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Olympians #1
Zeus: King of the Gods
Here's where it all starts: The beginning of everything—the world, the gods, and even humanity. Mighty Kronos, the most terrifying of all the Titans, reigns as the unchallenged tyrant of the cosmos... until his son, the god Zeus, stands up and takes on his own father in a battle intense enough to shatter the universe! Who will emerge triumphant?
ZEUS: KING OF THE GODS
Get ready for adventures you've only dreamed of as the Greek gods come to explosive life in OLYMPIANS. Epic battles, daring quests, and terrible monsters await you...
ZEUS: KING OF THE GODS
Get ready for adventures you've only dreamed of as the Greek gods come to explosive life in OLYMPIANS. Epic battles, daring quests, and terrible monsters await you...
77 pages, Paperback
First published January 5, 2010
About the author
George O'Connor
75 books410 followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author by this name in the Goodreads data base and there are multiple George O'Conner's that illustrate comics
George O'Connor is the author of several picture books, including the New York Times bestseller Kapow!, Kersplash, and Sally and the Some-thing. JOURNEY INTO MOHAWK COUNTRY was his first graphic novel, a long-held dream that weaves together his passion for history and ongoing research into Native American life. He's also the author/illustrator of a new picture book, If I Had a Raptor.
He lives in Brooklyn, New York.
George O'Connor is the author of several picture books, including the New York Times bestseller Kapow!, Kersplash, and Sally and the Some-thing. JOURNEY INTO MOHAWK COUNTRY was his first graphic novel, a long-held dream that weaves together his passion for history and ongoing research into Native American life. He's also the author/illustrator of a new picture book, If I Had a Raptor.
He lives in Brooklyn, New York.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 535 reviews
January 10, 2010
Girl walks into my library. I'm putting her age at around nine, maybe ten. Asks if I have any books on Ancient Greece. Turns out the kid is so into Greek mythology that she is willingly learning more about the true history behind that area of the world for her own personal knowledge. In other words, she is every children's librarian's dream patron. I show her what we have and then we get to talking about mythology. She's a huge fan of the D'Aulaires' Book of Greek Myths so we start talking fiction. Has she read The Lightning Thief and other Rick Riordan titles? Roll of the eyes. Of course. Has she read Anne Ursu's Cronus Chronicles starting with The Shadow Thieves? Double roll of the eyes. All right. Has she read the brand-spanking new Olympians series coming out via First Second, illustrated by George O'Connor, and reimagined as graphic novels? Not only had she not heard of it but she was practically clawing my eyes out when I informed her that I didn't have a copy on the shelf at the moment. Kids love myths. Kids also love comics. Put the two together by a guy who actually knows how to turn a crazy myth into a comprehensible, even dramatic story, and you've got a natural pairing that is going to have your patrons, big and small, hungering for more. Buy in bulk.
"In the time before time, there was nothing, Kaos. From out of Kaos came Ge, or Gaea, our Mother Earth." So begins a tale of how the Titans and, subsequently, the Greek Gods came to be. The world is formed, and the Titan Kronos eats each of his children as they are born. However, he misses Zeus, the youngest child, and as a result that particular god is able to grow up, free his siblings, and take arms against the Titans for control of the earth itself. In an exciting comic book style, George O'Connor accurately depicts the tale of Zeus, leaving off the story to continue with Athena, the next in the series, published as a separate book. Endmatter includes an Author's Note, G(r)eek Notes as they apply to specific panels and pages, Greek myth character trading card-type pages, a Bibliography, recommended reads, amusing discussion questions (#1: "Zeus's dad tries to eat him. Has your dad ever tried to eat you?"), and an accurate but complex Olympians Family Tree on the front cover that you'll find yourself poring over again and again.
George O'Connor may be best known to some of us as the bloke behind Journey Into Mohawk Country and Adam Rapp's Ball Peen Hammer. On the picture book side of things, he did Kapow (yet another comic-inspired title, and a popular one in my library at that). With this book he had one big hurdle to leap: Make the myths logical. The thing about the Greek myths is that you can read them on paper all you like but some things are just not gonna make a whole lot of sense. For example, we hear that Hestia has been so long on the stomach of Kronos that she has nearly been digested and barely has a form of her own. All right, smart guys. Go illustrate that. More difficult still is that if you're making these myths into a single concrete understandable story, how do you explain Zeus falling in love with his sister? The author finds a way, and his words are not without their own rhythm and beauty. I liked little things, like Rhea feeding her husband a stone baby instead of Zeus and the consequent line, "If Lord Kronos noticed his newborn son had less warmth than the rest, he gave no sign." On top of that, O'Connor tells the story with a structure that makes sense. The repeated line that "Mother Earth was still unhappy, for she loved all her children," is what leads to the defeat of the Titans and the rise of the gods on the one hand, and perhaps the eventual destruction of the gods later on down the road.
The art is heavily inspired by O'Connor's beloved comic books of yore. He explains in his Author's Note his love of The Mighty Thor as a kid. "I remember staring at it, trying to comprehend whether I loved it or hated it. The story was full of all those enormous, bigger-than-life beasts I remembered from my copy of Edith Hamilton's mythology." If Greek gods are our original superheroes (or super villains) then it's natural to draw them as such. We've already seen some children's books do this (The Mighty 12: Superheroes of Greek Myth by Charles R. Smith, illustrated by P. Craig Russell comes instantly to mind), so it makes a certain amount of sense. One difference from comic books is the fact that while the men tend to go around shirtless and ripped, the ladies aren't all that busty. Fair play to O'Connor, then. And I did enjoy the fact that comic book facts keep working their way into the notes at the end of this book. We're told that the Adamantine that Kronos's sickle is made out of is where Wolverine in X-Men get his adamantium claws. Or that the Cyclopes are like Cyclops the X-Men leader. Actually... thinking about it now, all the comic facts seem to be about X-Men. I suppose the Wonder Woman facts will have to wait for a later volume in the series when we finally meet the Amazons.
