Category: toolbox

Toolbox Time

Heroes of the City of Man by Peter J. Leithart

takes the literature and breaks it down from the Christian perspective, a Christian guide. Iliad, Odyssey, Aeneid, Bacchae, Eumenidies, Clouds, and many others.

In Search of a Homeland by Penelope Lively, the story of The Aeneid

Through Greek Eyes

The Aeneid for Boys and Girls, told by A.J. Church, good for kids

Plutarch Lives for Boys and Girls,

Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome: Modern Rhymes About Ancient Times by Susan Altman and Susan Lechner

Famous Men of Greece and Famous Men of Rome (Seefried)

Toolbox: Oresteia, The Bacchae, Medea, History of the Peloponnesian War

[the following from Greek Tragedy by Elizabeth Vandiver]

The Oresteia

Others:

  • musical The Gospel at Colonus (1983), the story of Oedipus at Colonus with a service in an African-American Pentecostal church
  • Rita Dove’s story of Oedipus the King in an antebellum southern plantation The Darker Face of the Earth.
  • Star Trek: Voyager. Shipwreck of D’Lana Torres on a pre-industrial world, built around Greek tragedy.

Toolbox: The Iliad

Books

  • Black Ships Before Troy retold by Rosemary Sutcliff (Angie)
    My favorite. Beautifully written. Listed for all ages, but this version is rather intense. I’d recommend age 12 and up.
  • The Iliad of Homer retold by Barbara Leonie Picard (Angie)
    This one is lovely too and not nearly as graphic. Great author. Copyright 1960.
  • The Children’s Homer retold by Padraic Colum (Angie)
    A homeschool favorite. A retelling combining The Iliad and The Odyssey. Listed for ages 10 and up. Younger as a read aloud.
  • The Iliad for Boys and Girls retold by A.J. Church (Angie)
    “Told from Homer in Simple Language”
  • The Odyssey for Boys and Girls retold by A.J. Church (Angie)
    Fine old prose. Copyright 1907. Listed for ages 8-10
  • Classical Kids: An Activity Guide to Life in Ancient Greece and Rome by Laurie Carlson
  • The Odyssey, DK Classics
    not particularly beautiful prose, informative,
  • The Odyssey, Barefoot Books,
    better prose, story from first person perspective
  • Gods and Goddesses of Olympus by Aliki
    Good background on the gods and how they came about. Similar to D’Aulaires Book of Greek Myths?
  • Adventures in Ancient Greece (Good Times Travel Agency) by Linda Bailey (Jeff)
    Good one on Greek history

Field Trips

  • The Walters Art Museum (Angie)
    I might be stating the obvious, but this is an amazing treasure trove of ancient civilizations and free!

Games

  • Achilles
    Action adventure where you are Achilles fighting the Trojans. [Gail]
  • The Iliad Game
    Doesn’t seem to work very well. [Gail]

Movies

  • Troy (2004)
    For adults, Orlando Bloom, Brad Pitt, Diane Kruger, Sean Bean. Not a great adaptation, but may be a fun way to visualize some of the story. [Ken]

Audio Book

  • Iliad Unabridged, Stanley Lombardo (2006)
    Several copies in BCPL. Good enough for listening. I like the Fagles translation better, but unlike the Fagles, this is unabridged. [Ken]