Corydon and the Siege of Troy

April 1, 2009
Gr 7-9-In this sequel to "Corydon & the Fall of Atlantis" (Knopf, 2007), Corydon Panfoot is living in the desert with Azil, Bin Khamal, and Sikandar. The friends drift from place to place, herding goats and camels that they have stolen and, occasionally, raiding for more. One major theft drives the boys to the city of Tashkurgan. There Sikandar must choose the fairest among three goddesses, two of whom destroy the city when they aren't selected. Corydon vows that he will somehow destroy the callous Olympians and is guided by a sphinx to the city of Troy. He finds the city already besieged but is soon reunited with many of his monster friends, including the Gorgons Sthenno and Euryale; the Minotaur; and Lamia, the Snake-Girl. Despite their many skills and the interventions of allies ranging from Amazons to a host of small gods, the Trojan forces are no match for Akhilleus, Odysseus, and the Olympian gods that support them. Corydon and the Minotaur must attempt one last desperate ploy in order to allow the other monsters time to lead the remnants of Troy to safety. Readers familiar with Homer will recognize many of the events here, albeit in a different format, and the language is stunning. Readers of the first books in this series will definitely want this one, and even those who haven't read them will be able to enjoy this volume."Eric Norton, McMillan Memorial Library, Wisconsin Rapids, WI"

Copyright 2009 School Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

February 15, 2009
Grades 6-9 In this concluding volume in the Corydon trilogy, which re-imagines ancient Greek mythology with the gods and heroes as bad guys and the monsters (the Gorgons, the Minotaur) as good guys, Corydon finds himself engaged in the defense of Troy. Readers unfamiliar with the first two volumes will find little emotional engagement with the characters, and the endingand the severely telescoped events preceding itwill seem curiously flat. While there are few surprises here (Homer having already covered the Troy story), the battle scenes are stirring, and readers who have followed Corydon this far will want to see how his saga ends.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2009, American Library Association.)