Reading Diary B: Italian Round 2

The second half of the Italian Popular Tales unit proved to be just as fun as the first! There were a few of the stories that I had heard before, but with a twist. For instance, The Three Goslings is the equivalent of The Three Little Pigs. A lot of the stories, however, were very new to me and in my opinion had a variety of lessons.

I found An Incident in Rome to be entertaining yet serious. It is a story where a group of men stumble upon this hole in the ground. A man descends into it to find a door and a man sitting in the room behind it. After a series of events, we find out that this man is Pontius Pilate, who is neither saved nor condemned. He is to stay and read over and over the sentence he gave to Jesus Christ. It is no light subject matter, that is for sure!

My favorite of the unit was The Feast Day. This is a story about how a cat, a dog, a maiden, and her husband all get stuck on the top of the house. They are later saved by a friend who came to visit and managed to pull them all down. The reason it was my favorite is really just because it is a story that in context means something completely different present day. They use the following expressions:

"... Where the deuce are you fastened?"
"Where the deuce have they hidden?"

I find this entertaining because a lot of college kids use similar expressions. I don't know if this is the style of story from which that slang term originated, but it added such value to the entertainment of the story. Not to mention the way that it ends:

So he gave a great pull: the cat's tail was loosened, the cat fell into the dog's mouth, the dog into his mistress' mouth, the mistress into her husband's, her husband into his friend's, and his friend into the mouth of the blockheads who are listening to me.

I just like that the author used the term "blockheads" to finish of a great story!

Image Cred: StripGenerator

Reading Diary A: Italia What, These Are Some Good Stories!

Read Italian Fairy Tales, the first half, today. It was right up there with some of my other favorite units in the class. I think I have come to the conclusion that I really enjoy the middle ages where there are kings and enchantments and the works.

The beginning of this unit had the story of Rapunzel, but not Rapunzel. It was an Italian Rapunzel whose name is The Fair Angiola. What I liked about this story is that it reminds me of the movie Tangled (happened to watch it this past weekend). But it truly does help paint the picture whenever we have something to which we can compare the imagery used in writing. I picture the old witch very similar to the old lady in Tangled!

Image Credit: YouTube

I also thought that The Ingrates had a very interesting ending to its story. In it, there is a serpent trapped under a rock, and a man helps him escape. The snake then wants to eat the man. They seek advice of those around them to see what is fair. Eventually, they ask the fox, and the fox tricks the snake back to being trapped from under the rock and frees the man. Then, the man gives the fox a gift that actually contains dog inside. The fox opens the gift and is killed by the dogs. It definitely is an ending that is bittersweet. I like it because it is different- not that prefect happy ending. But I also think it is so sad that so much injustice was done. Although it was entertaining, to say the least.

Extra Reading Diary: The Little Mermaid

I read The Little Mermaid from the Andersen Fairy Tales Unit. It was broken into six parts, but goes through the entire story of the Little Mermaid.

My first observation is just how different it is from the Disney movies. Granted, I have heard that a mall ion times- that Disney always "Disneyfies" their stories to always be a happy ending. I would say the end of this story is a sad ending, and it was sad the way the prince called her "my dumb foundling." It just kind of paints a picture of the little mermaid being pathetic and like a little puppy dog. Also, the ending is of course completely different! How she doesn't actually end up with a prince, but she floats into the air to become a "daughter of the air." Just all around different!

Another observation is how descriptive the stories really are. Especially Part 1. The way the undersea kingdom is described makes me want to visit. It is vivid detail and creatively thought up! For instance:

Outside the castle there was a beautiful garden, in which grew bright red and dark blue flowers and blossoms like flames of fire; the fruit glittered like gold, and the leaves and stems waved to and fro continually. The earth itself was the finest sand, but blue as the flame of burning sulphur. Over everything lay a peculiar blue radiance, as if it were surrounded by the air from above, through which the blue sky shone, instead of the dark depths of the sea.

I just can picture the colors and the intertwining creatures! The way that Andersen uses color to truly enhance the imagery makes me want to write the same way. Although... to be of equal stature would take quite a bit of time and some extremely favorable circumstances!

 Image Credit: Disney Blogs

Reading Diary B: La Fontaine Fables

Read the second half of Fontaine's Aesop's Fables. The second half was much like the first. It grouped the fables and broke it down by the animal involved in the story. I liked a lot of them but for some reason my favorite part was in the story The Bear and The Amateur Gardener.

