Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold

Its a contemporary retelling of Greek myths without losing depth and humor. It will keep you hooked. The footnotes are as interesting...the origins of words especially the biological nomenclature etc has a lot to owe to these myths. The Gods will at once appear as flawed, beautiful and enigmatic. Pick this book up for a leisurely read and when you finish, you would have gathered so much insight.

Started with nothing and ended up learning a lot. Some of the words we use today and names of plants, flowers and animals had so much history connected to them is just mesmerizing to know and read. Loved the story of Echo and Hera.

A must read. Great writing by Stephen Fry. Anyone who needs an initiation into greek myths, needs to read this.

Having been a student of English literature, I am not unfamiliar with Greek and Roman mythology. Book: Mythos is a retelling of the tales of Gods, Goddesses, Titans, and humans. It is the first book in the five-part series on Greek mythology. The author starts from the beginning of Chaos and proceeds to tell us about the future events—like the birth of Zeus, the punishment of Prometheus, and the opening of Pandora’s box. Review: Narrated in Fry’s trademark wry humour, Mythos is a treasure trove of information for those fascinated with Greek mythology. The author doesn’t pass any judgements but narrates tales as they occurred. For a beginner, the zillion names in this book might make one’s head spin. I must salute the writer for his deep research and dedication. While most of the names are secondary and need not warrant a second look, they add meaning to the retellings. It was amusing to read about the divine men and women fornicating like there were no tomorrow to procreate. None are spared. Sisters. Mothers. You name it, you get it. Most of the gods would give the Lannister siblings (Game of Thrones) a run for their incestuousness. Nevertheless, it’s not always lust. Gods are as much prone to vanity and jealousy as the humans. Prometheus getting punished by Zeus for teaching mankind about fire—a jealous Hera always on the lookout for her husband’s mistresses—this book has every vice and emotion present in the dictionary. It was amazing to read about some English words and their possible origins from these tales. The wicked king Tantalus invokes the wrath of the gods. He was cursed to be in a neither-here-nor-there place, agonisingly close to satisfaction, only to be denied at the last moment. [tantalizing] The beautiful Arachne can spin, but her skill stirs envy in Athena’s heart. Finally, the repentant Goddess makes up for the girl’s suicide by rewarding her with a permanent talent to spin [arachnid] Midway, I found myself overwhelmed by the information dump, but the book picked up pace again. I reiterate that it is useful for aspiring writers who seek inspiration from myths. Even minor characters have so much scope in such majestic tales. It’s no wonder that heroes have found voices in subsequent works of literature—Shelley, Byron, and the great Shakespeare. If you’re a fan of this genre, you won’t be disappointed.

For someone like me who had little knowledge of Greek mythology, Mythos is the perfect introduction to this subject. Fry covers it comprehensively, even if not in great detail, and his easy and humorous writing style makes the book an easy read. The book tries to be as comprehensive as possible, commencing from the origins of the titans and the gods, and concluding with several fables. It also discusses the origin of many words commonly used today — euthanasia coming from Thanatos, Kronos contributing to chronometers, and tantalised from Tantalus for example. As Fry puts it, this “splendidly exemplifies the continuing relationship between Greek myth and our language”. There are interesting origin stories as well — the creation of peacocks or the Sahara desert and icy polar regions or a swan song for example. The book also provides insights into the linkages between Greek (and Roman) mythological characters, even minor ones — an interesting bit of trivia is that Apollo was the only Greek god worshipped by the Romans under the same name. This book is essentially a dummy’s guide to Greek mythology. If your objective is to learn more about the subject, “Mythos” is a great read. Pros: A great introduction to Greek mythology, easy writing style Cons: In his attempt to be comprehensive, there is a bit of an overload of characters

Stephen Fry's dry, British humor shines in this retelling of Greek mythology. The quick turn of the phrase and the real-sounding dialogues between various characters makes this book a must read.

Honestly, this book requires patience. It's more of a narrative rather than an encyclopedia which let me down to be honest, for one like me who is new to the subject and just want to look-up some specific Gods, their powers and relations at once but not dive very deep into the tales it's kinda hard to start with, especially considering the fact it doesn't include any index as well. Though, even tho the narrative is in continuity, it's divided into different sections which makes it feasible to get into.

Great book!