The actual art in this book has all kinds of small details as well. Kronos cut open his father the sky, so his eyes and mouth show only the cosmos. His wife, Rhea, is also the daughter of the sky and the earth, but her pupils are crescent moons, blue on blue. Baby Zeus, meanwhile, is raised in a cave and in one panel looks out at the sky. One cannot help but notice that the stalactites lining the image look like teeth, reminding you of Kronos who has eaten Zeus's kin. So without a word you are reminded that Zeus has temporarily exchanged one mouth for another.
Admittedly, there is zippo racial diversity in the images here. O'Connor isn't challenging any preconceived notions of what one god or another looks like. By the end Zeus even has a white beard. The closest you get to a change is a brown-haired Aphrodite. I suppose the argument for keeping them white was that Greek gods are generally pretty scummy people, and would you really want to diversify their flaws? Still, in this day and age it's hard to do an all-white cast for anything, even a children's graphic novel.
Greek myths are many things, but child friendly? I think all of us can remember hearing one myth or another as a child that didn't quite make sense. Apollo chased a girl to get a kiss and she was so freaked out she asked to be turned into a tree. Huh? And how exactly did Zeus turning into a swan lead to Leda giving birth anyway? And don't even get me started on the changes Disney made to that lamentable Hercules! Hera is Hercules' loving mom? Puh-leeze. In this first Olympian title, O'Connor therefore has the unenviable job of telling a story straight without making it, uh, explicit. Zeus, after all, is the original letch. So you do see him chasing girls without seeing them get caught. That's how O'Connor plays it, and it works pretty well. Admittedly he pokes fun at the material sometimes, and there is a line in Zeus that adults will raise an eyebrow at, but kids won't get at all. At one point Zeus says that as a kid he used to think he could reach into the sky and take the moon. Metis informs him that Selene, the moon, is much bigger than he is. His response? "I don't know... I can grow pretty big." You don't need to even see Metis's "Heh" in response to get that one. Accurate characters and personalities. Still pretty kid-friendly in the end.
What I love about this is that not only is O'Connor releasing one book per god, but he's doing it so that the story from one book carries on into the next. This must have taken a fair bit of wrangling and shifting on his part. I'm sure O'Connor's natural inclination was to place Hera after Zeus, but for reasons that we will learn soon enough he made Athena #2. It will probably have something to do with the fact that Athena's mother, Metis, has a relatively large role in this book, and that storyline has not been wrapped up yet.
When she was quizzing me on this new series, my young patron asked desperately, "I love Hestia. No one ever pays any attention to Hestia. Will there be a book about Hestia?" There will be, I assured her. There will be a book on each of the twelve gods and kids will be allowed to find their favorites instantly. Comics aren't for everyone, and there are plenty of folks content with what the D'Aulaires have to offer, but definitely keep an eye out for O'Connor's series just the same. Exciting, accurate, and intense, it's bound to be instantly beloved of kids, all thanks to its classic comic inspirations.
Ages 9 and up.
"In the time before time, there was nothing, Kaos. From out of Kaos came Ge, or Gaea, our Mother Earth." So begins a tale of how the Titans and, subsequently, the Greek Gods came to be. The world is formed, and the Titan Kronos eats each of his children as they are born. However, he misses Zeus, the youngest child, and as a result that particular god is able to grow up, free his siblings, and take arms against the Titans for control of the earth itself. In an exciting comic book style, George O'Connor accurately depicts the tale of Zeus, leaving off the story to continue with Athena, the next in the series, published as a separate book. Endmatter includes an Author's Note, G(r)eek Notes as they apply to specific panels and pages, Greek myth character trading card-type pages, a Bibliography, recommended reads, amusing discussion questions (#1: "Zeus's dad tries to eat him. Has your dad ever tried to eat you?"), and an accurate but complex Olympians Family Tree on the front cover that you'll find yourself poring over again and again.
George O'Connor may be best known to some of us as the bloke behind Journey Into Mohawk Country and Adam Rapp's Ball Peen Hammer. On the picture book side of things, he did Kapow (yet another comic-inspired title, and a popular one in my library at that). With this book he had one big hurdle to leap: Make the myths logical. The thing about the Greek myths is that you can read them on paper all you like but some things are just not gonna make a whole lot of sense. For example, we hear that Hestia has been so long on the stomach of Kronos that she has nearly been digested and barely has a form of her own. All right, smart guys. Go illustrate that. More difficult still is that if you're making these myths into a single concrete understandable story, how do you explain Zeus falling in love with his sister? The author finds a way, and his words are not without their own rhythm and beauty. I liked little things, like Rhea feeding her husband a stone baby instead of Zeus and the consequent line, "If Lord Kronos noticed his newborn son had less warmth than the rest, he gave no sign." On top of that, O'Connor tells the story with a structure that makes sense. The repeated line that "Mother Earth was still unhappy, for she loved all her children," is what leads to the defeat of the Titans and the rise of the gods on the one hand, and perhaps the eventual destruction of the gods later on down the road.
The art is heavily inspired by O'Connor's beloved comic books of yore. He explains in his Author's Note his love of The Mighty Thor as a kid. "I remember staring at it, trying to comprehend whether I loved it or hated it. The story was full of all those enormous, bigger-than-life beasts I remembered from my copy of Edith Hamilton's mythology." If Greek gods are our original superheroes (or super villains) then it's natural to draw them as such. We've already seen some children's books do this (The Mighty 12: Superheroes of Greek Myth by Charles R. Smith, illustrated by P. Craig Russell comes instantly to mind), so it makes a certain amount of sense. One difference from comic books is the fact that while the men tend to go around shirtless and ripped, the ladies aren't all that busty. Fair play to O'Connor, then. And I did enjoy the fact that comic book facts keep working their way into the notes at the end of this book. We're told that the Adamantine that Kronos's sickle is made out of is where Wolverine in X-Men get his adamantium claws. Or that the Cyclopes are like Cyclops the X-Men leader. Actually... thinking about it now, all the comic facts seem to be about X-Men. I suppose the Wonder Woman facts will have to wait for a later volume in the series when we finally meet the Amazons.
