As a young girl, Atalanta was left in the wilderness because her father wanted a son instead. Raised by a bear for some time, then by a man who found her while hunting, Atalanta quickly learns to be a hunter herself and can run faster than anyone. The king, who happens to be her father, longs for her to get married and give him a grandson. She agrees to marry anyone that can beat her in a race. Aphrodite, the God of Love, gives a young man 3 apples to use during the race. He throws the apples out, distracting Atalanta as she picks them up and he is able to gain some time in the race, beating her by just a split second.

Intermediate
A tale about a huntress who finds love.
This provides a good window into Ancient Greek culture and gender roles.

This book would be suitable for intermediate-level readers. This story is about Atalanta who is a very fast runner and sets up a race where the winner gets her hand in marriage. Melanion races her and with the help of the Greek goddess Aphrodite, he wins the race after distracting Atalanta with three golden apples. This story would be helpful for teaching about a Greek myth but it would be a little problematic to use in a classroom since it is such a long retelling of the story and the illustrations aren't my favorite. ( )

From start to finish, I thought this book was complete insanity. I know it is a tale but from the king casting off his daughter, to a death race, to them transforming into lions I had no idea what to think of the book. I couldn’t I’m really understand the story the first time around due to how crazy everything was, but I think it was for the best. It kept my attention the entire time I was reading and I believe that’s what these books are all about. ( )

This is a Greek myth about Atalanta, who may have been a real person. There are multiple versions of the story, but in all she is a great athlete, who will only consent to marry if a man can beat her in a race. With the help of the goddess Aphrodite, Melanion was able to win the race (barely) and they were married and very happy together. They produced an heir, which made her father happy. But Aphrodite was peeved that she hadn't been properly thanked or honored, so she had the mother goddess, Rhea, turn them into lions. ( )