"The bear, with thoughts the same,
Down from his mountain came;
And in a solitary place,
They met each other, face to face."

This is an excerpt from the story where the bear and the gardener are about to "face off" if you can call it that. At the end the bear ends up living with the man and everything is great. But at the very end a very trivial instance made the bear kill the man. It just teaches to be aware of your surroundings and intentions of your friendships.

I guess the reason why I liked it so much is that it seemed to me like a very dramatic face off between the two. Like I can just imagine the bear clambering down the mountain side and coming to a complete stop right as the man has his chest puffed out standing tall in the middle of a mouton meadow. The creatures of the forest stand in awe to see the outcome... it could be a cool movie scene, that is for sure!

If I were to imagine this scene, here is how I think it would end up:

Image Credit: io9

Reading Diary A: La Fontaine Fable

This week it is the La Fontaine Fable unit that has a hodgepodge collection of the various fables from Aesop and others. They are organized based on the animals that are in the stories, and I really enjoyed a lot of them, but will highlight them here:

The Hen With The Golden Eggs

I haven't heard this little rhyme in years, and I think it is clever, funny, and I like the message behind it. Essentially, it is about a farmer that owns a hen that produces a gold egg every day. He was foolish and decided he wanted all of the wealth it offered at once, so he cut it open. Only, he didn't find any golden eggs, of course, and now was left with a dead hen. I think this is interesting because shouldn't a farmer know how chickens and eggs and all that mumbo jumbo works? I do love the idea behind it, which is counter to the American culture of 'get rich quick.' Hard work and patience ain't all that bad!

The Horse and the Wolf

This story is essentially about two wolves being curious about the creature of a horse, for they had never seen one! So one day they went up to the horse and asked him what sort of creature he was and for his name. The horse told them they could read about who he is on the bottom of his hoof. Eventually, one of the wolves came forward to read the bottom of the hoof and the horse smacked him, causing four teeth to be knocked out! The whole reason I liked this story was that it reminded me of this trick:

"Does this cupcake smell weird to you?"
*Person #2 leans over to smell cupcake*
*Person #1 smears it all over Person #2's face"

You end up looking like this guy.

Image Credit: Karen Russel Photography

Reading Diary B: King Arthur

Ah, the quest for the grail! The entire second half of the King Arthur unit is entirely focused on the knights' search for the Holy Grail. The stories jumper from one knight to the other and back to the first. All of the stories are interwoven and by then end you half half of an idea about what happened to half of them. It is beautiful chaos!

Basically, by the end of these stories, I have come to realize that Sir Galahad is the greatest and that Monty Python's version of this is a bit off. I can't imagine what it would have been like to live in the stone ages where jousting and swords were a normal. I would much like to see a jousting tournament, that's for sure!

One thing that surprised me from this unit was how futile the search for the grail truly was. I thought there would be more of a purpose to going, but hundreds of noble knights lost their lives from searching after an object they saw once for a few minutes. Then, once obtained, what even is the prize? The pride coming with it... but then the knight who gets it is the one who is holiest and most humble? So pride wouldn't really be too great of a prize. We see all of this from the way Sir Galahad goes!

What a crazy story that truly is a classic!

A hodgepodge of quotes from the brilliant Monty Python version of King Arthur and the search for the Holy Grail.

Image Credit: Etsy

Reading Diary A: King Arthur

"He likewise told the King many things that should befall him, and warned him always to keep the scabbard as well as the sword Excalibur, and foretold that both sword and scabbard should be stolen from him by a woman whom he most trusted." from The Passing of Merlin from the King Arthur unit.

King Arthur has been a longtime fave of mine. I read all of Arthurian legends in high school, and am happy to have this unit bring back some memories. Plus, there is a really good country song called "Guinevere" for you country music lovers out there. Of course I have to listen to it as I type this! (Listen to it Here) I had long forgotten about a lot of the specific people involved, like Sir Tor and the role that Merlin played and how he died.

The quote I included at the beginning is from when Merlin is about to leave Arthur forever in pursuit of some wicked maiden, and he tells Arthur about all of the bad things that will come of him. I thought this was interesting, and it brought to mind the phrase: "ignorance is bliss." And now I am thinking it actually might be true. I wouldn't want to hear about all of the evil that will befall me, especially if it was something like my crazy half sister coming to murder me in my sleep but stealing my magical scabbard and running away with it instead. I'm better off not knowing that!

Looking forward to the second half!

The magical sword, Excalibur.