The actual art in this book has all kinds of small details as well. Kronos cut open his father the sky, so his eyes and mouth show only the cosmos. His wife, Rhea, is also the daughter of the sky and the earth, but her pupils are crescent moons, blue on blue. Baby Zeus, meanwhile, is raised in a cave and in one panel looks out at the sky. One cannot help but notice that the stalactites lining the image look like teeth, reminding you of Kronos who has eaten Zeus's kin. So without a word you are reminded that Zeus has temporarily exchanged one mouth for another.
Admittedly, there is zippo racial diversity in the images here. O'Connor isn't challenging any preconceived notions of what one god or another looks like. By the end Zeus even has a white beard. The closest you get to a change is a brown-haired Aphrodite. I suppose the argument for keeping them white was that Greek gods are generally pretty scummy people, and would you really want to diversify their flaws? Still, in this day and age it's hard to do an all-white cast for anything, even a children's graphic novel.
Greek myths are many things, but child friendly? I think all of us can remember hearing one myth or another as a child that didn't quite make sense. Apollo chased a girl to get a kiss and she was so freaked out she asked to be turned into a tree. Huh? And how exactly did Zeus turning into a swan lead to Leda giving birth anyway? And don't even get me started on the changes Disney made to that lamentable Hercules! Hera is Hercules' loving mom? Puh-leeze. In this first Olympian title, O'Connor therefore has the unenviable job of telling a story straight without making it, uh, explicit. Zeus, after all, is the original letch. So you do see him chasing girls without seeing them get caught. That's how O'Connor plays it, and it works pretty well. Admittedly he pokes fun at the material sometimes, and there is a line in Zeus that adults will raise an eyebrow at, but kids won't get at all. At one point Zeus says that as a kid he used to think he could reach into the sky and take the moon. Metis informs him that Selene, the moon, is much bigger than he is. His response? "I don't know... I can grow pretty big." You don't need to even see Metis's "Heh" in response to get that one. Accurate characters and personalities. Still pretty kid-friendly in the end.
What I love about this is that not only is O'Connor releasing one book per god, but he's doing it so that the story from one book carries on into the next. This must have taken a fair bit of wrangling and shifting on his part. I'm sure O'Connor's natural inclination was to place Hera after Zeus, but for reasons that we will learn soon enough he made Athena #2. It will probably have something to do with the fact that Athena's mother, Metis, has a relatively large role in this book, and that storyline has not been wrapped up yet.
When she was quizzing me on this new series, my young patron asked desperately, "I love Hestia. No one ever pays any attention to Hestia. Will there be a book about Hestia?" There will be, I assured her. There will be a book on each of the twelve gods and kids will be allowed to find their favorites instantly. Comics aren't for everyone, and there are plenty of folks content with what the D'Aulaires have to offer, but definitely keep an eye out for O'Connor's series just the same. Exciting, accurate, and intense, it's bound to be instantly beloved of kids, all thanks to its classic comic inspirations.
Ages 9 and up.
February 19, 2018
I love this series. I had never heard the story of how Zeus got his lightning bolt. This story tells that story. I didn't know the details of Zeus fighting his father and the Titans, I simply knew he overthrew his father. Now I do. George goes and gets great stories about the Greek gods and there is always something new and fresh. There are so many stories to tell about Zeus and all his long list of conquests and yet, George focuses on the beginning of the pantheon of gods we know as Greek mythology. He does so well in what he brings out. I do wish this had been longer and more story. Zeus is part of so many stories.
The art is fantastic. The lightning jumps of the page. He really brought something to life on the page and this is a must read for anyone who loves mythology. I would like to own these. There is so much energy that jumps off the page.
The art is fantastic. The lightning jumps of the page. He really brought something to life on the page and this is a must read for anyone who loves mythology. I would like to own these. There is so much energy that jumps off the page.
August 25, 2023
Wonderful retelling of how Zeus became king of the gods! Illustrations reminded me of P. Craig Russell and Barry Windsor-Smith (two of my favorite artists). Will look up other books in this series to 'brush up' on my Greek mythology - great introduction to this complex series of interconnected stories that have influenced so much in art and literature through the ages.
January 14, 2020
I mean It's not that great but I just wanted to get my 40 book challenge done so I just picked up this book and I was like I should just read this and it turned out pretty good actually. I picked it up because of how detailed and how carefully drawn the pictures were.
July 25, 2016
This is a really quick intro to the beginning of the Olympians' reign, but I think it purposely left out a lot of information that could have been included so that later volumes would have it. The art was okay for me, but I didn't find it incredibly jaw-dropping or anything. A solid 3 stars.
April 24, 2010
Reason for Reading: I am a huge fan of Greek mythology.
This tells the tale of creation from the Greek mythological point of view up to the birth of Zeus. Then it follows Zeus's story, how he battles his father Kronos to become King of the Gods and the founding of the home for the Olympians on Mount Olympus.
