Myths & Legends Never Die
As human beings, we are captivated by stories. From times before the written word, tales have been handed down from generation to generation. Some of those tales that have most captivated the collective imagination are myths and legends, and the deities, creatures, and heroes who inhabit them. In honor of our upcoming event with Genevieve Gornichec, author of The Witch’s Heart, we asked our staff to share some of their favorite and most-anticipated mythology-inspired books.
Upcoming Releases:
Ariadne by Jennifer Saint (out May 2021)
Ariadne, Princess of Crete, grows up greeting the dawn from her beautiful dancing floor and listening to her nursemaid’s stories of gods and heroes. But beneath her golden palace echo the ever-present hoofbeats of her brother, the Minotaur, a monster who demands blood sacrifice. When Theseus, Prince of Athens, arrives to vanquish the beast, Ariadne sees in his green eyes not a threat but an escape.
Madam by Phoebe Wynne (out May 2021)
A darkly feminist tale pitched against a haunting backdrop and populated by an electrifying cast of heroines, Madam will keep readers engrossed until the breathtaking conclusion.
Troy by Stephen Fry (out June 2021), completing the trilogy started by Mythos and Heroes
Full of tragic heroes, intoxicating love stories, and the unstoppable force of fate, there is no conflict more iconic than the Trojan War. Troy is the story of the epic battle retold by Fry with drama, humor, and vivid emotion. Achilles, Hector, Odysseus, Helen, their lovers, and their mortal enemies all burn bright in Fry's compelling prose.
Neon Gods by Katee Robert (out June 2021)
Society darling Persephone Dimitriou plans to flee the ultra-modern city of Olympus and start over far from the backstabbing politics of the Thirteen Houses. But all that's ripped away when her mother ambushes her with an engagement to Zeus, the dangerous power behind their glittering city's dark facade. With no options left, Persephone flees to the forbidden undercity and makes a devil's bargain with a man she once believed a myth...
Recently Published:
Women and Other Monsters: Building a New Mythology by Jess Zimmerman
Through fresh analysis of eleven female monsters, including Medusa, the Harpies, the Furies, and the Sphinx, Jess Zimmerman takes us on an illuminating feminist journey through mythology. She guides women (and others) to reexamine their relationships with traits like hunger, anger, ugliness, and ambition, teaching readers to embrace a new image of the female hero: one that looks a lot like a monster, with the agency and power to match.
A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes
Shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, a gorgeous retelling of the Trojan War from the perspectives of the many women involved in its causes and consequences—for fans of Madeline Miller.
Lore by Alexandra Bracken
Every seven years, the Agon begins. As punishment for a past rebellion, nine Greek gods are forced to walk the earth as mortals. They are hunted by the descendants of ancient bloodlines, all eager to kill a god and seize their divine power and immortality.
Throwback Staff Rec photo from Abby’s early days at OTB!
OTB Fiction Favorites:
Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
A tale of gods, kings, immortal fame, and the human heart, The Song of Achilles is a dazzling literary feat that brilliantly reimagines Homer’s enduring masterwork, The Iliad. An action-packed adventure, an epic love story, a marvelously conceived and executed page-turner, Miller’s monumental debut novel has already earned resounding acclaim from some of contemporary fiction’s brightest lights.
Gods of Jade and Shadow by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
The Jazz Age is in full swing, but Casiopea Tun is too busy cleaning the floors of her wealthy grandfather’s house to listen to any fast tunes. Nevertheless, she dreams of a life far from her dusty small town in southern Mexico. A life she can call her own. Yet this new life seems as distant as the stars, until the day she finds a curious wooden box in her grandfather’s room. She opens it—and accidentally frees the spirit of the Mayan god of death, who requests her help in recovering his throne from his treacherous brother. Failure will mean Casiopea’s demise, but success could make her dreams come true.
The City of Brass ( Daevabad Trilogy #1) by S.A. Chakraborty
On the streets of eighteenth-century Cairo, Nahri is a con woman of unsurpassed skill. She makes her living swindling Ottoman nobles, hoping to one day earn enough to change her fortunes. But when Nahri accidentally summons Dara, an equally sly, darkly mysterious djinn warrior, during one of her cons, she learns that even the cleverest of schemes can have deadly consequences.
The Odyssey by Homer, translated by Emily Wilson (the first woman to translate it!)
Composed at the rosy-fingered dawn of world literature almost three millennia ago, The Odyssey is a poem about violence and the aftermath of war; about wealth, poverty, and power; about marriage and family; about travelers, hospitality, and the yearning for home. This fresh, authoritative translation captures the beauty of this ancient poem as well as the drama of its narrative. Its characters are unforgettable, none more so than the “complicated” hero himself, a man of many disguises, many tricks, and many moods, who emerges in this version as a more fully rounded human being than ever before.
