rhyalei's review against another edition
dark
emotional
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
5.0
sam_riccio's review against another edition
5.0
Get the audio of this, you will not regret it. Told by both a male and a woman, and they do such a great job of telling the story that I forgot this was written in poetry.
A twist on the story of the Minotaur, the first time that I've read a book solely on the monster that wasn't completely about the killing of him. I got more of a chuckle out of this one, but I got a lesson because I don't remember this story as much as I should. It's about a two hour listen and likely shorter if you read it but if I found this at a bookstore I'd buy it for my collections.
A twist on the story of the Minotaur, the first time that I've read a book solely on the monster that wasn't completely about the killing of him. I got more of a chuckle out of this one, but I got a lesson because I don't remember this story as much as I should. It's about a two hour listen and likely shorter if you read it but if I found this at a bookstore I'd buy it for my collections.
literatehedgehog's review against another edition
4.0
A sharply humorous novel in verse retelling of the Minotaur in the labyrinth. The fun - and nuance - here is in the saucy perspective of Poseidon, the pathos of teenage Asterion, the madness and love grief of Pasiphae, and the other side characters. Each character speaks in a different poem form or meter, lending each voice a literally different sound and feel.
Well written, compassionately considered, and archly humorous - an excellent young adult verse novel indeed.
Well written, compassionately considered, and archly humorous - an excellent young adult verse novel indeed.
annebennett1957's review against another edition
4.0
I haven't read much Greek mythology so I wasn't familiar with this story of the Minotaur. I appreciated the book much better after I read the description at the end by Elliott how he chose different poetic forms for each of the narrators. I should re-read it with those forms in mind.
grimondgalgmod's review against another edition
4.0
I guess the only mythic retellings I care for are about the otherwise neglected interior lives of monsters. See also Grendel and Autobiography of Red. Definitely helps that this was a verse novel in which Poseidon makes horrible puns and says things like "Ta-ta, bitches!"
cajunliterarybelle's review against another edition
2.0
One of those rare instances when I would like half star ratings on GR. 2.5 stars? This was ok. I was not very entertained by it, but it is a good overview of the Minitour and labyrinth story as well as a bit of Icarus from Greek mythology. If you're not already somewhat knowledgeable about the myths, this could potentially be a good introduction. It could also be a decent recap for those who want to review the stories. I thought it had great potential but not much depth was added to the characters, storyline, or themes. Length could have hindered that, though. The narration of the audiobook gets credit for doing well in providing the voices to the characters and rhythm to the prose.
libbith220's review against another edition
5.0
I love picking up random books from the library and ending up falling in love with them. This was one especially a bit of a stretch for me as it is poetry, something I never really read. But the premise seemed intriguing, and I thought "Why not? It's pretty short so even if I dislike it I won't waste much time on it."
Well as it turns out, I didn't dislike it at all. I freaking loved it.
I'm always a sucker for retellings, because they usually give different perspectives into well known stories, and this book did just that. We got to see the Minotaur as more than a monster, Ariadne as more than a love-struck princess, and Theseus as...well, not much of him actually. Because this book wasn't about him, which I thought was great.
And the POETRY! My goodness, it was such the perfect way to tell this story. The author used different styles for each character (which he explains more about at the end of the book), and he did such a superb job with it. Each voice fit its character perfectly, I cannot stress this enough. And it was just so damn clever! I always love reading witty and unique lines in novels, and this book made me realize that poetry is a great way to be exposed to such great lines. Clever rhymes, clever use of spacing, etc. And the use of more modern jargon made for an easy flow to read while also helping you get more into each character's head.
And lastly, this book just really made me feel something in my chest while I was reading – I can't really describe it more than that, but I think it takes a pretty special book to evoke such emotions that I can't even truly convey them.
Well as it turns out, I didn't dislike it at all. I freaking loved it.
I'm always a sucker for retellings, because they usually give different perspectives into well known stories, and this book did just that. We got to see the Minotaur as more than a monster, Ariadne as more than a love-struck princess, and Theseus as...well, not much of him actually. Because this book wasn't about him, which I thought was great.
And the POETRY! My goodness, it was such the perfect way to tell this story. The author used different styles for each character (which he explains more about at the end of the book), and he did such a superb job with it. Each voice fit its character perfectly, I cannot stress this enough. And it was just so damn clever! I always love reading witty and unique lines in novels, and this book made me realize that poetry is a great way to be exposed to such great lines. Clever rhymes, clever use of spacing, etc. And the use of more modern jargon made for an easy flow to read while also helping you get more into each character's head.
And lastly, this book just really made me feel something in my chest while I was reading – I can't really describe it more than that, but I think it takes a pretty special book to evoke such emotions that I can't even truly convey them.
aclopez6's review against another edition
4.0
I read this because I am looking for more novels in verse to offer to my students, but this one is a bit odd. While I appreciated the author's intentionality with his rhyme scheme, the content and voice made the audience unclear. I think I would offer this to students as independent reading, but not for our curriculum. Quick read though.
helterskelliter's review against another edition
3.0
“I know who the monsters are.” (64)
So, this is a fairly interesting retelling/reimagining of the Minotaur myth. It’s still rather straightforward but the characters within are given new voices which add a VE layer dynamism that’s certainly more tame in the classic.
That said, this is definitely a book for younger readers.
It’s not a very challenging read. In fact, I almost found it too reductive at points in a disappointing way. For example, there’s not a lot of nuance in the characterizations of Ariadne and Pasiphae. I get that we’re hearing some of the more disparaging comments from Poseidon (who’s meant to be a d*ck) but I don’t feel the comments are contextualized enough, even for a story for young readers. More, young readers don’t want to read stories with characters who are reduced to being just “crazy” or “slutty”. If I wanted that unnuanced perspective, I’d just read the classic.
Anyway, for what this story is, it’s a 3 for me. The book isn’t being falsely advertised — it’s exactly what it says it is. You can decide for yourself how much you appreciate that~
So, this is a fairly interesting retelling/reimagining of the Minotaur myth. It’s still rather straightforward but the characters within are given new voices which add a VE layer dynamism that’s certainly more tame in the classic.
That said, this is definitely a book for younger readers.
It’s not a very challenging read. In fact, I almost found it too reductive at points in a disappointing way. For example, there’s not a lot of nuance in the characterizations of Ariadne and Pasiphae. I get that we’re hearing some of the more disparaging comments from Poseidon (who’s meant to be a d*ck) but I don’t feel the comments are contextualized enough, even for a story for young readers. More, young readers don’t want to read stories with characters who are reduced to being just “crazy” or “slutty”. If I wanted that unnuanced perspective, I’d just read the classic.
Anyway, for what this story is, it’s a 3 for me. The book isn’t being falsely advertised — it’s exactly what it says it is. You can decide for yourself how much you appreciate that~