Created by Joan Holub & Suzanne Williams
Adapted by David Camptiti
Illustrated by Eduardo Garcia
2 stars
Athena has just found out some shocking news. She’s the daughter of Zeus and now she’s being summoned to Mount Olympus Academy. She’ll meet new friends (and enemies), create some exciting inventions, and try to get the hang of this whole goddess thing.
While I haven’t read the original book, this graphic novel adaptation felt pretty chaotic. There seemed to be chunks missing and the transitions were often very abrupt.
In terms of adapting Greek mythology, there were some fun spins such as Athena competing against Poseidon in an invention fair (their competition for Athens) and the gods and goddesses sending heroes on a quest for Hero-ology class (Trojan War/Helen of Troy). Other aspects I didn’t like so much like making Medusa a mean girl who is jealous of Athena because Poseidon has a crush on her. I’ll admit, I’ve got a soft spot for poor Medusa and this version did her dirty. Also, the story of how she got her powers was quite the stretch.
Artwork is nice. Brightly colored and engaging.
Would work fine for those who already know the Greek myths mentioned. I think it will be enjoyable for those who aren’t familiar with the originals, but they’re definitely missing out on the actual stories this is based on.
I found this one alright. Would work for those who enjoyed the original novels. Probably won’t continue the graphic novels, but I’d like to try out some of the originals sometime.