THE WARRIOR GODDESS: Athena

by Doris Gates ‧ RELEASE DATE: Oct. 16, 1972

These stories do soar in the dramatic moments -- of Icarus' fall, the Minotaur's death, though now and again they settle into archaisms like thus and straightway and pronouncements on the order of ""Lightly she paused beside him with a rattle of arms and said, 'Son of Zeus, Hearken now to my words.'"" Children's librarian and Newbery winner (for Blue Willow) Doris Gates never quite achieves the vigorous economy of Graves, nor does she try for the contemporary idiom of Bernard Evslin (Heroes, Gods and Monsters. . . , 1968), but the heroes are strongly enough motivated and the action fast-paced enough to make the often old-fashioned diction come alive. The adventures of Theseus (in the Zeus collection) and of Perseus and Jason (in the Athena volume) are divided into short, self-contained episodes well tailored to read-aloud attention spans. You can fairly hear the storyteller's accents in, for example, the boasting confrontation between Arachne and Athena, and the narration often includes a useful definition (hubris) as part of the setting of the scene. Don Bolognese's modeled geometric figures complement the uncluttered format which will make these volumes an attractive addition to the mythology shelf, as well as likely candidates for story hours.

Pub Date: Oct. 16, 1972

ISBN: N/A

Page Count: -

Publisher: Viking

Review Posted Online: N/A

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Oct. 1, 1972

Categories: NONFICTION