“In olden times, when men still worshiped ugly idols, there lived in the land of Greece a folk of shepherds and herdsmen who cherished light and beauty. They did not worship dark idols like their neighbors, but created instead their own beautiful, radiant gods.”

The first sentence of the book presents a pastoral ideal of ancient Greece as a place distinct from its neighbors in which beauty and light reigned. This ideal reflects both ideas of the time when the book was published and its intended audience of young children. The first sentences further announce the D’Aulaires’ approach to Greek, and Roman, myths: They will curate and reshape the stories to foreground the whimsical, benign, and charming.

“Most of the time they lived happily together, feasting on sweet-smelling ambrosia and nectar, but when their wills clashed, there were violent quarrels. Then Zeus would reach for a thunderbolt, and the Olympians would tremble and fall to order, for Zeus alone was stronger than all the gods together.”

This early description of the Olympian pantheon introduces a central theme of the book: the importance of wisdom, which for the ancient Greeks generally means balance. Consistent with descriptions in ancient sources, the gods enjoyed peace and pleasure when they worked harmoniously together. When they failed to prioritize harmony, and “their wills clashed,” violence erupted, which Zeus would ultimately put down with a show of his preeminent strength.

“The more wives he had, the more children he would have, and all the better for Greece! All his children would inherit some of his greatness and become great heroes and rulers.”

The above passage introduces the myth of Io, who Hera jealously tormented, offering a reason for why Zeus’s many relationship would have been seen as beneficial. The purpose is perhaps to make Zeus’s polygamy, as it is represented throughout the book, less jarring for modern, young readers. On a