The New Windmill Book Of Greek Myths [ 360p 2024 ]

The New Windmill Book of Greek Myths is not a beautiful book, nor an exciting one, nor a profound one. It is a useful book. It is the sturdy, reliable bicycle of Greek myth retellings—it won’t win any races for style or speed, but it will get you from A to B without falling off. It gives a young reader the bones of the myths: the names, the plots, the morals, the geography of Mount Olympus and the Underworld.

If you approach it as a work of literature, you will be disappointed by its plainness. If you approach it as a well-designed educational tool that respects its source material and its young audience’s need for clarity, you will find it an admirable success. For a generation of British schoolchildren, this volume was their first trip to the Underworld, their first glimpse of Medusa’s head. And for that, it deserves a place of quiet honour on the library shelf—right next to the dictionary and the atlas.

Rating: ★★★½ (3.5/5)

Final thought: Buy this if you are a teacher planning a term on myths. Borrow it from a library if you are a curious young reader. But if you want to fall in love with Greek mythology, start with D’Aulaires or Fry, and then come back to the New Windmill to cement your knowledge. the new windmill book of greek myths

To understand the book, one must first understand the series. The New Windmill Series, launched by Heinemann Educational Books in the late 1950s and heavily active through the 1970s and 80s, was a revolutionary concept. Its goal was simple yet profound: to publish unabridged, high-quality modern and classic literature in durable, affordable hardback formats designed specifically for secondary schools.

While the series is famous for carrying John Steinbeck’s The Pearl and George Orwell’s Animal Farm, its mythology entry was a crown jewel. The editors at Heinemann recognized that students were losing touch with the foundational stories of Western literature. Without the context of Hercules or Pandora, reading Milton, Shakespeare, or even modern fantasy like Percy Jackson becomes a hollow experience.

Thus, "The New Windmill Book of Greek Myths" was commissioned not as a dry textbook, but as a narrative collection. It treated myths as stories first—thrilling, tragic, and heroic—and as academic references second. The New Windmill Book of Greek Myths is

The New Windmill edition sits perfectly between the childish whimsy of picture books and the adult complexity of Fry or Graves. It takes the subject seriously, which is exactly how teenagers want to be treated.

This is typically the centerpiece. The New Windmill edition excels here by highlighting the absurdity and danger of the labors—the Hydra, the Golden Hind, the Erymanthian Boar. Unlike sanitized versions, the text usually doesn't shy away from Heracles’ tragic flaw (his monstrous rage) nor his penance. Final thought: Buy this if you are a

This section acts as a prelude to Homer’s Iliad. It starts with the wedding of Peleus and Thetis (the apple of discord), the judgment of Paris, the abduction of Helen, and the gathering of the Greek fleet. Key moments include:

How does it stack up against the competition?

This book is not for the child who already devours mythology for fun. It is not for a parent looking for a lush, artistic coffee-table edition. It is not for an adult wanting the full, uncensored, psychological richness of the myths.

It is ideal for:

A typical contents page of "The New Windmill Book of Greek Myths" is a roadmap of the human psyche. While editions vary, a standard collection includes the following pillars: