John Harris (10) (1950–)

A magical miscellany with considerable appeal, Greece! Rome! Monsters! - published in the UK as Mythical Beasts of Greece and Rome - profiles nineteen mythological creatures (twenty, if one counts Scylla and Charybdis separately), from the terrifying basilisk to the beautiful unicorn. Here are beasts - the centaur, the griffin, the minotaur - who are part one thing, part another. Here are creatures that fly, whether delightful to look upon, like Pegasus, or horrifying to see, like the harpies. And here are beings that entice, as do the sirens; and mystify, as the sphinx.

A treasure trove of classical monster mythology for younger readers, this delightful picture-book pairs a breezy, informative text - the very opposite of dry and "factual" - with oddball illustrations that just work. I loved John Harris' "narrative," with its conversational style, and Calef Brown's colorful illustrations, that fairly jump off the page. Highly recommended to all young readers with an interest in classical mythology!… (altro)

Summary: This book is a compliation of the greatest Roman and Greek mythological monsters. It gives a great illustration of each and tells about its powers.
Genre: Mythology
Personal Reflection:I liked this book because it’s colorful and has sort of wacky-yet-historical drawings of the monsters/creatures. It touched on some well-known ancient Roman/Greek creatures and also some of the lesser-known. Each creature description tells what the creature looked like, their historical significance and their abilities. This book also has a pronunciation guide in the back which helps with some of the stranger-sounding creatures.
Concept: The illustrations alone are really fun and would interest kids in getting into Greek and Roman mythology.… (altro)