Fantastic first book in a new ongoing series retelling the Greek myths. The story here is very well represented going right back to the beginning with Gaea, The Cyclopes, The Hekatonchieres and the Titans even before the birth of Zeus. This part of Greek mythology is often confusing to children (I never could understand it as a kid) and the graphic representation, especially of the Titans and the Hekatonchieres with their fifty heads and one hundred hands, is the ideal format for telling this myth. This story is also hardly ever included in children's Greek Myth collections and I've read many such collections over the last 16 years to my children. I feel quite confident in saying the author has done a brilliant job of re-telling Zeus' story in an exciting format. The illustrations are dark and unusual as to fit the subject matter from Kronos and the eating of his children to Zeus' final battle with his father. The book ends with the final destinies of those who came before Zeus and looks forward with a frame of Zeus with his Queen, brothers and sisters, and his children preparing us for the next volume. There is also some extra info at the end with an Author's Note, Fact pages on four characters, a Notes section referenced to pages and panels and finally a further reading section both for younger and older readers. I'm very impressed. This is a keeper for me and I'd highly recommend it as a library purchase.
This tells the tale of creation from the Greek mythological point of view up to the birth of Zeus. Then it follows Zeus's story, how he battles his father Kronos to become King of the Gods and the founding of the home for the Olympians on Mount Olympus.
Fantastic first book in a new ongoing series retelling the Greek myths. The story here is very well represented going right back to the beginning with Gaea, The Cyclopes, The Hekatonchieres and the Titans even before the birth of Zeus. This part of Greek mythology is often confusing to children (I never could understand it as a kid) and the graphic representation, especially of the Titans and the Hekatonchieres with their fifty heads and one hundred hands, is the ideal format for telling this myth. This story is also hardly ever included in children's Greek Myth collections and I've read many such collections over the last 16 years to my children. I feel quite confident in saying the author has done a brilliant job of re-telling Zeus' story in an exciting format. The illustrations are dark and unusual as to fit the subject matter from Kronos and the eating of his children to Zeus' final battle with his father. The book ends with the final destinies of those who came before Zeus and looks forward with a frame of Zeus with his Queen, brothers and sisters, and his children preparing us for the next volume. There is also some extra info at the end with an Author's Note, Fact pages on four characters, a Notes section referenced to pages and panels and finally a further reading section both for younger and older readers. I'm very impressed. This is a keeper for me and I'd highly recommend it as a library purchase.
December 28, 2018
“Your hair... it looks nice.”
“...thanks.”
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“...thanks.”
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May 6, 2019
Engaging and quick read but not my type of book I usually like to read. But other than that it was a good graphic novel.
December 10, 2016
Surprised I have never come across this series before, or that no one has done a straight graphic novel adaptation of the Greek myths, to my knowledge.
What I liked about this book was that it's not a "reinterpretation" or modern spin on classic mythology. It is the artist's interpretation, of course, but he has done his research and gone back to the sources. He includes a bibliography, and he's read his Hesiod.
This is the actual Greek origin story, starting with Gaea and Ouranos, the rebellion of the Titans, led by Kronos, against their father, followed by the battle between the Titans and the first Olympians. Told as if it were a single issue of a comic book, starring Zeus as a still-young, brash god. The art and story makes it very much a "superhero" comic, yet it's a perfectly authentic version of Greek mythology.
The Titans are titanic. Zeus and his siblings are gods, but don't seem all-powerful against the Titans. The Cyclopes and Hekatonchieres and ancient and scary. The battles are epic.
At times, the art was a little anime-ish (especially with Metis), and the target audience is obviously children (there are even "discussion questions" and glossaries in the back). But this is still an attractive volume that will appeal to all fans of Greek mythology, and I'll probably collect the series.
What I liked about this book was that it's not a "reinterpretation" or modern spin on classic mythology. It is the artist's interpretation, of course, but he has done his research and gone back to the sources. He includes a bibliography, and he's read his Hesiod.
This is the actual Greek origin story, starting with Gaea and Ouranos, the rebellion of the Titans, led by Kronos, against their father, followed by the battle between the Titans and the first Olympians. Told as if it were a single issue of a comic book, starring Zeus as a still-young, brash god. The art and story makes it very much a "superhero" comic, yet it's a perfectly authentic version of Greek mythology.
The Titans are titanic. Zeus and his siblings are gods, but don't seem all-powerful against the Titans. The Cyclopes and Hekatonchieres and ancient and scary. The battles are epic.
At times, the art was a little anime-ish (especially with Metis), and the target audience is obviously children (there are even "discussion questions" and glossaries in the back). But this is still an attractive volume that will appeal to all fans of Greek mythology, and I'll probably collect the series.
July 19, 2012
I'm hooked! First, it was a fast read. Only about an hour, if you include the extra reading materials the author/illustrator has at the back of the book. I love when you can tell that the author is really invested in giving an accurate portrayal of stories from history. In this case, George O'Connor gives you his bibliography (including some websites that I have to still explore) and recommended titles for younger and older readers. Really appreciate this. This is one of my first graphic novels that I have read. I have plans to read more next. It took me a while to figure out that there isn't really a set way that you read these - meaning the format is dictated by the panels, and the panels don't really have any rules as far as two-page spreads go. Cool to think about with regards to yearbook design... I also loved the "Author's Note" section and the "Geek/Greek Noets" section which really made me want to look at all the names again and how we have so many words derived from this time, and to go read the original stories of Homer and Hesiod and the Great Books series I have in our library! I thought originally that I would loan these to my niece or nephew. I think maybe when they are older. (Right now they are 9 and 7.) On to Athena!
December 5, 2011
The gods of the Greeks have a lot in common with modern-day superheroes: superpowers and terrifying foes. In Zeus: King of the Gods, George O’Connor creates a graphic novel that introduces older elementary readers to Greek mythology using the comic book style that brought us modern heroes like Superman. Using the ancient Greek poet Hesiod’s Theogeny as his source, O’Connor describes the origins of the universe, the dominion of the Titans, and the victorious rebellion of Zeus and his Olympian siblings. While O’Connor’s comic frames, narration and dialog are straightforward enough for most 10-year-olds to follow, the angularity and colors of the artwork strongly emphasize the psychologically dark aspects of the myths in a way that will appeal to young adults. Connor's notes, while informative, are not well-organized and the discussion questions provided are superficial. This interesting and thorough book will make a useful addition to graphic novel collections in public and school libraries.
