Gods and Mortals: Ancient Greek Myths for Modern Readers

Description

An entrancing new telling of ancient Greek myths “This book is a triumph! . . . [A] magnificent retelling of the Greek myths.”―Alexander McCall Smith, author of the No. 1 Ladies’ Detective Agency series “Move over, Edith Hamilton! Sarah Iles Johnston has hit the magical refresh button on Greek myths.”―Maria Tatar, author of The Heroine with 1001 Faces Gripping tales that abound with fantastic characters and astonishing twists and turns, Greek myths confront what it means to be mortal in a world of powerful forces beyond human control. Little wonder that they continue to fascinate readers thousands of years after they were first told. Gods and Mortals is a major new telling of ancient Greek myths by one of the world’s preeminent experts. In a fresh, vibrant, and compelling style that draws readers into the lives of the characters, Sarah Iles Johnston offers new narrations of all the best-known tales as well as others that are seldom told, taking readers on an enthralling journey from the origin of the cosmos to the aftermath of the Trojan War. Some of the mortals in these stories are cursed by the gods, while luckier ones are blessed with resourcefulness and resilience. Gods transform themselves into animals, humans, and shimmering gold to visit the earth in disguise―where they sometimes transform offending mortals into new forms, too: a wolf, a spider, a craggy rock. Other mortals―both women and men―use their wits and strength to conquer the monsters created by the gods―gorgons, dragons, harpies, fire-breathing bulls. Featuring captivating original illustrations by Tristan Johnston, Gods and Mortals highlights the rich connections between the different characters and stories, draws attention to the often-overlooked perspectives of female characters, and stays true both to the tales and to the world in which ancient people lived. The result is an engaging and entertaining new take on the Greek myths. Cover Contents List of Illustrations Gods, Mortals and the Myths They Inhabit The Gods 1. Earth and Her Children 2. The Titans 3. The Young Gods Rebel 4. Zeus Becomes King 5. Persephone’s Story 6. Demeter’s Wanderings 7. Demeter and Persephone 8. Athena, Artemis and Apollo Are Born 9. Apollo Establishes His Oracle 10. Hephaestus’s Story 11. Hermes the Cattle Thief 12. Dionysus Is Born, and Dies, and Is Born Again 13. Dionysus and the Pirates 14. Aphrodite Experiences Desire Gods and Mortals 15. Prometheus, Epimetheus and the First Men 16. Prometheus Steals Fire 17. Pandora’s Gifts 18. Lycaon Tests Zeus 19. The Flood 20. Io’s Story 21. Phaethon Drives the Chariot of the Sun 22. Europa and the Bull 23. Callisto’s Story 24. Daphne and Apollo 25. Artemis and Actaeon 26. Niobe and Leto 27. Arachne and Athena 28. Baucis and Philemon 29. Hyrieus and His Ox 30. Orion 31. Erigone and Icarius 32. Apollo and Hyacinthus 33. Leda and Her Children 34. Melampus and the Daughters of Proetus 35. Pan and Syrinx 36. Echo and Narcissus 37. The Greed of Midas 38. Tantalus Tests the Gods and Pelops Makes a Bad Decision 39. Tityus and Leto 40. Ixion, the Cloud and the Centaurs 41. The Deaths of Sisyphus 42. The Daughters of Danaus and the Sons of Egyptus 43. Asclepius Challenges Death 44. Minos and Polyidus 45. Minos and Scylla 46. Pasiphaë and the Bull 47. Daedalus and Icarus 48. Procne and Philomela 49. Salmacis and Hermaphroditus 50. Pygmalion and the Statue 51. Myrrha and Adonis Heroes Perseus 52. Danaë and the Shower of Gold 53. Polydectes and the Gorgon’s Head 54. Some Weird Nymphs 55. Beheading Medusa 56. Andromeda Bellerophon 57. Bellerophon and Pegasus 58. Stheneboea 59. The Chimera 60. The End of Bellerophon Cadmus 61. Cadmus and the Serpent’s Teeth 62. Ino and Athamas 63. The Return of Dionysus Heracles 64. The Birth of Heracles 65. Heracles Murders His Family 66. The Nemean Lion and the Lernaean Hydra 67. The Ceryneian Hind and the Erymanthian Boar 68. The Stables of Augeas and the Stymphalian Birds 69. The Cretan Bull and the Mares of Diomedes 70. Alcestis 71. Hippolyta’s Belt and the Cattle of Geryon 72. Cacus and the Apples of the Hesperides 73. A Journey to the Underworld 74. Slave to Omphale 75. A New Wife and New Problems Atalanta 76. Atalanta Orpheus 77. A Marvelous Musician 78. Orpheus the Argonaut 79. Eurydice 80. The Death of Orpheus Jason 81. Chiron and Jason 82. Losing a Sandal and Reclaiming the Kingdom 83. The Lemnian Women 84. Heracles and Hylas 85. The Harpies and the Clashing Rocks 86. Colchis 87. The Tasks 88. Claiming the Fleece 89. Circe and the Phaeacians 90. Home Again 91. Medea in Corinth Meleager 92. The Calydonian Boar Theseus 93. Athena’s City 94. Theseus Travels to Athens 95. A Wicked Stepmother 96. A Voyage to Crete 97. The Princess and the Minotaur 98. Theseus Becomes King 99. A Father’s Curse 100. New Brides 101. The Death of Theseus Oedipus 102. The Birth of Oedipus 103. A Troubling Oracle 104. A Riddle Contest 105. Revelations 106. The Theban War 107. Antigone The Trojan War 108. Peleus and Thetis 109. The Judgment of Paris 110. A Promise Comes Due 111. Iphigenia 112. Protesilaus and Laodamia 113. Agamemnon and Achilles 114. Hera Deceives Zeus 115. Achilles and Patroclus 116. Achilles and Hector 117. Achilles and Priam 118. The Deaths of Achilles and Ajax 119. Neoptolemus and Philoctetes 120. The Horse 121. The Trojan Women The Returns 122. Atreus and Thyestes 123. Agamemnon’s Return 124. Orestes’s Return366 125. A Trial in Athens 126. Helen and Menelaus 127. Neoptolemus’s Return Odysseus 128. Odysseus and Telemachus 129. Nestor and Menelaus 130. Calypso 131. The Princess and the Castaway 132. A Ghastly Host 133. Circe 134. Visiting the Dead 135. Monstrous Females 136. The Cattle of the Sun 137. Home at Last 138. Penelope and Odysseus 139. A Contest and a Battle 140. New Lives Ancient Sources for the Myths Table of Sources Notes on Sources for the Myths The Characters of Greek Myths Index of Characters Acknowledgments