Odysseus in the Serpent Maze (Before They Were Heroes) - Softcover

Yolen, Jane; Harris, Robert J.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0007134142 ISBN 13: 9780007134144

Publisher: Collins Voyager, 2002

Synopsis

Before they were heroes...

‘Rescue? Is that what you call it? Throw a rock and then run? And I bet that’s as far ahead as you’d planned.’ Penelope made a face. ‘Boys! Always thinking about heroics and never about what needs to happen day to day.’

Odysseus, Prince of Ithaca, has always been safe, sheltered, protected – and bored! The Age of Heroes is past. The wars are over. The monsters have all been slain. Or so he believes. Are there any adventures left for a thirteen-year-old boy who wants, more than anything, to be a hero?

His time comes when Odysseus, his best friend Mentor, a spoiled princess named Helen and her outspoken cousin Penelope are kidnapped by pirates. It is the start of an adventure-filled journey that leads them to the ancient island of Crete. There, Odysseus must face the deadly secret in the Labyrinth, where the Minotaur once devoured all who were unfortunate enough to enter. Now another, more deadly monster roams the maze.

There the boy destined to fight in the Trojan War and survive the perilous voyage of the Odyssey discovers the hardest part of being a hero: living long enough to tell the tale.

About this title

Review:

Odysseus in the Serpent Maze
“Yolen and Harris open a promising series with this tale of the teenage Odysseus encountering storms, pirates, creatures both natural and supernatural – and a wise, practical young woman to take some of the air out of his inflated ego.” Kirkus Review

Hippolyta and the Curse of the Amazons
“Xena fans take heed... an action-filled encounter with quarreling gods, monsters, rival Amazons and men!”
Kirkus Review

From the Back Cover:

BEFORE THEY WERE HEROES...

"Rescue? Is that what you call it? Throw a rock and then run? And I bet that's as far ahead as you'd planned." Penelope made a face. "Boys! Always thinking about heroics and never about what needs to happen day to day."

Odysseus, Prince of Ithaca, is sheltered, protected – and bored! More than anything he longs for adventure – but the Age of Heroes is over. The monsters have all been slain; the treasures have all been found; there's nothing left for Odysseus to do.

But just as Odysseus is sure that nothing interesting will ever happen to him, the gods step in and stir things up. And the trouble with real adventures is they never go the way you think they should. Pretty soon, the young prince discovers that the hardest part of being a hero is living long enough to tell the tale...

About this edition

• Publisher: Collins Voyager
• Publication date: 2002
• ISBN 10: 0007134142
• ISBN 13: 9780007134144
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 256