Published in 2022 and written by A. F. Steadman, Skandar and the Unicorn Thief by A. F. Steadman is the first installment in the middle-grade Skandar series. The book focuses on unicorn lore and follows Skandar, a brand-new unicorn rider whose unicorn wields special yet outlawed magical abilities. While most unicorns and their riders have affinities with earth, fire, air, or water, Skandar’s unicorn has an affinity with spirit. As a secret spirit wielder, Skandar... Read Skandar and the Unicorn Thief Summary

Skin of the Sea by Natasha Bowen (Random House, 2021) is the first installment in the Of Mermaids and Orisa series and is followed by Soul of the Deep. The novel follows a young mermaid on her journey to seek forgiveness for a transgression against the creator as she learns what it truly means to be who she is. Skin of the Sea is Bowen’s debut novel and a New York Times bestseller that received... Read Skin of the Sea Summary

“Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs” is a 164-line free verse, narrative poem by Anne Sexton that revisits the original Grimm’s fairy tale from the perspective of a contemporary narrator. Sexton published the poem in 1971 as a part of her collection Transformations, where she retold 17 different Grimm’s fairy tales from “The Frog Prince” to “Rapunzel” to “Rumpelstiltskin.” While Sexton is primarily seen as a confessional poet, gaining critical acclaim around the same time... Read Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs Summary

Natalie Haynes’s Stone Blind was published in 2022. A retelling of the Greek myth of Medusa and Perseus’ quest to use the Gorgon’s head to free the captive Princess Andromeda, Stone Blind incorporates elements of biography and memoir along with epics like Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey. A noted classicist, Haynes has written several fictional retellings of ancient Greco-Roman myths, from the Trojan War in A Thousand Ships to the Oedipal myth in The Children of... Read Stone Blind Summary

Sundiata (also known as Sunjata) is an epic poem of the West African Mandinka (or Malinke) people. There is no single definitive source or version of this story, which originated in oral traditions of the 13th century and was passed down by griots, Mandinka poet-historians and regal advisors. Sundiata is a quasi-mythological biography of King Sundiata Keita, who founded the Mali Empire, which lasted from 1235 to 1400. The poem is also a central cultural... Read Sundiata (Sunjata) Summary

Tales of the Greek Heroes is a 1958 children’s book by British author and biographer Roger Lancelyn Green. The book offers a concise retelling of key ancient Greek myths, providing young readers with an introduction to classical mythology. Green compiles important stories about well-known gods and heroes into a cohesive, chronological narrative, exploring the themes of The Significance of Heroism in Greek Mythology, The Complex Relationship Between Gods and Humans, and Free Will and the... Read Tales of the Greek Heroes Summary

Now regarded as a landmark of Scotland’s national literature, Robert Burns’ “Tam O’Shanter” is a rollicking mock-epic poem about a drunk ne’er-do-well farmer who riles a grisly coven of witches and warlocks and barely escapes with his life. The poem celebrates the spirit and energy of the Scottish people, their relish of strong drink and the communal life of the pub, as well as their deep belief in the reality of the paranormal. The historic... Read Tam O’Shanter Summary

Tanglewood Tales for Boys and Girls is a compilation of Greek myths written by Nathaniel Hawthorne, an American author known for his interest in morality, history, and faith. Published in 1853, Tanglewood Tales is a sequel to A Wonder Book for Girls and Boys (1851), continuing the device of a frame story featuring Eustace Bright as the storyteller and extending the project of adapting classical Greek mythology for young readers by providing short interpretations of... Read Tanglewood Tales Summary

The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights is the final, unfinished work of Pulitzer-Prize winning author John Steinbeck. Steinbeck is most famous for The Grapes of Wrath (1939), East of Eden (1952), and Of Mice and Men (1937). The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights is Steinbeck’s only fantasy novel. He began writing it in 1958 but abandoned the project in late 1959 after completing seven chapters. Steinbeck died nine years... Read The Acts of King Arthur and His Noble Knights Summary

In 1969’s The Adventures of Ulysses, American author Bernard Evslin presents a prose version of Homer’s epic poem The Odyssey, the 10-year wanderings of Greek warrior Ulysses—also known as Odysseus—and his men as they struggle to sail home from their victory in the Trojan War. They encounter angry gods, fiendish monsters, beautiful sorceresses, storms, death, and a visit to the underworld.Playwright and author Evslin wrote more than 70 books, including two dozen works on ancient... Read The Adventures of Ulysses Summary

