Persephone

In depicting the characters, she borrows features from Greek statues but manages to give them humanity. A beautiful retelling of an enduring myth.

Strange and memorable, the many cross-sections showing the earth’s surface and the Underworld are particularly impressive. This lovely picture book was first published in England, but its appeal, like that of the myth, is universal.

The ancient Greek myth of Persephone's kidnapping by Hades, her mother Demeter's grief (and consequent freezing of the seasons), and dramatic rescue by Hermes is accurately, if choppily, retold. Dramatic painterly mixed-media illustrations accompany the story.

Gr 3-6 - Lyrical language and vivid details make for a strong retelling of this Greek myth, as Persephone is "plucked" from a flower-filled field, carried off to the Underworld by Hades, and sought out and mourned for by her distraught mother, Demeter. The story follows a traditional path, and Clayton makes connections to day-to-day life and the harvest cycle in the narrative and in her interesting afterword. Demeter welcomes her daughter home with a feast of "fresh bread, white cheese, dark olives, and cool glasses of barley water" and her seasonal comings and goings are marked by changes to the environment ("Ice melts and the ground grows soft. Earth bears fruit].Spring has come again"). Lee's mixed-media paintings, showing stylized classical-looking figures, effectively use color and tone to convey the characters' emotions: Persephone is aglow with happiness in a spring-hued scenario or wrapped in deep despair in Hades's dark kingdom. Cutaways simultaneously depict above- and belowground scenes (for example, Demeter rests in a sunlit pool while Persephone sits on a lonely Underworld throne) to underscore the story's themes. Add this fine picture book to mythology sections."Joy Fleishhacker", School Library Journal.

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.