May 20, 2013
Zeus: King of gods is the first book in a new graphic novel series about the stories and myths of the old Greek Gods. And its sort of awesome. The art is wonderful. Even without a dialogue, the stories unfold effortlessly through the characters expressions and backgrounds, that detailed yet simple. The stories themselves are familiar and well thought out and organised. Instead of overwhelming the reader with myth after myth about Zeus, O'Connor focused on a few, and the end result is a character who truly comes to life.
Each volume ends with "Author's Notes" that describe some of the process that went into choosing the myths used, or the ones left out or combined, "G(r)eek Notes" that give a bit more of the history to the panels, discussion questions, and character outlines of the God focused on and some of the supporting characters.
Each volume ends with "Author's Notes" that describe some of the process that went into choosing the myths used, or the ones left out or combined, "G(r)eek Notes" that give a bit more of the history to the panels, discussion questions, and character outlines of the God focused on and some of the supporting characters.
April 1, 2021
Fenomenalno!
Savršeno osmišljeno i realizovano! Boje su prelepe, priča je jako lepo ispričana, a dodaci na kraju svedoče o tome koliko autor voli grčku mitologiju i koliko mu je stalo da kroz ovaj serijal grafičkih novela ne samo zabavi čitaoce, već ih i zaista istinski upozna sa onima koji nas gledaju sa Olimpa. Ogroman plus za objašnjenja na kraju i preporučenu literaturu.
Jedva čekam da čitam nastavke!
Savršeno osmišljeno i realizovano! Boje su prelepe, priča je jako lepo ispričana, a dodaci na kraju svedoče o tome koliko autor voli grčku mitologiju i koliko mu je stalo da kroz ovaj serijal grafičkih novela ne samo zabavi čitaoce, već ih i zaista istinski upozna sa onima koji nas gledaju sa Olimpa. Ogroman plus za objašnjenja na kraju i preporučenu literaturu.
Jedva čekam da čitam nastavke!
June 17, 2016
Is borrowing all the books in a series from the libraries so that you could read it and others couldn't until you return it considered trolling? Cause that's what I did. Although I wasn't able to get book 6 and 8.
November 30, 2017
I found this book and was immediately interested!! it was the story of the Greek god Zeus wrapped up in a graphic novel. I learned the story of Zeus and his siblings. Overall, I would recommend this book to anyone interested in learning about the Greek gods.
August 11, 2016
True to the myth and with the comic book format - this will have wide appeal.
August 9, 2015
A quick read with lots of fun mythological information. It's very suitable for young readers, but also adults can enjoy it a lot.
November 9, 2017
Pretty cool presentation of the classic myth. Love all the details.
June 27, 2021
I don’t care for the art style that much but it does grow on you. The story itself is what keeps you interested and the pacing is perfect. I would consider reading the others in this series. Also I commend the hell out of the author and artists for all the research done and resources sited at the end of the novel. Great job.
Happy Reading
Jo
Happy Reading
Jo
April 30, 2015
The title of my book that I’m going to present is “Zeus king of the Gods” By: George O’Connor. My story takes place everywhere in the sky, space and earth because the characters have supernatural powers. The characters in my story are The Titans and their ruler who over throwed his father Kronos and gave birth to Zeus, Hera, Demeter, Hades, Poseidon and Hestia. The conflict in the story all started when the titans were living happily and their father Ouranos the sky wanted to overthrow the big titans. But they wanted to reach their father and attack him. The youngest of the titans was Kronos, he grabbed the sickle his mother (earth) had made and tore the sky. After many years Kronos married his sister Rhea when Rhea made babies Kronos grabbed each one of them and ate them so that they don’t overthrow him. One day when Rhea hid her last baby Zeus in a cave and lived with the daughters of Oceanus (brother of Kronos). After a couple dozens of years Zeus almost has 20 years old his grandmother earth gave him a plant and told him to go feed it to Kronos when he entered his belly so that he vomits each child he had eaten. Zeus went to the throne (mountain) were Kronos ruled, He transformed into an old woman and Kronos recognized his son and swallowed him. Kronos vomits Zeus’s siblings far away them far away. When Zeus’s Brothers called themselves the Olympians. The Olympians started war and battled for freedom for eleven years with the titans except Oceanus and the titanesess (Women Titans) were neutral. The resolution of the story is at the end when Zeus and his siblings kill Kronos and imprison the titans except Oceanus and the titan’s sisters whom were suited in a joyful and peaceful land. The theme of the story is to protect yourself, family and people and have vengeance for your freedom and respect amongst yourself and others. The character learns in the story that if he gave birth to a child his son or daughter they can over throw him and the character also learns the character also learns that he should not trust his family. The element of fiction that made this book a super novel is the use of conflict.
The best element of fiction is the conflict. I decided to choose the authors use of conflict because the whole story is about conflict and the war between Titans and Olympians. This quote will explain the conflict super natural vs. super natural Quote 1: Kronos: “Anything to say for yourself? Zeus: No (O'Connor pg#49). Another Conflict that I am going to show you in this quote is Man or women vs. Society Quote 2: Women: “Almighty Kronos, I’m etc. Mighty Kronos accept my gift from me to not devour us all thank you Lord Kronos thank you” Kronos: No reply (O’ Connor pg#23). The last conflict that That I am going to show you in this quote is man vs. society Quote 3: Kronos: “I am Lord Kronos and my reign should be eternal”, People: “We obey you lord Kronos”.(O’Connor pg#26).The Novel is well developed through the authors use of conflict because the hole story has conflict.