Image Credit: Wikipedia

Extra Reading Diary: Alice In Wonderland, the Second Half

Because I enjoyed the Alice in Wonderland unit so much, I figured I would read the second half for my extra reading since I didn't get a chance at the beginning of the week!

Although I liked the first half of this reading better, I liked the second part a lot as well because it was ten times the madness! People in Wonderland seem to never make sense, and I kind of like that. One part, that I didn't like was the ending. You know how in elementary school the whole "wake up in a dream" thing is always a cop out to writing an actual ending? I felt a little bit like that about the end of this story, although I am sure that, being written in 1850, they called "dibs" on that. It was probably a novel ending back then...

I actually got a bit frustrated by the king by the end of the court session about who stole the tarts. At this point I am definitely feeling the same emotions as Alice probably is while standing in the court room. Another thing I really like is that it includes Alice's thoughts in the dialogue. For instance, the comment about jurors.

'I suppose they are the jurors.' She said this last word two or three times over to herself, being rather proud of it: for she thought, and rightly too, that very few little girls of her age knew the meaning of it at all. However, 'jury-men' would have done just as well.

I just think it's funny how it includes Alice's sentiments all throughout the context. I'm glad I was able to finish off this unit, and loved my trip down memory lane.

Image Creds:Pinterest 

Reading Diary A: Alice in Wonderland

This week I read the first half of the Alice in Wonderland unit! I much liked it, and much liked the way it was written. It was pleasant to all be one flowy story, and led to my reading through it with little to no effort. I found it more than enjoyable! I also thought it odd that there would be random words capitalized, but then again I do not see a reason why they shouldn't be. Overall, it was VERY entertaining, and I'd like to share my favorite quotes from the reading here:

'Who are YOU?' said the Caterpillar.
This was not an encouraging opening for a conversation. Alice replied, rather shyly, 'I — I hardly know, sir, just at present — at least I know who I WAS when I got up this morning, but I think I must have been changed several times since then.'

This is from the Advice From A Caterpillar Part 1 whenever Alice first crosses paths with the silly creature.  I fell in love with this quote the same way Alice fell down the rabbit-hole. I am a huge believer in the idea that change doesn't usually happen at one time. For instance, who I am one year is merely the sum of who I became every day of the previous year. This is why I like Alice's quote! She doesn't know who she is because it has already changed for the day!

I also like the quote when she was talking to the cheshire cat in Pig and Pepper Part 3, and she was asking where she should go:

'But I don't want to go among mad people,' Alice remarked.
'Oh, you can't help that,' said the Cat: 'we're all mad here. I'm mad. You're mad.'

I just like this because it's true! I feel like sometimes I should be in Wonderland because I am mad!

Image via Etsy

Reading Diary A: Native American Heroes

One of the things I like about the Native American Heroes unit is that the myths and tales tell a story about something relatable or something known to me. For instance, in The Attack on the Giant Elk and the Great Eagle Part 1 and Part 2, tells a story about how the bald eagle used to be a giant man-hunting bird, but the main character of the story, Jonayaíyin, kills the mother and the father. Then he hits the baby eagles on the top of the head to stunt their growth so they could no longer attack man, this makes them the size they are today!

By far the weirdest stories in this unit were The Jealous Uncle Part 1, Part 2, and Part 3. This story is about an Uncle who kills his nephews as soon as they are a few years old. His wife hated that he did this, so the next boy that was born she lied and said he was a girl. Eventually, his uncle found out and tried to kill him, but the boy always outsmarted the uncle and eventually got revenge. There was one quote from the boy that struck me:

"I can forgive him the killing of my brothers, the attempts on my life, but I will revenge his treatment of my parents."

This kind of shows his mortality, that he has a breaking point. I find the boy extremely strong to be able to forgive his wicked, prideful uncle for murdering his brothers and even trying to kill him. I think that most people would agree that it's usually worse to watch the people you love be wronged than to be wronged yourself. Everyone has at least a little selflessness in them! Great unit, I'd recommend it for sure!

 Image Credit: Southern Blogspot

Reading Diary A: Everything is Bigger in Tejas

Tejas Legends it is for the week! I've developed this nasty habit of skipping my first reading diary for the past few weeks, so hopefully this won't be forever. I felt obligated, and also interested, to read the Tejas legends because I am from that very state!

To give an overview, the stories (at least in the first half) give the Tejas background to all kinds of legends, such as why woodpecker's peck wood and why they have short tails. There is a story that accompanies each, so it is fun to read the creative background.

