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Liked It “Great! Better than the other book I read by her. In this book of betrayal and lies, Anaxandra must survive in two other identities to protect what she knows she must.” see full review » see other reviews » |
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“smuggler approved.When Siphnos is sacked by pirates, she is the sole survivor. she assumes the identity of Princess Callisto to survive. Menelaus, king of Sparta, takes her back to Sparta. But Helen does not believe she is Princess Callisto. When Paris and Aeneas arrive, and Menelaus and his men depart to attend his grandfather’s funeral, Paris and Helen’s passionate affair plunges Sparta and Troy into war. ”
Katharine G wrote this review Monday, March 18, 2013. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Great! Better than the other book I read by her. In this book of betrayal and lies, Anaxandra must survive in two other identities to protect what she knows she must.”
Hannah! wrote this review Friday, November 9, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This book was interesting. The main character was smart, clever, religious to her goddess and many other things.”
4 Emily wrote this review Thursday, September 20, 2012. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This stry about the ancient Greeks follows the path of Helen, the face that launched a thousand ships, of Troy toward the war that ended the dominance of Troy and marked the beginning of a united Greece. The story is action filled from the beginning to the end, and rather gory and bloody in spots. The author includes a note at the end addressing what is known and not known from the available history. A great connector for students of Ancient Greece.”
Karen Sterling, Librarian wrote this review Wednesday, April 6, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“ First off, I should say that I absolutely love Greek mythology. I do not consider myself sufficiently schooled in the subject, but it is a passion of mine. I do not, however, like reading about the Trojan War. Therefore, I was a bit iffy when I request this book from book swap on goodreads.com . After reading it, I was pleased that the novel barely touched on the war.
Allie C wrote this review Friday, January 14, 2011. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
There are so many thing that I love about this book that I don’t know if I can even fit it all into one review. I normally do not like narratives, but I think this novel wouldn’t have been the same if it hadn’t been. When it first starts, the main character, Anaxandra, is only 5 years old and , thus, narrates through the eyes of a five year old (who knows how to express herself very well…). As the story progresses and Anaxandra grows older, the way she thinks and talks also evolves. You almost feel as if you grow with her, learning the things that she does and experiencing what she does with such clarity.
From page one, the plot unfolds, another thing I adore about any book. There is no excessive detail or long drawn out explanations of anything. Cooney wastes no time with excessive writing when she can sufficiently say it in a few sentences. Something I thought was very realistic considering the narrator. It almost reads like a stream on consciousness. It isn’t staccato and rough like Hemingway’s writing, reading smoothing while still sounding like what is going through a young girl's mind during the time.
The plot actually wasn’t too complicated. A young girl is given to a king as a companion for his daughter. Their village is sacked when she is older and she lies to Menalaus to save herself and thus becomes a companion for his young daughter. Helen meets Paris, and the rest is history. It sounds simple enough, but every page had something on it that progressed the storyline. It seemed that something was always happening.
Cooney's Helen of Troy had me clutching my book firmly in my claws, trying not to through it across the room in rage. I always picture Helen of Troy as a narcisstic woman who should have been put in her place. Cooney portrayed just that: a woman so caught in her own supposed birthright, beauty, and self bestowed power that, at time, Helen acted as if she was a goddess herself. She had accepted her life but was bored with it. It wasn't until someone as equally gorgeous and captivating as her came along, Paris, did she gain the courage to finally defy her husband.
I equally agreed with Cooney's portrayal of Paris. The young prince, who was also known to be quite the stud of his time, just bragged about his conquests and skills, of which, in truth, he had none.
What is not to love about two people wrapped up in themselves actually falling in love with each other? I wondered if they were only in love with the idea of them having a mate that compared to their unsurpassable looks.
All in all, there were far to many things in this novel that made me place it back on my shelf instead of donating it once I had finished. It lacks a certain maturity that I had grown use to from the other novels I have been reading as of late, but considering it is a young adult novel, I think Cooney can be forgiven for such a triviality.
If you like fiction about ancient Greece and Greek Mythology, I whole-heartedly recommend this little gem.
”
“this book was sooo good”
Sophie...? wrote this review Monday, November 29, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Terrible cover, loved the book. All the ancient Greeks' names that were in my brain are now in order in my brain. I learned a lot in a delightful way. Cooney is really versatile! I also loved her novel on the hill fires in Los Angeles - good stuff.”
Sarah M wrote this review Sunday, August 15, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“This book was steeped in Ancient Greek and Roman religious traditions and the daily lives of the devout, which was probably why I did not absolutely LOVE this book. The rituals from this time period were restricting the plot from developing further, and the character's from developing. ”
Colleen W - R.I.P PASTOR BILL SHAW wrote this review Saturday, June 26, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“I loved this great mythological book. It was very good and it wasn't based on the usual mythical things you think of. This book makes Mythology seem very real. It is a great book about a servant who becomes more, as she goes through an enormous adventure. A former princess but now a servant read her life! It was amazing! ”
Arianna G wrote this review Monday, May 24, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Trying to suss out which parts really reflect our knowledge of Greek/Trojan history and which parts were fiction was really fun. The character of Anaxandra kept me turning pages seeing how her woven set of lies would wind up. Fun read. A bit frustrating that the whole mystical gods/goddesses bit just basically peters off with "You'll never understand us gods" bit but otherwise an interesting and griping read.”
April D wrote this review Saturday, April 24, 2010. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
