And from what I remember from that age, they mentioned the same information in the history book, but less pictures. And it feels longer than what the history books mention for the age group of this book. They pretty much had all the information that you should remember from school. It is so simple with the facts and there is no really interesting facts put into the book - in order to make it more engaging.

The war goes on for years, until the Greeks finally have a plan to defeat Troy, which involves a wooden horse. After the Trojans kidnap Helen, Menelaus' wife, the Greeks declare war on Troy. In order to get wheat, they have to trade with Asia, but they get past the channel because Troy won't let them pass without paying the toll (gold). The city of Troy lives in wonder, with a stone wall protecting it, while the Greeks live on rocky land and can't grow wheat. I recommend it heartily for anyone with a child showing an early love for history and myth.Ī simple retelling of the Trojan War and how the Greeks won this war. With such good illustrations, it also works as a picture book you can read to a preliterate child. With names like Agamemnon floating through the story, The Trojan Horse may be best suited as a transitional text for kids learning to read with a parent's help. They're detailed, dynamic, and powerfully evocative of the world created by the story.

These excited me even before I could handle reading the story on my own.

Perhaps my favorite part of the book is the illustrations. The final chapter briefly describes the rediscovery of Troy by the 19th century archaeologist Heinrich Schliemann, a chapter that excited me as a child about the reality of history and the fact that much of it still out there somewhere, waiting for us beneath the dust. It also includes a lot of archaeological information, making this a hybrid of archaeology and Homer.

The Trojan Horse introduces a handful of the Iliad's cast-Odysseus, Menelaus, Helen, Priam-but omits stories like that of Achilles and Hector. It's a simple, spare account of the Trojan War focusing on the causes of the war and the end of the war itself. My parents bought me this book when I was very young and I've happily bought copies first for my nephew and now for my daughter.

War horse illustrated book