Irish author Michael Scott’s The Alchemyst, published in 2007, is the first installment in his six-part series The Secrets of the Immortal Nicholas Flamel. This guide refers to the 2007 Kindle edition. The following books are The Magician (2008), The Sorceress (2009), The Necromancer (2010), The Warlock (2011), and The Enchantress (2012). The Alchemyst was included in Time Magazine’s 100 Best Young Adult Books of All Time in 2015 and earned multiple awards internationally, including... Read The Alchemyst Summary

The Bacchae is an ancient Athenian tragedy by Euripides. The play is generally believed to have been staged (with Iphigenia at Aulis and another play) in 405 BCE by the poet’s son after his father’s death in 407-6 and to have won first prize. The production took place in Athens at the City Dionysia, a festival in honor of Dionysus.Set in Thebes, the play depicts Dionysus (also known as Bacchus) returning to his mother’s city... Read The Bacchae Summary

The Thebaid is an epic poem composed by the Roman poet Statius between approximately the years 80 and 92 BCE. While details of the author’s life remain hazy, we know Statius was born around 45 BCE. His talent caught the eye of the emperor Domitian, who soon established Statius as a resident poet in his court. Statius’s productive years were largely spent there. In addition to the Thebaid, his Silvae were published in Rome in... Read Thebaid Summary

The Battle of the Labyrinth is a fantasy-adventure novel inspired Greek mythology and written in 2008 by Rick Riordan. It is the fourth in the Percy Jackson series.The novel begins with Percy Jackson is at his freshman orientation at Good High School. Rachel Elizabeth Dare helps him fight two empousai, spectres who were disguised as cheerleaders. Percy flees to Camp Half-Blood, but Rachel remains. Percy is reunited with Annabeth, and they learn Grover is in... Read The Battle of the Labyrinth Summary

Originally published in 2014, The Blood of Olympus is the fifth and final book in Rick Riordan’s young adult fantasy series The Heroes of Olympus, inspired by Greek and Roman mythologies. The series follows seven demigods—children of one divine and one mortal parent—as they try to stop the earth goddess, Gaea, from rising to power. The novel won several awards, including the Goodreads Choice Award for Best Middle Grade and Children’s Book of 2014. The... Read The Blood of Olympus Summary

The Book of Thel was written and etched by William Blake in 1789. It is one of his prophetic illuminated books, crafted after Songs of Innocence but before The Marriage of Heaven and Hell. Blake’s recognition as an influential figure in the British Romantic literary movement only came after his death. The Book of Thel is a narrative, allegorical, and symbolic poem written in 14-syllable lines. Its themes include the expansiveness of God’s love, interconnectedness... Read The Book of Thel Summary

The Burning Maze (2018) is the third book in Rick Riordan’s young adult Trials of Apollo series, following The Hidden Oracle (2016) and The Dark Prophecy (2017). Set in Riordan’s Percy Jackson universe and inspired by ancient Greek and Roman mythology, the series follows the former god Apollo, who is now forced to live as a mortal teenager named Lester Papadopoulos. To regain his immortality, Apollo must serve under Meg, a daughter of Demeter and... Read The Burning Maze Summary

Percy Jackson and the Olympians: The Chalice of the Gods is a 2023 middle-grade fantasy novel by Rick Riordan. It is the sixth novel in the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series, the first five of which were published between 2005 and 2009. Riordan, an American author, has written dozens of novels, most of which are about ancient Greek, Roman, Egyptian, or Norse mythology. His books are typically aimed at middle-grade audiences. They feature contemporary... Read The Chalice of the Gods Summary

The Dark is Rising is a 1973 contemporary fantasy novel for young adult readers by English author Susan Cooper, and the second book in The Dark is Rising Sequence. It is preceded by Over Sea, Under Stone and followed by Greenwitch, The Grey King, and Silver on the Tree. The series, published between 1965 and 1977, focuses on eleven-year-old Will Stanton, who learns on his birthday that he is what is known as an “Old... Read The Dark Is Rising Summary

The Dark Prophecy (2017) is the second volume in Rick Riordan’s The Trials of Apollo, a five-book fantasy series for young readers. Inspired by Greek and Roman mythology and history, The Trials of Apollo follows the fallen god Apollo on his adventure-quest to find hidden oracles and save the world from a trio of cruel Roman emperors. The Trials of Apollo series takes place in the same universe as Riordan’s popular Percy Jackson books. Praised... Read The Dark Prophecy Summary