My favorite story was The Cloud That Was Lost. It is about how clouds get tired from carrying heavy rain, so they enjoy resting in the mountains at night. One cloud, though, went too far one day and had to bed down in a grassy area for the night. The flowers in the area saw that this cloud was pink and wanted its color, so they drank the cloud up that night! This is how the Phlox flower got its color!

I loved this story because I think it is just an adorable tale. I could easily see this being made into a really cute short film with a fluffy pink cloud and petite white flowers drinking it all up!

I also liked Grandmother River's Tricks. In this story, Grandmother River protects the river fish from the harmful gar fish by tricking the gar outside the edges of her banks. I liked it because it reminded me of Grandmother Willow's protection in Pocahontas!

Grandmother Willow from Pocahontas!

Image Creds: DisneyWiki

Reading Diary A: The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung

The firs half of The Monkey King Sun Wu Kung was a delight! I really like the progression of this story because there is no choppiness between stories. Each story generally picks up where the last one left off.

The Monkey King is about a monkey who was born out of a magic egg that was in a magical rock under the heavens. He grew up in "unconstrained play" just like a normal ape, but quickly he was unable to hide his greatness. He became king after finding the ape community a cave they could dwell in forever. He then grows unsatisfied when he realizes that at some point he will have to die, so he goes on a journey to find immortality. Eventually, he gets trained by a saint to be great in mysterious and magical ways. Sun then returns to his ape kingdom and is greeted with favor. He then goes on other adventures, invoking fear in any who dare to challenge him.

I think one of my favorite parts of this story is at the beginning in The Great Sea whenever The Monkey King has an internal crisis over seeking truth. He is told," That you have hit upon this thought, O King, shows the desire to search for truth has awakened you!" So he goes on a journey to find truth. I think a lot of people can relate to this because there are a lot of moments where the tasks to which we have set ourselves seem futile in light of the grandeur of life! I find it very important to seek truth about the world and how it works- whatever that looks like for you!

I also like the part in Sun Wu Kung Gets His Name where, like the title says, he gets his name! I just think names are so important. Names define you in a way, makes you someone and when people call you by name it screams familiarity! So of course Sun was full of joy when he got his name! He was a Sun, not just an magic rock monkey anymore!

Hey, I found Truth! Taken in San Francisco.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Extra Reading Diary: African Stories

SO GLAD I chose the extra reading unit. I read African Stories (Lang) Unit for my extra readings this week. I've discovered that I enjoy units where stories continue from one to the next as opposed to them being individual works.

Overall, this half unit was mainly about the trickster, Jackal. It shows him being clever, being shamed, and eventually being defeated. The adventure continues with stories of his two just-as-clever sons.

Jack-attack-al.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

At the very beginning of the unit, however, there is a story from Mozambique (one of the countries I am in love with) called Motikatika. This story features a family with a mother, father, and baby son. One thing I found crazy was that the mother was caught by an ogre, and in order to get away from it, she offers the ogre her son to eat. Wait, what? You were scared of an ogre so you told it that it could eat your son? Ya CRAZY! Worst mother award. 

I also thought that for such a good trickster, the jackal had a pretty lame death in The Adventures of Jackal (end). He was with his good friend hedgehog, who had actually warned him that the sheep was a vicious, jackal-eating greyhound, but he didn't listen. So then the hedgehog ran and the jackal got eaten. Outtricked the trickster, eh greyhound? 

Pretty sweet stories, these are! I'd highly recommend them if you need a quick read. 

Reading Diary A: Brer Rabbit

Brer Rabbit it is this week! What a challenge! I am doing a rabbit-themed Storybook this semester so I figured it would be worth it to do one of the Brer Rabbit units, since he is going to be a character in my storybook post in a few days!

Due to a booked schedule and some unexpected events, I was only able to read the first half of the unit. I will say this was a challenge for me because of the dialect used. I ended up having to read it out loud a few times before I could understand what each character was saying.

My favorite story was a bit of a cliché for Brer Rabbit, but it is called The Wonderful Tar-Baby Story, and it is just that: wonderful. Brer Rabbit had previously played a trick on Brer Fox, so Brer Fox is in retaliation mode. He crafts a baby out of tar, and up walks Brer Rabbit. Getting frustrated at the lack of animation from the tar baby, he tried to attack it only to find out his arm got stuck in the tar! He gets even angrier until both arms and his head is caught in the tar! Meanwhile, Brer Fox is in the bushes watching all this transpire, and eventually he can't handle it and bursts out laughing.

