Now, margaret george, the highly acclaimed bestselling historical novelist, has turned her intelligent, perceptive eye to the myth that is helen of troy. Website maintained by carolyn meyer, author of young royals series, ya historical fiction. The love stories of achilles and briseis and paris and helen of troy. Helen livedif she lived at allaround 1200 bc, in an era we call the mycenaean age of greece. If youre fascinated by greek mythology books, or looking for percy jackson. I found this to be run of the mill and not very deep, probably due to the fact that the detail of the story was not recorded by history, unlike her other books the memoirs of cleopatra and the autobiography of henry the eight. Daughter of a god, wife of a king, prize of antiquitys bloodiest war, helen of troy has inspired artists for mille in this lush, compelling novel of passion and loss, helen of troy, a true survivor, tells the truth about her life, her lovers, and the trojan war. Discover the best helen of troy books and audiobooks. Was helen really to blame for the trojan war or just a scapegoat. The iliad is not very forthcoming with insights into helen s character she only appears six times four times in book iii, once in book vi, and once in book xxiv. Helen of sparta wants to be more than a princess and a pretty faceshe wants to be a hero. Wolfgang petersons film troy, the memoirs of helen of troy another novel about helen, the book by bettany hughes, and the pbs documentary helen of troy attest to the current appeal of these myths. Its never stated specifically, but since she was already married when she was taken from sparta, and then the iliad supposedly joins in just under 10 years after that, so lets have a think. Helen was such a tender soul, i felt, and when dealing w the conflicts in her life, truly weighed on her heavy heart.
Atwood chooses a title that reads like a headline from a tabloid magazine. Shes well written and seems like a real person w pain, sadness, joy, lust, adventure and romance. At the forefront of the story are the sisters marpessa, a handmaiden of helen of troy, and. Helen of troy, the beauty who sparked the trojan war. Amanda elyot finally gives her a voice in the memoirs of helen of troy, a. A lush, seductive novel of the legendary beauty whose face launched. Completed ya book series to read cover to cover right now. List of books and articles about helen of troy online. Everyday low prices on a huge range of new releases and classic fiction. Starcrossed is a young adult fantasy romance novel by american author josephine angelini. This is demonstrated well in the below scene from the odyssey. After discovering her heritage, helen learns that a union with the boy she.
Helen of troy thats pretty much all we have to go on and she doesnt e. Free kindle book and epub digitized and proofread by project gutenberg. In most of the traditional myths, helen of troy, the woman whose face. Still of helen as she is portrayed by german actress diane kruger in the 2004 hollywood film troy, written by david benioff and directed by wolfgang petersen above. Daughter of a god, wife of a king, prize of antiquitys bloodiest war, helen of troy has inspired artists for millennia. This book is a good read if you are about to study the iliad and are after an easy way to digest a complicated classic. After all, she was supposedly the face that launched a thousand ships. A completed ya book series ensures that i can grab an entire stack of titles and read them covertocover and backtoback. Helen would really like to go back home to sparta and her husband and daughter but doesnt see any way of making that happen.
She is an elusive character who defies any attempts to pin her down. Helen of troy full story, fairy tales for kids youtube. Helen actually came from sparta, not troy, but she became forever helen of troy when she eloped with the trojan prince paris, launching a thousand ships, and today, a thousand haircare products named after her. Learn from helen of troy experts like euripides and gary weiand.
If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller support. After discovering her heritage, helen learns that a union with the boy she loves may trigger a new trojan war. Completed ya book series span genres, as well as spanning lengths. Still worthwhile if you are looking for a solid young adult romance. The stories have been around for years, but, on the occasion of this show, have resurfaced in talkedabout new books like schliemann of troy. There are so many ya mythology books that i wanted to make sure they were represented on my list, but there enough to choose from that theres no reason to force yourself. Adventure, biography, another corny teen novel we both relate to charlie a lot, fantasy. Bettany hughes the ancient worlds 4 of 7 helen of troy hd. Ill keep an estimated average age of female marriage. The novel was shortlisted for the carnegie medal, the whitbread award and the guardian award. But helen s character is more complex than it seems. In greek mythology, helen of troy is known as the woman whose beauty sparked the trojan war. Prior to the trojan war, hermione had been betrothed by tyndareus, her grandfather, to her cousin orestes, son of her uncle, agamemnon. Books like circe or the song of achilles by madeline miller.
He bears contempt towards helen because she looks like daphne atreus, the. What i can do, though, are dig into completed ya book series and not worry about the inevitable feeling of sadness. Books like circe or the song of achilles by madeline miller reddit. Goodreads members who liked helen of troy also liked. On the surface helen is a kind host and loyal wife, yet underlying this persona is a sinister portrayal of. In this forthcoming ya novel, the myth of medusa is blended with the. To ask other readers questions about helen of troy, please sign up. Was helen really to blame for the trojan war or just a. Heralded by fans and critics alike, adele geras breathes personality. A 2003 television version of helens life up to the fall of troy, helen of troy, in which she was played by sienna guillory.
