The intro means nothing to anyone looking for a good story, whereas I’m sure it means everything to those approaching with a desire to learn. It echoes the begat sections in the Bible where, despite much attempted emotion, I often started to skim. Perhaps it’s easier on paper (no doubt) but in audio book format it is simply too much. She lays out all the Greek gods, mirrors them to their cut-and-paste Roman counterparts, and goes over all the names and relationships. Hamilton is first and foremost a scholar, and her Mythology reminds me more of the college texts I read once upon a time, where the heroes and their often grisly, racy, and generally inappropriate journeys were overwhelmed by the sheer level of J-STOR-esque quibbles that destroyed the good story vibe and made it just intellectual enough to be unpleasant. Worse yet, I found myself bored and drifting when I listened to it. Maybe it’s just because I’ve since been exposed to more entertaining (albeit inaccurate) depictions of dramatized mythology.

This book was in my mom’s growing collection, and I would always look at it as a child and say “that, that I HAVE to read someday.” In grade school I adored anything to do with Greek mythology, despite the fact that what I read was inevitably watered down and sanitized for children.Īfter 20+ years (ok, going on 30+, but whatever) I finally got to follow-through on my childhood promise when I snatched Hamilton’s now famous Mythology from an Audible sale.

I remember Edit Hamilton’s Mythologywith its depiction of a warrior riding a Pegasus from my childhood.

Hamilton greek mythology