So you want to learn about Greek Mythology?

Hey friends, and welcome to a different kind of post! I recently made a video for work called The 12 Olympians: The Gods and Goddesses of Ancient Greek Mythology and for me, I had so much fun writing and filming it, and it was probably because I was already really familiar with the stories from Greek Mythology. I thought to myself, this would be a good place to start for people who are just starting to get into the wealth of stories that Greek mythology has to offer, but where should they go from there? So, this is a little post with some book recommendations for people who want to learn about Greek mythology but have no idea where to start, or are a bit overwhelmed with the number of books out there! I am absolutely going to be drawing on my own experiences from learning about Greek mythology, so if you have any suggestions or helpful tips for those people who want to learn more, please leave a comment down below!!

Books to Read (Fiction!)

I know this may sound weird, but the place I started on my journey to learning about Greek mythology and becoming completely obsessed with it was Percy Jackson. Unlike many other people, I didn’t read this until I was about 15 or16, and honestly, I wish I had read it sooner. Not because I thought that it was too young for me (I still adore it), but because it meant I would have been exposed to the world of Greek myths far sooner. The Percy Jackson series by Rick Riordan is the place I’d start for anyone wanting to dip their toe into Greek mythology. It’s a 5 book series but they’re all pretty short, easy to read and very entertaining. But, while you’re reading about Percy, Annabeth and Grover go on quests, you’re actually being exposed to a lot of the core gods, monsters and myths of Greek mythology. So much of these books were inspired by myths, and once you finish this series, you will be familiar with the basic family tree of the Greek gods (well, as familiar as a person could be with that incestuous mess), as well as key monsters and stories which you will find in the ancient sources such as the Odyssey by Homer and Hesiod’s Theogony and Works and Days. If you’re looking for more of a Young Adult book with a bit of action, then I would recommend giving Lore by Aexandra Bracken a read. It isn’t as full of Greek stories as the Percy Jackson series is, but you do still get a good glimpse into some of the beliefs of the ancient greeks, and specifically the myths of the goddess Athena. Along these same lines would be A Touch of Darkness by Scarlett St. Clair (definitely more of an adult book), which is a re-imagining of the myth of Hades and Persephone, but it’s set in an alternate, urban setting. These books are fun, but also dive into a bunch of different myths concerning the goddess Persephone, the god Hades and a bunch others!

Online resources (Articles, Videos and Podcasts!)

This is the part of this blog post where I’m just going to hype up the company I have the pleasure to work for, as well as some of my friends who are doing an amazing job bringing Greek mythology and history to a modern audience, and making it accessible! Online resources are so handy, especially since they’re easily accessible and more often than not, they’re free! If you’d prefer to read some stuff, then I would recommend World History Encyclopedia (I am biased because I work for them, but they also do amazing work.) You can find an introductory article here on Greek Mythology which is such a great place to start, and from there you can find articles on all the main gods, goddesses, myths and legends! If you’re more of a video lover, then you’re in luck because we publish youtube videos twice a week, and so far we have published this video on the 12 Olympians, a video all about Hermes, a video on Artemis, and a bunch more! If you’re looking for some fun videos that combine cute makeup looks with greek myths, then you should definitely check out Hannah’s videos on YouTube! I LOVE her videos on the myths of Persephone and Hades, and Echo and Narcissus, they’re short and sweet, easy to follow and end up with a super cute makeup look! Finally, your one-stop-shop for videos on mythology, ancient history, philosophers, as well as interviews and book reviews is Erica’s incredible website Moan Inc. You can find Erica and Moan on Instagram, Youtube, podcasts and via her website, and she’s working so hard to bring the ancient world to a modern audience in an engaging and fun way!

Where to Next? Ancient Epics, Texts and Retellings!