Non-fiction:
A Short History of Myth by Karen Armstrong
Heralding a major series of retellings of international myths by authors from around the world, Armstrong's characteristically insightful and eloquent book serves as a brilliant and thought-provoking introduction to myth in the broadest sense—and why we dismiss it only at our peril.
Norse Mythology by Neil Gaiman
In Norse Mythology, Gaiman stays true to the myths in envisioning the major Norse pantheon: Odin, the highest of the high, wise, daring, and cunning; Thor, Odin’s son, incredibly strong yet not the wisest of gods; and Loki—son of a giant—blood brother to Odin and a trickster and unsurpassable manipulator.
For Young & Middle-Grade Readers:
I am Pan and I am Hermes, by Mordicai Gerstein (Ages 5-10)
Perhaps because she feels a certain kinship to the gods of noise and mischief, my daughter has always relished Gerstein’s picture book-comic book hybrids, I am Pan and I am Hermes, episodic introductions to mythology that delight in pandemonium and inflated egos. With Gerstein’s death in 2019, the kid-lit world lost a genius mind, whose madcap humor, underscored by sincerity, lives on in many avid readers.
The Olympians Series, by George O’Connor (Ages 8-14)
Greek mythology meets graphic novels? Already you’ve got kids’ attention. But these retellings, each focused on a different Greek god, are also smart, insightful, and gorgeous. O’Connor draws from primary documents to reconstruct classic Greek myths, with special attention to action, drama, intrigue, romance, and monsters. If kids want to geek out (and who doesn’t, when it comes to mythology), O’Connor’s Author's Notes explain the intention behind his narrative and artistic choices.
Amber and Clay, by Laura Amy Schlitz (Ages 10-14)
Do you have a kid who thinks they know everything about Ancient Greece? I’m only partway through this epic new novel by Newbery Medal-winner Laura Amy Schlitz, but it is blowing my mind. Mythology meets archaeology, fantasy, poetry, and philosophy in a story about two spiritual twins, a Thracian slave and a spoiled daughter of an aristocrat, though, by the time they meet, only one of them is alive. Told through a combination of prose and verse—and in the competing voices of gods—this tour de force is supplemented by sketches of ancient artifacts. Oh, and it clocks in at 513 pages, so the next time they complain of being bored…
Lovely War, by Julie Berry (Ages 14+)
“The most ordinary mortal bodies are housed by spectacular souls.” What do you get when you combine Greek mythology, World War I, the rise of ragtime, Harlem Hellfighters, two epic romances, and two memorably courageous female protagonists? You get a brilliantly paced piece of historical fiction, which not only pays tribute to the extraordinary sacrifices demanded of young people by the Great War, but also of the power of love to guide, transform, and heal.
Join Old Town Books for a virtual author event, featuring Genevieve Gornichec, this Thursday, April 15th at 7 PM EST.
(Mention the event at checkout and receive 10% off your purchase!)
About the Author
Genevieve Gornichec earned her degree in history from The Ohio State University, but she got as close to majoring in Vikings as she possibly could, and her study of the Norse myths and Icelandic sagas became her writing inspiration. She lives in Cleveland, Ohio. The Witch's Heart is her debut novel.
About the Book
When a banished witch falls in love with the legendary trickster Loki, she risks the wrath of the gods in this moving, subversive national bestselling debut novel that reimagines Norse mythology.
Angrboda’s story begins where most witches' tales end: with a burning. A punishment from Odin for refusing to provide him with knowledge of the future, the fire leaves Angrboda injured and powerless, and she flees into the farthest reaches of a remote forest. There she is found by a man who reveals himself to be Loki, and her initial distrust of him transforms into a deep and abiding love.
Their union produces three unusual children, each with a secret destiny, who Angrboda is keen to raise at the edge of the world, safely hidden from Odin’s all-seeing eye. But as Angrboda slowly recovers her prophetic powers, she learns that her blissful life—and possibly all of existence—is in danger.
With help from the fierce huntress Skadi, with whom she shares a growing bond, Angrboda must choose whether she’ll accept the fate that she’s foreseen for her beloved family...or rise to remake their future. From the most ancient of tales this novel forges a story of love, loss, and hope for the modern age.
Blog contributions by Amanda Robinson, Jen Cheng, Melissa LaSalle, and Shannon McCarthy.
Photos by Nicole Blair. Additional photos contributed by Ally Kirkpatrick and Melissa LaSalle.
Edited by Shannon McCarthy.