I just liked this story because it was one of a good prank. If you know me, you know I love pranks. Granted, I have never crafted a tar baby, but the idea is the same. I love a good trick!

London version of a dapper Brer Rabbit.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Reading Diary B: Twenty-Two Goblins

The second half of Twenty-Two Goblins seemed similar to the first, and very entertaining! I thought it was an interesting way to end the story wight he monk dying, but, nevertheless, it was a good story. In all honesty, I should shave seen a weird ending coming!

My two favorite stories from the second half were The Girl and the Thief and The General's Wife.

The former I enjoyed because it ended happily! So many of these stories end with death or grief, and I liked that the girl's sacrifice led to her favor with the gods to bring her lover back to life. It ends with everyone enjoying everyone else. It's a story of redemption!

The latter was entertaining because it had central themes of honor and virtue, which we don't see in kings in a lot of other stories. Especially in mythology, you see the gods take whomever they want for themselves and are caught up in vanity and entitlement. This story was neat because the king honored virtue over pleasure! I like the note at the top that compares it to the biblical story of David and Bathsheba, because I noticed so many similarities!

David on the throne, very similar to the King in The General's Wife.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Reading Diary A: I don't know about you, but I'm Feeling Twenty-Two, Goblins that is.

I read Twenty-Two Goblins from Indian folklore for this week! It's about a king who is on a mission to retrieve a body for a monk. The king finds the body, but it is held captive by a goblin. The only way to rid the body of the goblin is by outwitting the goblin's riddles.

The first six riddles were rather entertaining in my not-so-professional opinion. I think the whole setting of the story is a bit strange, but I've come to realize that strange is normal in mythology. There is no realistic setting for a tale. My favorite story from the first half was The Four Scientific Suitors.

This story is about a beautiful girl who wants a husband who is good-looking (I'm right there with her!) and is skilled in one area of science. For instance, there is one who makes clothing, a farmer, a warrior, and one who can raise dead to life (kind of?). Which one should be her husband? The king is smart and says the warrior, because he at least has some manhood in his science. It ends with this quote: "Discouragement never enters the brave heart of a resolute man." I like this quote because it makes me feel as if the young, lovely lady gets to marry a manly man. One who is not discouraged easily, and carries with his science a little valor. That's a victory in my book!

Mighty swordsman and future husband of the lovely girl.

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Reading Diary B: Sindbad to the Bone

The second half of the Voyages of Sindbad proved to be just as entertaining as the first. Because a lot of you probably did not read this for your reading this week, although I hope you choose it for next week, I will provide for you a formula for each voyage of Sindbad's.

1. Sindbad is discontent to just sit around, and realizes yet again his strong love of adventure
2. He sets out with a crew to go trade with other lands
3. Misfortune comes
4. He regrets leaving his comfortable home
5. He either by luck or by being clever escapes misfortune
6. His rescuers fall in love with his stories
7. He is given or works for great riches
8. He voyages back home and gives money to the poor
9. He vows to never leave his home again

Rinse, wash, repeat. That may seem boring to you, but really it's kind of fun to see how creative these stories are, trying to guess how he is going to escape peril this time! People love happy endings, what a joy that we get to read seven of them!

My favorite parts of the second half of the reading come from the Seventh Voyage, where Sindbad's ship is taken over by pirates and he is sold as a slave. His owner asks:

"Tell me," said he, "can you shoot with a bow?"

I replied that this had been one of the pastimes of my youth, and that doubtless with practice my skill would come back to me.

I know this seems insignificant, but think about it! This is a guy whose renown extends far beyond his homeland. But what I love about him is that he doesn't play the victim card. He realizes that bad things happen, but makes the best of it! He has resolve, just like is shown here. He has more riches than ten times his owner's, yet he doesn't pitch a fit, and is determined to do his best at the task at hand. I feel like this is part of the reason he gets so much favor from the people he meets. He is not a proud guy, he is just a guy who works hard and loves having fun!

Sindbad the sailor takes on the mighty sea!

Image credit: Savannah London Blog

Reading Diary A: Sindbad yet so good!

I chose to read the Voyages of Sindbad for this week's reading! I think that this might be my favorite reading I have done so far!

