Mythos: A Retelling of the Myths of Ancient Greece

Audio retelling of the myths -- with Fry's POV and insights, is an excellent audio book -- although, if you aren't remembering your mythology clearly, the first disk about the Titans, chucked full of information, is a bit dry and requires careful listening to get through. But on Disk 2, beginning with the story of the rise of Zeus, Fry's thoughts and interjections come through and add interest to the retelling of these stories and his perspective. Recommend highly!

Mr Fry is one of the authors I follow and I was excited to find this unexpected gem from him. I was used to his memoirs and contemporary tales and Mythos was a pleasant surprise.This is a wItty, beautifully written and intelligent reselling of these tales that I know so well from Robert Graves books, and I spent a delightful time with my May favorite characters from Greek Mythology who came to life in this wonderful book.I am a huge fan of Stephens writing and I anticipated this would be great, and he certainly has not disappointed in any way.If you want to revisit these stories or would like to explore the myths that certainly are intrinsic to the western world in so many ways, allow Stephen Fry to take you on this wonderful journey.I loved this book.

"Their myths understand that whoever created this baffling world, with its cruelties, wonders, caprices, beauties, madness and injustice, must themselves have been cruel, wonderful, capricious, beautiful, mad and unjust". The Greeks created gods that were in their image: warlike but creative, wise but ferocious, loving but jealous, tender but brutal, compassionate but vengeful". (Prologue)Stephen Fry is one of the most versatile and multi-skilled artists of our time and his work as an author, actor, producer, director, presenter, etc, has won both critical acclaim and people's deep respect. From a man of this stature, one could expect nothing less than bold artistic creations that dare to approach grand themes and subjects through an innovative perspective. In Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold, Fry attempts to retell the Greek myths, in chronological order, beginning with the existence of the primordial Chaos -the Greek equivalent to the scientific "big bang" theory- and the birth of the first order of divine beings such as the Nychta, Erevos, Gaia, Ouranos, Eris,and many others. These primordial deities were called the Titans, the word meaning "the striving, straining one", and the most notorious of them was Cronos, the titan who conspired with his mother to kill his father, Ouranos, and thus became the first among them. Cronos is known to the masses for the fact that he ate his own children to remain the king of the universe, but he finally took a taste of his own medicine as his wife, Rhea, deceived him and kept her last child that was called Zeus. Zeus grew up in Crete, far away from his wicked, cruel father and when he was in the appropriate age took revenge on his father and dethroned him from his regal status.As we are all well aware of Zeus was going to be the first among the twelve gods of Olympus, but this would not happen until this new order of divine entities, the second order, have removed once and for all the remaining titans from the face of the Cosmos. It should be mentioned that for ancient Greeks the word Cosmos meant what we call today the universe. What followed was a ten-year brutal war, an "earth-shattering conflict", known as the "Clash of the Titans" or "Titanomachy", and by the end of it, the Dodekatheon (meaning the twelve gods) was established as ruling the universe and everything in it. The new gods took the place of the titans through the use of excessive violence during the Titanomachy. Fry continues with the story of the creation of mankind by Zeus and the betrayal of Prometheus who stole fire and gave it to humanity as civilization. Zeus, enraged by Prometheus' treachery punished him severely as he was sentenced to eternal torment. Prometheus would be bound to a rock and each day an eagle would eat his liver which would then grow back only to be eaten again the next day. This process would continue ad infinitum. The reader can observe how the Greek perception of the creation of humanity shares many similarities with later religions like Christianism. One example would be seen as being created in the image of God both in Greek mythology and Christian tradition.Furthermore, we learn about the creation of the first woman, named Pandora, and her infamous box that contained a vast number of human vices that would torture mankind for the centuries to come. The author then mentions the story of the god Eros and his relation with Psyche. It is worth noting that ancient Greeks had four different words for love: Agape, Eros, Storge, Filia and each one of them had a distinct meaning. Eros was the son of the two Olympian gods, Aphrodite and Ares. Psyche was a lavishly beautiful young woman, daughter of a king, who made Aphrodite, the goddess of love and sexuality, to become jealous of her due to her incredible attractiveness. Eros fell in love with her and took her with him in an enchanted place where everything was dazzling, but under one condition. Psyche was not allowed for any reason to see her lover. But, as it always happens in Greek mythology, Psyche was unable to resist the temptation of looking at her gorgeous partner and attempted to light a candle to see him as clearly as possible when he was sleeping beside her. The result was that Eros, devastated by Psyche's betrayal, flew away from her. It was only after the intervention of the first among the twelve gods, Zeus, that Aphrodite became convinced to accept Psyche as her bride. There are more captivating chapters on the complex relationships that formed between gods and humans, the divine punishments, the metamorphoses of mortals to animals either as torture or as an act of compassion, and the great Greek lesson about Hybris that can be boiled down in this sentence: how pride comes before a fall.There are so many stories in this (mid-length) book that I was forced to incessantly keep notes during the reading. I have to admit that, even though I am a proud Greek, I remembered a tiny percentage of the stories cited in Mythos. In his foreword note, the author stresses his fascination with Greek myths as"the Greeks were the first people to make coherent narratives, a literature even of their gods, monsters and heroes"., even though their mythology is not the oldest in the world. The Greek gods owe a lot to the deities of Mesopotamia while the stories of Babylonians, Sumerians, and Akkadians preceded the Greek ones. Fry stresses out that his only intention is to simply retell the -already known- stories, and not to offer any kind of explanation or interpretation of their possible hidden meaning. There are some minor differentiations in their details, and Fry justifies himself by writing "in tinkering with the details I am doing what people have always done with myths". On another page, he quotes: "I think however that it is best told like all myths, not as an allegory, symbolic fable or metaphor, but as a story". Nevertheless, Mythos: The Greek Myths Retold attempts to establish a coherent timeline regarding the "ages of man" which is different from that of the Greek poet Hesiod who wrote the iconic Theogony. The readers who will read the book without skipping chapters will manage in the end to achieve some clarity regarding the chronological order of the genesis of both Cosmos, gods and mankind.In conclusion, I have to admit that this was by far the most compelling book I've read the last twelve months -or even more- and I cordially recommend it to everyone who has specific -academic or other- interest in Greek antiquity, mythology, literary theory and so on. Mythos doesn't require any prior knowledge on the subject and as the author writes in his foreword note: "You don't need to know anything to read this book; it starts with an empty universe". Stephen Fry is one of the most brilliant artists today and if you are not familiar with his body of work, then you ought to check him out immediately. He has also written another book, Heroes: Mortals and Monsters, Quests and Adventures, which is a kind of continuation of Mythos as in that book, the author dives into the world of ancient Greek Heroes. Some claim that those two books should be read in a row and I'm seriously considering starting it at once.