Looking for something a bit more challenging? Already know the basics and you’re ready to dive in deeper? I would definitely recommend beginning with Hesiod’s Theogony and Works and Days. It’s a really short read, and although it’s an ancient text, it’s easy to read and is a great intro to the beliefs of the ancient Greeks. If you want to know a bit more about Theogony and Works and Days you can have a look at my review here! From here, I would then recommend The Library of Greek Mythology (also known as Bibliotheca) by Pseudo-Apollodorus. It reads very similarly to Theogony and Works and Days, but it’s a bit longer and delves deeper into the stories and myths of Greek Mythology, and you will find the stories of heroes such as Heracles, Theseus and Jason. Then, of course, you have the epic poems the Iliad and the Odyssey by Homer! I would personally recommend the E.V. Rieu translation of these two which are written in prose but still keep their poetic roots, and they’re super easy to read for stories that are over 2000 years old. You can read my thoughts on the Iliad here! Just remember, every translation is different, so if you’re not clicking with the first translation you try, pick up a different one! If you’re a fan of theatre, then reading Ancient Greek theatre is an awesome way to become familiar with some of the important figures and stories from Greek myths, and even though only a handful survive from what would have been hundreds of plays, we still have plays about some of the most interesting figures from Greek mythology such as Medea, Jason, Antigone, Oedipus, Agamemnon, Clytemnestra, Orestes and Electra (just to name a few!) They’re definitely easier to read than something like Shakespeare, and many editions now give you fantastic commentary and background info on the plays! My favourites are Medea by Euripides, Antigone by Sophocles and the Oresteia by Aeschylus. One thing I’ve noticed particularly in the past year or so is a HUGE boom in retellings, especially feminist retellings or retellings from female points of view. This surge in retellings seems to have been pioneered by Madeline Miller with her books The Song of Achilles and Circe, which are both brilliant, but if you’re just starting to dip your toe into Greek mythology, give Stephen Fry’s books Mythos, Heroes and Troy a go! Fry has such an entertaining way of retelling the myths but making them feel new - and, his somewhat linear narrative of the foundational Greek myths in Mythos is truly a massive feat. I would definitely recommend Mythos as an easy and enjoyable first step in learning about Greek mythology. If you’re interested in reading Classical Greek stories from a females point of view, I have a bunch on my TBR pile which include Natalie Haynes’ A Thousand Ships, Pandora’s Jar and The Children of Jocasta, as well as Pat Barker’s Silence of the Girls and Jennifer Saint’s Ariadne. I haven’t read some of these yet, but I can only assume it would be helpful to come into them with a bit of a basis for the original stories and texts, so maybe hit these types of books once you’re nice and familiar with the core gods, goddesses, myths and monsters of Greek mythology.

Hopefully I have given you everything you could possibly need to start your journey with Greek mythology! As noted, this is from my personal experience, so if you have any book recommendations or tips on getting familiar with Greek mythology then please, leave a comment below or reach out on instagram where you can find me at @kell_read!

Review: The Iliad by Homer (translation by E.V. Rieu)

★★★★☆

— Okay so I do go through the main plot of the Trojan War, so I guess there are spoilers? But also, this story is over 2000 years old so if you don’t want to know the main events of the Iliad don’t read this review —

The start of my relationship with the Iliad didn’t go so well, which is why I have only now just finished it and didn’t read it all throughout my three-year Ancient History degree or honours year. In 2018 I picked it up for the first time, I struggled, I put it down after the damned Book 4 catalogue of the ships and never read anymore. I pretty much just gave up on it. I left it in my ‘currently reading’ on Goodreads for over a year until I took it off, knowing I wasn’t going to pick it back up. 

In August last year (2020), I thought to myself, this is dumb, it’s time to pick the Iliad back up and give it another try. You’re older and wiser now (lol), you can do this. So I picked it up, I got back into it (I skipped the catalogue of the ships though), and then about 50% of the way through, I put it down and didn’t pick it back up for months. Every now and then I’d pick it up, read a section and then put it down. Until about a week ago. I picked it up, and I started reading it. And I kept reading it, and I finished it in about 4 days. Maybe I wasn’t in the right headspace, or maybe I just kept wanting books that I didn’t have to focus so much on, or maybe the second half of the Iliad is just way better than the first half (that’s what I reckon), because honestly, I loved it. 

