Nathaniel Hawthorne

Tanglewood Tales Nathaniel Hawthorne

"The Minotaur"-in which Theseus tests his strength against a man-eating beast with the head of a bull and the body of a man;"The Pygmies"-in which Hercules grapples with a giant whose strength doubles every time he touches the ground;"The Dragon's Teeth"-in which Cadmus slays a dragon, sows its teeth in the ground, and grows a crop of warriors to found the city of Thebes;"Circe's Palace"-in which Odysseus, a.k.a. Ulysses, saves his ship's crew from a wily enchantress;"The Pomegranate Seed"-in which the grain goddess's daughter is taken captive by the lord of the underworld; and"The Golden Fleece"-in which Jason leads a pre-League of Justice force of fifty Greek heroes against a series of dangerous creatures. These adventures also feature a giant clockwork man, a couple of fire-breathing bulls, winged menaces, humans transformed into beasts, and an army of Lilliputian warriors who send one of the greatest heroes in retreat. Hawthorne's retelling of these tales may not be my favorite version. Sometimes his pacing slackens, and then again the ending is quite abrupt. What he leaves out of this child's album of adventures, however, may leave them hungering for more. This might, in fact, be a "gateway book," leading youngsters to study the stories of the Greek gods and heroes in more depth. With a light touch, a streak of gentle silliness, and a worldly-wise skepticism about the magic that fills his own stories, Hawthorne's version may indeed be just the right story-album to give an inquisitive youngster his or her first taste of the classic myths and tall tales. Growing children may forget where they heard or read these stories first. But I am sure it will make a difference if they start with a storyteller of the top grain.