I would recommend this book to all students in class especially people who are interested in the history and science of Greek mythology. The first reason I would recommend this book to every Middle school boy and girl because in 8th Grade we will read a book about Greek mythology and will give you some tips to get good grades. The second reason I would recommend this book to every Middle school boy and girl is that this book “The Olympians” tells us facts while reading in a different and exciting way with too many conflicts. Last but not least the third reason I would recommend this book to every Middle school boy and girl is the author always makes every sentence and page of the story exciting with suspense and conflict. As one can see this story is considered a very exciting story because the author of this book represents the conflict between son and father, sister and brother and also gives us facts on Greek myths in an exciting way.
The best element of fiction is the conflict. I decided to choose the authors use of conflict because the whole story is about conflict and the war between Titans and Olympians. This quote will explain the conflict super natural vs. super natural Quote 1: Kronos: “Anything to say for yourself? Zeus: No (O'Connor pg#49). Another Conflict that I am going to show you in this quote is Man or women vs. Society Quote 2: Women: “Almighty Kronos, I’m etc. Mighty Kronos accept my gift from me to not devour us all thank you Lord Kronos thank you” Kronos: No reply (O’ Connor pg#23). The last conflict that That I am going to show you in this quote is man vs. society Quote 3: Kronos: “I am Lord Kronos and my reign should be eternal”, People: “We obey you lord Kronos”.(O’Connor pg#26).The Novel is well developed through the authors use of conflict because the hole story has conflict.
I would recommend this book to all students in class especially people who are interested in the history and science of Greek mythology. The first reason I would recommend this book to every Middle school boy and girl because in 8th Grade we will read a book about Greek mythology and will give you some tips to get good grades. The second reason I would recommend this book to every Middle school boy and girl is that this book “The Olympians” tells us facts while reading in a different and exciting way with too many conflicts. Last but not least the third reason I would recommend this book to every Middle school boy and girl is the author always makes every sentence and page of the story exciting with suspense and conflict. As one can see this story is considered a very exciting story because the author of this book represents the conflict between son and father, sister and brother and also gives us facts on Greek myths in an exciting way.
December 20, 2021
Reviewed on Lili Lost in a Book
I LOVE Greek mythology, so the idea of Greek mythology graphic novels sounds amazing to me! It’s basically the myths in condensed form but with pictures! This series focuses on the main twelve gods AKA the Olympians. Hence the series name. Lol. I actually read a couple of the other graphic novels in this series, which is totally okay to read before this one because it doesn’t really tell a linear story, so they can be read as standalones.
This one tells the story of Zeus. It starts at the beginning with Chaos and the creation of the universe, then to the primordial deities Gaia and Ouranos and how they were overthrown by their children, the Titans, making Kronos the new king. Then it talks about how psychotic and and awful father Kronos was by eating his children.
No, seriously, that really happened.
And lastly, we see the Titan War and how Zeus overthrew his father to become the King of the Gods. Just deserts if you ask me. Lol.
Let me just get my one complaint out of the way, since I do love mythology and I like to think that I’m quite educated in the subject. Lol. I know there are many versions of the myths, but this graphic novel states that the Fates and the Furies are the same goddesses! Which, no! They’re totally different! The Fates were the goddesses, of well, fate! They spun a person’s thread of life, measured it out, then cut it as their time of death came. The Furies (aka the Erinyes) were winged goddesses of vengeance. They basically enforced the law, especially if it involved homicide. So, yeah, not the same.
Moving on! Lol.
One thing I really enjoyed about this was that Metis had such a huge part in everything! She is hardly ever talked about in anything. She was actually a wife of Zeus before he married Hera. Plus, she is technically the mother of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom. When she became pregnant with Athena, it was prophesied that if Metis had a boy, he would overthrow Zeus just as he had done to his father, Kronos. So just to be safe, he tricked her into turning into a small insect and then he ate her, child and all! That’s why Athena was born from his forehead. Greek mythology is super messed up. Lol.
But overall, I really enjoyed it! It was a short, quick read with lots of fun pictures. It was also very funny! I really like this series! Plus it had a handy family tree inside cause the Greek pantheon is also super messy. Lol.
I LOVE Greek mythology, so the idea of Greek mythology graphic novels sounds amazing to me! It’s basically the myths in condensed form but with pictures! This series focuses on the main twelve gods AKA the Olympians. Hence the series name. Lol. I actually read a couple of the other graphic novels in this series, which is totally okay to read before this one because it doesn’t really tell a linear story, so they can be read as standalones.
This one tells the story of Zeus. It starts at the beginning with Chaos and the creation of the universe, then to the primordial deities Gaia and Ouranos and how they were overthrown by their children, the Titans, making Kronos the new king. Then it talks about how psychotic and and awful father Kronos was by eating his children.
No, seriously, that really happened.
And lastly, we see the Titan War and how Zeus overthrew his father to become the King of the Gods. Just deserts if you ask me. Lol.
Let me just get my one complaint out of the way, since I do love mythology and I like to think that I’m quite educated in the subject. Lol. I know there are many versions of the myths, but this graphic novel states that the Fates and the Furies are the same goddesses! Which, no! They’re totally different! The Fates were the goddesses, of well, fate! They spun a person’s thread of life, measured it out, then cut it as their time of death came. The Furies (aka the Erinyes) were winged goddesses of vengeance. They basically enforced the law, especially if it involved homicide. So, yeah, not the same.
Moving on! Lol.
One thing I really enjoyed about this was that Metis had such a huge part in everything! She is hardly ever talked about in anything. She was actually a wife of Zeus before he married Hera. Plus, she is technically the mother of Athena, the Greek goddess of wisdom. When she became pregnant with Athena, it was prophesied that if Metis had a boy, he would overthrow Zeus just as he had done to his father, Kronos. So just to be safe, he tricked her into turning into a small insect and then he ate her, child and all! That’s why Athena was born from his forehead. Greek mythology is super messed up. Lol.
