The Incredible Voyage of Ulysses - Hardcover

Bimba Landmann is the author and illustrator of a number of art books for young readers, including The Genius of Leonardo (Barefoot Books, 2000) and the award-winning I Am Marc Chagall (Eerdmans Books for Young Readers, 2006).

Grade 5 Up—This free-verse retelling of Homer's Odyssey, first published in Milan in 2007, is presented in picture book/graphic novel format. Landmann recounts the events in chronological order, leaving out none of the hero's encounters but stinting somewhat on the activity at Ithaca. The spare verse moves the story along quickly with echoes of the original's power despite occasional choppy sections. The full-color images are rendered in a dark palette and in a rather primitive style. The artist provides arrows to direct readers through the variously sized and shaped panels, but many of the elements are so small as to lose detail. In one of the final scenes, Landmann writes that the suitors are without their weapons when Odysseus finally attacks but his large illustration includes swords at the sides of many of the corpses. This rendition of Odysseus's tale is a fine introduction but might work better with other versions to flesh out the story. Besides offering a translation of The Odyssey itself, librarians and teachers should consider Adèle Geras's Ithaka (Harcourt, 2006) for a different view of events. Choices for younger readers include Padraic Colum's The Children's Homer (S & S, 2004) and Hugh Lupton and Daniel Morden's splendidly illustrated The Adventures of Odysseus (Barefoot, 2006).—Eric Norton, McMillan Memorial Library, Wisconsin Rapids, WI
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