject matter makes! With Vandiver's lectures I now have a much greater appreciation for the book and really appreciated the audio book.

Beautiful illustrations, American themed. Raccoons and bears and opossums galore.

A childhood favorite.

I, like many of the other reviewers, loved this book as a child. It's the softly countoured illustrations in the very large format, and all the wild adventures with the monster's and the fighting and the wierd magic of, e.g., the hammer.

The Norse myths are so imperfect, but these renditions of them are just wonderful.

NA

the Norse were fucking insane, man

I love this book. This is the source of my love of Greek and Roman myths. The illustrations are beautiful, and all the main myths are included.