But overall, I really enjoyed it! It was a short, quick read with lots of fun pictures. It was also very funny! I really like this series! Plus it had a handy family tree inside cause the Greek pantheon is also super messy. Lol.
October 26, 2014
In this Greek myth based story, Zeus is faced with the challenge of defeating his father Kronos who has swallowed all of his brothers and sisters to avoid them killing him as he had his father. Zeus was hidden by his mother on an island where his father would never find him. He stayed on that island until the day came when he left the island to give his father a drink that made him sick, and out came all of his brothers and sisters full grown. Next comes a long battle, who will win, find out yourself by reading this remastered Greek myth.
This Greek myth is in a comic book style shorter story. It has a great amount of action sequences as well as the fact that it leaves you wanting to immedeatly read more and more.
A few things that make it what it is might not be of your interest. These include being a comic, having a few gross out moments like when Kronos swallows all of his children and when he gets sick and they all come out. I just had to warn you of these so that if you don’t like comics or can’t handle gross out moments that you don’t waste your time or get sick. Other than that, the book was fairly good besides the fact that the color scheme could make it a little hard to see at some times.
As mentioned before I thought that the book was good other than the color scheme at some times. The book could potentially help out with our mythology project. I did feel that it was one of my favorite myths besides king Midas, or the Labyrinth. This will definatly satisfy your needs for a good book. I know that I enjoyed it, so why can’t you? If you want to know how all of the gods’ stories began read this book. This book is available in Mrs. Addair’s classroom or in the library closest to you. Now that you know where to pick this book up, why don’ you do it today.
This Greek myth is in a comic book style shorter story. It has a great amount of action sequences as well as the fact that it leaves you wanting to immedeatly read more and more.
A few things that make it what it is might not be of your interest. These include being a comic, having a few gross out moments like when Kronos swallows all of his children and when he gets sick and they all come out. I just had to warn you of these so that if you don’t like comics or can’t handle gross out moments that you don’t waste your time or get sick. Other than that, the book was fairly good besides the fact that the color scheme could make it a little hard to see at some times.
As mentioned before I thought that the book was good other than the color scheme at some times. The book could potentially help out with our mythology project. I did feel that it was one of my favorite myths besides king Midas, or the Labyrinth. This will definatly satisfy your needs for a good book. I know that I enjoyed it, so why can’t you? If you want to know how all of the gods’ stories began read this book. This book is available in Mrs. Addair’s classroom or in the library closest to you. Now that you know where to pick this book up, why don’ you do it today.
December 4, 2013
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I love reading new graphic novels this one is wonderful in that it follows greek mythology. When I first heard about the Olympians series I thought it was going to be like Disney's Hercules with it's own story and spin.. but actually this follows the legend of Zeus.
When I first started reading this I was surprised to start reading about the Titans and how earth was formed. I was expected to read some sort of story about teen Zeus and all that. I was pleasantly surprised that it was about the greek legends. I knew this book would be perfect for young people and a way for them to learn about the gods.
Zeus is a pretty fast read. The art work is great too... I loved to see all the Olympians together. I am going to go ahead and read the rest of the series. I have always been interested in greek mythology. I love it so much! It just fascinates me. Sometimes the names in the graphic novel are confusing O'Connor uses less well-known Greek pronunciation of the names i.e. Tartaros instead of Tarturus. But it's not too hard to catch on.
Sometimes I did find the text a little bit too forced... the gods were saying things I didn't imagine that gods would actually say. I had to remember though that these books were written for a younger middle school aged kids. There are even discussion questions in the back of the book for younger kids... one even reads "Zeus' dad tries to eat him. Has your dad ever tried to eat you?" . This question is funny and I think kids would really love it.
So far there are 6 books in the series... Zeus, Athena, Hades, Hera, Poseidon, and Aphrodite. I can't wait to read all of them.
I love reading new graphic novels this one is wonderful in that it follows greek mythology. When I first heard about the Olympians series I thought it was going to be like Disney's Hercules with it's own story and spin.. but actually this follows the legend of Zeus.
When I first started reading this I was surprised to start reading about the Titans and how earth was formed. I was expected to read some sort of story about teen Zeus and all that. I was pleasantly surprised that it was about the greek legends. I knew this book would be perfect for young people and a way for them to learn about the gods.
Zeus is a pretty fast read. The art work is great too... I loved to see all the Olympians together. I am going to go ahead and read the rest of the series. I have always been interested in greek mythology. I love it so much! It just fascinates me. Sometimes the names in the graphic novel are confusing O'Connor uses less well-known Greek pronunciation of the names i.e. Tartaros instead of Tarturus. But it's not too hard to catch on.
Sometimes I did find the text a little bit too forced... the gods were saying things I didn't imagine that gods would actually say. I had to remember though that these books were written for a younger middle school aged kids. There are even discussion questions in the back of the book for younger kids... one even reads "Zeus' dad tries to eat him. Has your dad ever tried to eat you?" . This question is funny and I think kids would really love it.
So far there are 6 books in the series... Zeus, Athena, Hades, Hera, Poseidon, and Aphrodite. I can't wait to read all of them.
June 3, 2010
A wonderful graphic novel about the birth of the Greek gods, starting from the very beginning of Greek mythology. We learn about the Titans who roamed the earth at first and see Kronos devour his children one by one, except for Zeus. The story ends when Zeus, with the help of his brothers, has successfully overthrown his father and taken his place as the king of the gods.
The combination of action-filled and dramatic panels with excellent storytelling makes this a pleasure to read. Any teenager who is interested in mythology (perhaps thanks to Percy Jackson) will love this.
