Orpheus in the Underworld: A TOON Graphic (TOON Graphic Mythology) by null

Orpheus in the Underworld: A TOON Graphic (TOON Graphic Mythology) Reviews

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  EMA

  Easy read of a great myth!
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  KidsReads

  ORPHEUS IN THE UNDERWORLD tells the story from Greek mythology of Orpheus and his love, Eurydice. Orpheus was the son of Calliope, the muse of epic poetry, and a mortal, the King of Thrace. Orpheus was known for his ability to play the lyre and his singing ability. All of nature reacted and rallied around Orpheus when he played and sang. Many women fell for Orpheus because of his talents, but it wasn’t until he met Eurydice that Orpheus paid any attention to his admirers.
  
  Eurydice and Orpheus were quickly married, but the fates had different plans for the happy couple Eurydice was bit by a snake on her wedding day. Orpheus mourns the loss of Eurydice quite deeply; “The world had never seen such sorrow” (p. 27). He decides that he will travel to the underworld in order to find his love. He encounters many obstacles but is able to successfully navigate each of them with his singing and playing ability. When he finally reaches the king of the underworld, Hades, and Hades’ wife, Persephone, he sang of his longing for Eurydice and convinced them to allow Eurydice to leave with him. However, Orpheus could not turn around to ensure that Eurydice was behind him until they were both out of the underworld. If he did, he would lose her forever this time. Unfortunately, as they near the exit of the underworld, Orpheus cannot resist turning around and when he does, Eurydice is returned to the underworld forever.
  
  ORPHEUS IN THE UNDERWORLD employs Toon Graphic’s visual narrative in order to tell the story for visual readers. The story is accompanied by many pictures that serve to help tell the story. This could be called a picture book for older readers, but it’s told in a way that could be understood by younger readers as well. The text includes pronunciation guides to help with the sometimes difficult Greek names.
  
  This book would be a helpful addition to any curriculum that includes an examination of Greek mythology. Although it is targeted at visual readers, it could certainly be used with all readers.
  
  Reviewed by Aimee Rogers
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  Janet Hamilton

  Summary: Orpheus was the son of the king of Thrace and Calliope, muse of epic poetry. With that gene pool, it came as no surprise that he turned out to be not only musically gifted but pretty good looking as well. Before long, he fell in love with Eurydice, and the two of them got married. On their wedding day, Eurydice was bitten by a snake and died. Overcome with grief, Orpheus tried to rescue her from the underworld. He was allowed to take her, under the condition that he couldn’t look back. Of course, right at the last possible moment, he couldn’t help himself, and checked to make sure she was behind him. She vanished forever, and Orpheus went around singing songs about Eurydice until he was torn apart by jealous women. (I’m not making this up).
  
  Pros: The story is compellingly told, particularly the trip to the underworld. The text is part regular book and part comic; the accompanying illustrations are beautiful.
  
  Cons: Mythology and comic art is a tricky combination, and some of the comic dialogue seems a bit forced (Orpheus: I couldn’t help myself, I needed to see you again. Eurydice: I’m glad you left your lyre this time. Your voice is music enough to my ears.). Ick.
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  Stuart Dunn

  Orpheus in the Underworld is the second volume from TOON Books in their Greek mythology graphic novel series by Yvan Pommaux. The first one was Theseus and the Minotaur, which I had the pleasure of reviewing last September. The tale of Orpheus is one that mythology buffs, like my wife, will recognize. I, however, needed a refresher course, and this book proved to be just the ticket. Orpheus was the son of the king of Thrace and Calliope, who was one of the nine muses. After he was born, Calliope had to return to Mount Olympus to entertain the gods, so she asked Apollo to give Orpheus his lyre. Orpheus' musical talent was natural and passed down from his mother. One day Orpheus was performing and fell in love with Eurydice. They were married, but she died very early. He therefore decided to follow her down to the underworld and try and bring her back. You'll have to buy the book to see if he succeeds!
  
  Overall, the illustration style was very pleasing to the eye. The story was a mixture of narration blocks and character interactions with the traditional bubble text. A pleasant surprise for me was that the complaints I had about Theseus and the Minotaur were not present in this book. There was a love story, but the story didn't have sexual overtones like in Theseus. The story stayed true to the original myth and didn't try to change it or make it modern, which I always appreciate. Lastly, there were phonetic pronunciations of the hard to say Greek names; an index of characters and places; and even a further reading list! I highly recommend this book, and I can't wait to see what the third volume will be in this series!
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  Nicola Mansfield

  This is one of the higher level books in the TOON series and the second book by Pommaux in a subseries of mythologies. I'm a great reader of Greek mythology but this is one I have lesser familiarity with. I guess, I steer away from the love stories. It's a great tale though and half of it takes place in Hades, my favourite stories always involve Hades. This tale is a combination of Romeo and Juliet (doomed lovers) and the biblical story of Lot's wife (can't resist the temptation to look back). An exciting tale including love and romance, tragedy, and the doom and gloom of the Underworld. The art is gorgeous and appropriately done in the classic style. Another winner from Toon Books!