The first half covers the first four of the seven voyages. Each of his voyages contain death, adventure, riches, and discontent with life. As weird as it may sound, I feel like I relate to Sindbad in some ways! He is someone who really loves adventure, and gets bored too easy. He is not after riches, although those do tend to follow him wherever he goes. These stories also depict humans as kind people, which is refreshing to read! I'll include some quotes from some of these voyages to help you understand why Sindbad rocks!

The very first story, First Voyage, opens up with this quote:

I had inherited considerable wealth from my parents and, being young and foolish, I at first squandered it recklessly upon every kind of pleasure, but presently, finding that riches speedily take to themselves wings if managed as badly as I was managing mine, and remembering also that to be old and poor is misery indeed, I began to bethink me of how I could make the best of what still remained to me.

To me, this shows that Sindbad is different than a lot of the heroes we see in our readings. He reminds me of the prodigal son in some ways, going off and squandering his wealth. But then Sindbad realizes that he needs to be a person of wisdom in order to have a fulfilled life! Another thing I love about this unit is at the end of each voyage he returns home with wealth unmeasureable, and he always gives it away to the poor! He is a generous, adventure-loving guy! Is he single? Just kidding. But check out the end of the Fourth Voyage what he does with his resources:

Again I gave large sums of money to the poor and enriched all the mosques in the city, after which I gave myself up to my friends and relations, with whom I passed my time in feasting and merriment.

He just seems like a great guy, and I can't wait to read the rest of the unit!

Maxfield Parrish's version of the giant in the Third Voyage. It's a little too Rollbounce-esque to me, but I can dig.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

Reading Diary B: Homer's Odyssey

The second half of Homer's Odyssey proved to be just as exciting and enjoyable as the first! Although the ending of the reading unit wasn't necessarily the end of the entire story, it did end with triumph and adventure!

The stories within the unit that were most impactful to me were The Spirit of Anticleia and The Ghosts of Famous Women. At this point, Odysseus and his men traveled to the underworld to visit the dead and get wise Teiresias to prophesy about his journey back to Ithaca. While there, Odysseus sacrifices lambs in order to get the dead to come to him. Before Teiresias comes, he has to see the ghosts of all of the women he knew, one of those being his mother, Anticleia.

The first story is a dialogue between him and his mother, who was alive when he had left on his journey. He didn't know she had died, and grieved intensely upon seeing her ghost. The pain and grief he felt seems so real in the story. The second story goes through and describes all of the spirits of the other women he knew throughout life and it's as if you are directly in Odysseus's mind, hearing his thoughts on them.

For me, these stories were impactful because they remind me that once you die, people are left with a certain impression of you that can never change. It inspires me to make sure that I leave a legacy that is honorable. I don't want to be like the women that Odysseus mentions and only quotes the negative things. I guess this reading provoked me: For what will I be remembered?

When I think about legacies, I can't help but think of a woman who left behind an incredible legacy here on earth. Mother Teresa was known for her love for others and for Jesus. My, oh my, how I would love to be a modern-day Mother Teresa!

Image Credit: Wikimedia Commons

Reading Diary A - Homer's Odyssey

A fine, fine read is The Odyssey by Homer. As long as you don't get too attached to any characters- because there is a 70% chance they will die in the next story- then this reading is perfect. I read part of the Iliad for my extra reading unit last week and loved it, so I've decided to read all of The Odyssey for my week three readings.

It is a tale of hardship after hardship, accompanied by some misfortune with a hint of pride. In the first half of the reading, Odysseus and his crew visit and defeat a cyclops as well as a magical goddess, who originally wanted to harm them but later became an ally.

One of the most interesting stories was The Moly Defeats Circe. Circe is the magical goddess who tries to harm Odysseus in the same way she has already harmed half of her crew. With the help of Hermes, Odysseus is able to outwit her and get his crew transformed back from pigs into humans.

One thing that stands out to me in this story is the grief that Odysseus and his crew feels at the loss of one another. I think I read these stories and get so accustomed to death being integral to these stories, that I forget the characters in them must have time to mourn. They were a family, and they grieve the loss of a family member. Their grief is so inspiring, in fact, that it changed the heart of the one who caused it: "... and even the goddess was moved to pity."

Circe realizing Odysseus's greatness.

Image credit: Wikimedia Commons

Another story that I didn't quite understand, but found entertaining nonetheless, was The Death of Elpenor. He got so drunk that he decided to climb on top of the roof and passed out; he then woke up at hearing some noise, forgot that ladders existed, and fell of the roof to his death. There really is no significance to this, I just thought it ridiculous, and appreciate that it was included!