The back-matter is also excellent. O'Connor has obviously done his research, and he does a good job of explaining the discrepancy in the stories of the gods that is found among the many sources. I especially enjoyed the section that he includes that explains certain aspects of particular panels (sort of like endnotes). He also has some fun discussion questions. If I hadn't already loved this book, it would have won me over with the first discussion question: "Zeus's dad tries to eat him. Has your dad ever tried to eat you?"
My one complaint is that he doesn't really explain what happens to Metis. Through most of the book, she is Zeus's presumed girlfriend. And then, on the last page, suddenly Zeus is with Hera. So... what happened to Metis? But maybe that is covered in another book.
There are more books in this series on their way - one for each Olympian deity, I assume. I am very excited to read them all!
The combination of action-filled and dramatic panels with excellent storytelling makes this a pleasure to read. Any teenager who is interested in mythology (perhaps thanks to Percy Jackson) will love this.
The back-matter is also excellent. O'Connor has obviously done his research, and he does a good job of explaining the discrepancy in the stories of the gods that is found among the many sources. I especially enjoyed the section that he includes that explains certain aspects of particular panels (sort of like endnotes). He also has some fun discussion questions. If I hadn't already loved this book, it would have won me over with the first discussion question: "Zeus's dad tries to eat him. Has your dad ever tried to eat you?"
My one complaint is that he doesn't really explain what happens to Metis. Through most of the book, she is Zeus's presumed girlfriend. And then, on the last page, suddenly Zeus is with Hera. So... what happened to Metis? But maybe that is covered in another book.
There are more books in this series on their way - one for each Olympian deity, I assume. I am very excited to read them all!
June 29, 2013
Comic books and graphic novels are known for their superheroes. And who is better than the original superheroes, the Greek gods? The Greek gods could control the weather, cause massive destruction, manipulate the world of men, walk about sight unseen, change into animals... the list goes on. But where did the gods come from? How did it all start? The first book in George O'Connor's Olympians series answers these questions and more. The first book focuses on Zeus but it also focuses on the Greek creation myth. The gods and titans in the story have an abundance of attitude given to them and a little more depth than some other retellings of the myths. For example, Poseidon is falling off a cliff and without anyone telling him to Hades goes to his rescue. Zeus's beginnings are shown in this story. Not just how he became the king of the gods, but also how he was a flirt and a bit of a ladies man. This retelling of the Greek myths also does a great job of giving the Greek gods a modern look. Poseidon looks like a long-haired rocker type, Hades is serious and brooding, and Zeus starts out with blond hair and a surfer tan. This is a good look at the actual myths. There is a lot of accurarcy even down to using the slightly less well-known Greek pronunciation of the names i.e. Tartaros instead of Tarturus. I would recommend these books for 7-8 graders, they are definitely a series for older students but they would also work perfectly for a lesson on Greek mythology because of the level of accuracy within the graphic novel. A great first start to the series.
February 28, 2010
I found out about this graphic novel series thanks to Rick Riordan, who wrote the Percy Jackson, Olympian, series. Seeing as how I am currently very interested in Greek mythology thanks to Rick Riordan, I figured these graphic novels were a great lead. However, finding this one was tricky. It just came out in January and I finally found a place that had ONE copy. I bought it, needless to say.
I haven't read comics or graphic novels in a really long time, besides V for Vendetta a month-plus ago. However, I was really fascinated with Zeus. I loved the art-work, but as a not-very-artistically-drawing-inclined-person, stick figures fascinate me. I was really glad at how the story was done. There are a lot of different versions or takes on the myths covered in Zeus and I thought it was a really good read. I'd suggest it! I'm also eagerly awaiting the other releases. If you're interested in seeing sneak peaks or the artwork in the process of being done, check out the blog, Olympians Rule! George O'Connor posts works-in-progress or other snippets of stuff.
I haven't read comics or graphic novels in a really long time, besides V for Vendetta a month-plus ago. However, I was really fascinated with Zeus. I loved the art-work, but as a not-very-artistically-drawing-inclined-person, stick figures fascinate me. I was really glad at how the story was done. There are a lot of different versions or takes on the myths covered in Zeus and I thought it was a really good read. I'd suggest it! I'm also eagerly awaiting the other releases. If you're interested in seeing sneak peaks or the artwork in the process of being done, check out the blog, Olympians Rule! George O'Connor posts works-in-progress or other snippets of stuff.
May 7, 2010
even though this is from First Second publishing i almost passed it because i'm getting tired about books about the 'gods'. O'connor's art reminds me of P Craig Russell's, just a little less dense, and his coloring is gorgeous. The writing is page turning and contemplative. the author notes, bios of the gods and bibliography are fantastic. there are some really good discussion questions, great book for a jr high and up library and for a smart ten year old. and the book is only ten bucks (about the cost of a bucket of popcorn at Iron Man 2)
March 2, 2017
This book is pretty cool. The book/comic book is just the life of Zues. It starts out with the creation of time. Then goes to when the titans were created and the cyclopses were created. Then the titans had children who were the gods. The gods will have children with mortals and they would be demi-gods. Zues will be the king of the gods and Hera as their queen. This book was kind of a disappointment but still was ok. I would recommend this book to the people just starting to learn about the gods, not the people who have been learning and reading about them for a while.
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August 13, 2016This review was deleted following Amazon's purchase of GoodReads.
The review can still be viewed via LibraryThing, where my profile can be found here.
I'm also in the process of building a database at Booklikes, where I can be found here.
If you read/liked/clicked through to see this review here on GR, many thanks.
The review can still be viewed via LibraryThing, where my profile can be found here.
I'm also in the process of building a database at Booklikes, where I can be found here.
If you read/liked/clicked through to see this review here on GR, many thanks.
January 30, 2018
This is a cute beginner comic. Can’t wait to read the rest of the series.
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