The only problem with taking war into a high school setting is the fighting seems petty and, at times, difficult to read. Goddess, princess, whore from the world s largest community of readers. Its helen of troy as a feisty independent heroine before troy, without the reincarnation plot and modern paranormal romance element of starcrossed. Now margaret george, the highly acclaimed bestselling historical novelist, has turned her intelligent, perceptive eye to the myth that is helen of troy. For over 2,800 years, audiences have grappled with the destructive powers of helen of troy. Helen reminds troy s respectable elders what it was like to be young and horny. In most of the traditional myths, helen of troy, the woman whose face launched a thousand ships, is seen but not heard. Once youve read the iliad, the odyssey and the trojan women, you will have a good grasp of her mythology and her story.
The song of achilles by madeline miller, the iliad by homer, the odyssey by homer, helen of troy by margaret george, and the. Helen of troy, greek helene, in greek legend, the most beautiful woman of greece and the indirect cause of the trojan war. But then the feathers started sprouting beneath her skin, invading her lungs like a strange cancer, and hermes showed up with a fever eating away his flesh. Biography of helen of troy, cause of the trojan war. The iliad describes the conflicts between achilles and his leader, agamemnon, and between greeks and trojans, following the abduction of agamemnons sisterinlaw, helen of sparta aka helen of troy, by the trojan prince paris. Many people over the years have wondered what helen of troy might have looked like. The classical world in general, and greek myth in particular, seems to be experiencing a renaissance in twentyfirstcentury popular culture. It is based on events in the iliad, incorporating original stories set in the heart of the city towards the end of the trojan war. Art biography business childrens christian classics comics cookbooks. In nobodys princess, author esther friesner deftly weaves together history and myth as she takes a new look at the girl who will become helen of troy. Christopher marlowe, called her, the face that launched a thousand ships. A great documentary presented with passion and infectious enthusiasm by the ever interesting bettany hughes. Helen of troy full story, fairy tales for kids subscribe for more. Helen, in greek mythology, the most beautiful of women.
Ten books for readers of greek and roman mythology come. Presenting ya retellings an epic infographic brought to you by epic reads. If you just cant get enough of feminist greek myth retellings like these, dont worry. Helen s precise role in the abduction is unknown since the event is a matter of legend rather than historical fact and has been variously interpreted in. The song is called stuttering, by bens brother and the clips are from the movie troy.
After helen ran away with paris, prince of troy, the greek armies fought a ten year long war against troy to win her back, as told by homer. Goddess, princess, whore from the worlds largest community of readers. Find books like helen of troy from the worlds largest community of readers. The author did a beautiful job of telling the story of helen of sparta, later helen of troy from a perspective which seamlessly submerges you into the trojan war. Bettany hughes explores the history behind the famous helen of troy of homers iliad. So much for living a quiet eternity in perpetual health. Helen of troy full story, fairy tales for kids duration. Helen of troy by margaret george, nobodys princess by esther m. Well, helen of troy has earned that right, without a doubt.
Helen of troy by margaret george this retelling of the iliad tells it from the point of view. Read helen of troy books like heracles and other plays and thetis, peleus, and achilles for free with a free 30day trial. While still a young girl helen was abducted to attica by theseus and polydeuces, but castor and pollux rescued her. Amanda elyot finally gives her a voice in the memoirs of helen of troy, a fascinating novel about love, passion, sacrifice, and revenge that explores, from the womans perspective, the series of. Helen of troy is based upon a myth, or at the very least a story, and it seems that this compromises ms george. Check out these epic mythologyinspired ya books with some epic, godly characters. What was cassandras daughter of king priam of troy life like as a. The first time that we see helen, troy has already be. Her other primary source appearances are listed here. I worried from a distance that someone who jumped around like. Helen of troy and millions of other books are available for instant access. Who wouldnt want to see what that face looked like. Helen, before she became known as helen of troy, was a wannabe fighter who wanted to make.
She also has coauthored a childrens book, lucille lost. The story follows a girl named helen hamilton, who is gradually revealed to be a modernday helen of troy. A novel by margaret george from amazons fiction books store. Margaret georges helen of troy is indeed a doorstopper of a book, coming in at over 600 pages, and it could very easily have become bogged down in endless unpronounceable names and illogical storylines. In greek mythology, helen was the most beautiful woman from the age of the heroes. Read your way through this list of 162 young adult books that are all retellings or reimaginings of popular classic literature, myths, fairy tales and shakespearean plays. Still of helen as she is portrayed by german actress bella dayne in the eightepisode bbc miniseries troy.
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