All-Action Classics No. 3: The Odyssey [Paperback]

Homer (Author), Tim Mucci (Author), Ben Caldwell (Illustrator), Emanuel Tenderini (Illustrator)

Book Description

Age Level: 10 and up | Grade Level: 5 and up | Series: All-Action Classics

Welcome the next entry in the fabulously received and brilliantly created ALL-ACTION CLASSICS series. The brainchild of former Marvel Comics artist Ben Caldwell, these graphic novels are the freshest, coolest approach to the classics ever. Each one takes a famous work of fiction and translates it into a kid-friendly comic book narrative—with full-color illustrations and a fast-paced tone that will have even reluctant readers flying through.

Shipwrecks, angry gods, magical lands, beautiful nymphs, and siren songs: this vivid retelling of Homer’s legendary Greek epic follows Odysseus on his long, arduous journey home from Ithaca after the fall of Troy. Done in comic-book style, it features the highest-energy kid-grabbing details and plot twists, all dramatized in brilliant, action-packed images. It’s the perfect way to introduce kids and fans of graphic novels to one of literature’s great works.

 

 

Editorial Reviews

From School Library Journal

Grade 6 Up It is nearly impossible to condense such an enormous story into 123 pages, but Mucci manages to hit all of the action-packed highlights. These include many of the adventures that Odysseus had on his long voyage back home from the Trojan War, such as his dangerous encounters with Circe, Calypso, the lotus-eaters, the Cyclops, and the sirens, as well as his detour into Hades. The colorful artwork skillfully captures the dynamic action, and artistic touches like making the gods translucent in the world of men are especially eye-catching. With its fast pace and cartoony yet cinematic artwork, this adaptation will entice reluctant readers. In a bit of savvy marketing, the last page directs readers to the Action Cartooning website to learn more about the story of Odysseus and to see additional artwork, which should generate interest in the other books in the series. Andrea Lipinski, New York Public Library
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From Booklist

*Starred Review* It is not a stretch to consider Odysseus history's first action hero, with the derring-do spirit of comics and summer blockbusters founded on his exploits. But the similarity ends just beneath the surface. Odysseus' quest is simply to get home and put his house in order. The enemies he battles are merely impediments to that homecoming and the greatest virtue of his day: fealty to the gods. While his might and wit are on display against the cyclops, his trials were mainly resistance against the temptations of Circe and Calypso. Crucially, Odysseus was a husband and father, fuelled by his sense of responsibility. This All-Action Classics adaptation (following bang-up versions of Tom Sawyer and Dracula, both 2008) brings these themes out unobtrusively but brilliantly in a crackling adventure that also penetrates the recesses of the human heart, in contrast to Marvel's recent adaptation, which created a fun and precise but more sensationalist version that pushed the story's elements of sexuality. Here, Caldwell's art has the force and vibrant life of a Samurai Jack cartoon, and especially comes alive in the weird purple light of the Underworld and in the nightmarish sea creature Scylla. The best yet of the Homer graphic-novel adaptations, which are coming fast and furious in this format. Grades 5-8. --Jesse Karp

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Product Details

• Reading level: Ages 10 and up
  
• Paperback: 128 pages
• Publisher: Sterling (May 4, 2010)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1402731558
• ISBN-13: 978-1402731556
• Product Dimensions: 8.7 x 5.8 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 13.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #823,136 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

More About the Author

Tim Mucci is an author and comics scriptwriter who has contributed to Dark Horse Comics' Clone Wars Adventures: Volume 3 with "One Battle". He has also scripted graphic adaptations for Sterling Publishing's All-Action Classics; including "Tom Sawyer," and "The Odyssey."

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Don't Bother, May 22, 2011

By 

Nicola Manning (Ontario, Canada) - See all my reviews
(TOP 1000 REVIEWER)    (REAL NAME)   

This review is from: All-Action Classics No. 3: The Odyssey (Paperback)

Reason for Reading: This was a Cybils '10 nominee and I hadn't read it by the time judging was due as it was not a contender by that time and I'm just now getting to it.

I really don't have a lot to say about this adaptation of Homer's Odyssey. I did not enjoy it, and in fact found it confusing and rather boring. Let me preface that statement by saying I am a great fan of Greek mythology and have read *many* retellings of The Odyssey and will continue to do so as I love the story. However, this adaptation jumped around from scene to scene, flashback to present, with no segues between leaving out a lot of the *why* we are suddenly in a certain situation. Knowing the story well, I knew what was missing but I can't imagine this being someone's first exposure to Homer's Odyssey. The art also was certainly not appealing to me. I found it very busy with a lot of stuff going on in each individual panel that took away from the basic action it was meant to depict and I'm just not a fan of the square-jawed angular type of art. Of course this is just aesthetic and will vary with ones personal tastes in art. Overall, not recommended.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars awesome, August 27, 2010

By 

yuri - See all my reviews

Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: All-Action Classics No. 3: The Odyssey (Paperback)

ben caldwell does amazing work
i only hope they will print this in a larger scale in the near future