What a joy to read a coherent and clearly well researched story about the very naughty Greek gods written by one of the best intellectual minds out there. No matter what your beliefs, this is a romp you cannot fail to enjoy, Stephen Fry's prose as alive with mischief as the characters. You will have a smile on your face all the way through.

Since childhood, I have enjoyed reading about Greek mythology when my parents gave me my first book. The retelling of the myths by Stephen Fry is captivating. I bought this book because I find Stephen Fry on his show QI to be able to explain things in such a way to make even the most mundane or unbelievable subject enjoyable. I made a good choice to read the book, before listening to the audiobook of Mythos. You will not be disappointed.

Book is beautiful. Shipping was great; however, the book reeks of sulfur and I cannot get rid of it. I have tried everything suggested by anyone who knows anything about books, and nothing works. The smell is so potent and overpowering that I can’t stand it have it around. It’s in a ziplock bag and living out in my garage right now. I’m not sure what has caused this nauseating smell, but it has made the book unreadable.

Honestly, this is my first formal approach to Greek myths, and there could be no better guide than Stephen Fry.With a significant amount of general culture but with a fresh, young and contemporary view, he is able to deliver vivid, credible characters easily grasped by contemporary audiences.He relates to Shakespeare, Ovid, Dante and himself to round and explain how these stories trascended their origin into many centuries and cultures, to our days.And, yes of course, with a very fun approach that even at some times brings a laugh as only he can do.

I've been meaning and even trying to read on Greek mythology for a while, but it's a tentacled beast with too many cross references. Even more difficult it becomes if you are not that into verses. Fry has done all the legwork for you and assembled the stories in a more or less chronological manner. He provides loads of humour, trivia and etymological insight as a side bonus.All the newly encountered names are in smallcaps, linkage to Roman names is often indicated. Only problem is that there are waaaay too many names, which appear only briefly, but at least you get to know who spawned whom and how.

A real disappointment, especially from a writer as good and witty as Stephen Fry. This is twee, patronising, and feels as if it was written in a hurry to meet a publisher's deadline. Fry's efforts to make these great myths seem more modern and relevant read like a trendy vicar trying to "hang out" with the kids in his parish.

Really enjoyed reading this book. It wasn't what I was after but I liked it all the same. I read the Illiad and the Odyssey and really loved the style of writing and the exciting story lines. This book is more an exposé of the many Greek gods, but written by Steven Fry in his own inimitable way. Ancient myths written in modern language.Its interesting and enjoyable and does a good jobs of put as much as possible together in a single book without ever making you feel this it is study material for an exam.I'd definitely recommend

I really enjoy reading about mythology, especially Greek mythology, but this was written awfully! The way he interprets the gods talking to each other is like listening to two 9 year olds arguing, do juvenile and stupid. Highly recommended avoiding this!

Is this Stephen Fry's bid to become accepted as a "national treasure"? If so he must try harder. I realise that Mr Fry has made a career out of being arch and a little bit patronising, in a mildly amusing way, but here it conflicts with the subject matter. Do you want an insight into the Greek Myths? I remember being quite impressed by Robert Graves treatment of this matter some years ago and can, therefore, recommend it. This piece of twaddle - not so much.

I enjoyed getting to know about the Greek myths and gods which have mostly seemed very remote and academic till Steven Fry brings them to life in a light hearted humorous manner.