So, after all that! After trying to read it for literally YEARS, I ended up loving it. It’s weird. So let’s get into this! The Iliad, by Homer is an early epic poem from Ancient Greece. It is believed to have been written down for the first time in the 8th century BCE, but would have been a well-known tale by then. It was initially part of the rich culture of oral poetry in Ancient Greece before being written down. This concept of oral poetry would have meant regions may have adapted and changed parts based on their city and culture which is such a fascinating phenomenon. There is also the idea that Homer was not actually one person but a whole bunch of people, but that is definitely something for another day. 

The Iliad tells the tale of the last year of the Trojan War, which had been raging for 9 years prior to the beginning of this book. The Trojan war started because Paris, the son of Priam the king of Troy, abducted Helen, the wife of Menelaus who was the brother of Agamemnon, king of Mycenae. Now obviously, Menelaus wasn’t okay with his wife being whisked off (voluntarily or against her will is also a topic for another day, and one that is still highly popular in discussions of the Trojan War), and so he pretty much rallied all the blokes he could from as many cities as possible to help him get Helen back. A lot of fighting happens, and the Iliad ends after the body of Hector (who has been killed by Achilles in response to Hector killing Patroclus) is returned to his family and wife. So that’s a simplified summary of the 10-year war. 

To the book! It was always so interesting reading this and remembering that this would have initially been spoken, not read. I absolutely loved keeping that in my mind whilst I read it, especially when passages were repeated and the use of epithets. You can only assume that these were features to keep it easier to memorise and relay to a crowd of people listening! The translation by E.V. Rieu was so wonderful, it was easy to read but didn’t feel to modern or jarring. I thought it really brought the story to life in a compelling way. 

I am not a fan of war books, I never have been and probably never will be. The fact that this documents the last year of the Trojan War wasn’t a good omen for me. I wouldn’t say that this is a traditional war book though, and honestly, the Greek gods are absolutely my favourite part of this. They are so vindictive, jealousy prone and downright human. They made me laugh so many times, they had childish feuds and are honestly just the most dysfunctional family you could imagine, and I am here for it. If you’re on the fence about it, read it if only for the part that Hera calls Artemis a ‘shameless bitch’ lol. 

The grief Achilles felt for the death of his closest friend and love, Patroclus, was palpable through the words. It was so raw, and the fact that he was wailing and displaying his grief in quite a feminine way was really interesting. The physical lament of pulling at hair and clothes was a tradition commonly observed by grieving women, so having Achilles, the greatest warrior of the Achaeans lamenting Patroclus in that way must have been a very explicit decision. I really would like to one day have my Ancient Greek abilities good enough that I could read this in the Greek. Anyone who thinks they weren’t lovers obviously hasn’t read the Iliad. I wouldn’t want my ashes to be buried in the same golden urn as someone who was just my super close friend. 

It’s hard to review a book that has over 2000 years’ worth of legendary history woven into it, but I thought it was such a great read (well definitely the last 50%). Reading how the citizens of Ancient Greece would have been living their lives in regards to their belief in the Greek gods is so incredibly interesting. How an arrow will go straight as long as you remember to sacrifice a young lamb in honour of Phoebus Apollo, as seen in Book 23 or if they have a favourite mortal, they will ferry them to safety without being asked. The complete incorporation of the Greek gods in the lives of every man and woman in this book is so striking. 

They’re my main thoughts and feelings about the Iliad, but I’m sure I’ll keep talking about it for a long long time, especially since I’d like to read different translations of it. I can’t wait to sink my teeth into the Odyssey, and also Stephen Fry’s Troy. Have you read the Iliad? Which translation was it and did you enjoy it?? Lemme know! ❤️