I always encourage my children to read a wide range of books. Thankfully they enjoy fiction and non-fiction so I was delighted to be gifted a copy of Mythologica: An encyclopedia of gods, monsters and mortals from ancient Greek. I know that my daughter will be learning all about Greek history and culture as it is covered in KS2 in the Summer term of Year 3, I am excited she can get a head start on the topic.

Mythologica: An encyclopedia of gods, monsters and mortals from ancient Greek

An illustrated encyclopedia of Greek mythology like no other, Mythologica features startlingly beautiful and exquisitely otherworldly portraits of mythological characters in eye-popping colour from artist Victoria Topping and authoritative text from Classics scholar and Greek mythology expert Dr Stephen Kershaw.

Uncover the colourful lives of 50 powerful gods and goddesses, earth-dwelling mortals and terrifying monsters as you journey back in time to ancient Greece. From the fearless Athena and her meddlesome ways to the brave and bold Odysseus and his remarkable journey home, discover why these incredible stories are still a part of our culture today.

Along with a copy of the book, we received some craft materials so we could attempt our own collage of one of the pictures in the book.

We love the illustrations by Victoria Topping, they are really eye-catching and fun to look at. Victoria Topping’s artwork is a fusion of technological and traditional techniques that combines photography, painting and cut-paper collage to perfectly express the blending of human and fantastic traits from which mythical beings are made. Little Sis had fun crafting this afternoon inspired by the illustrations.

Listed alphabetically, each spread presents a figure from the myths, including their name in Greek, their defining attributes and a summary of their story,. Interspersed with the profiles are summaries of famous mythological tales and historical events, like the Odyssey, the Trojan War and the story of the Argonauts.

The book is a lovely introduction to the lively world of Greek mythology and a beautiful display reference for the whole family.