Orpheus and Eurydice

by Menelaos Stephanides, Yannis Stephanides

Orpheus and Eurydice Greek Mothology

32 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 1983

About the author

Menelaos Stephanides, the author of ‘Greek Mythology’, originally studied economics in Athens but his main preoccupation was writing.

For more than twenty-five years he concentrated, with great success, on the retelling of ancient Greek myths, tirelessly studying the source materials to achieve his literary version of the many stories. Working with his brother, the artist and illustrator Yannis Stephanides, he wrote and published the 18-volume series ‘Greek Mythology’ for children, which was translated into several languages and later reissued as a pocket book for older readers. He then turned his attention to more recent Greek tradition, studying hundreds of folk tales the most appealing of which he retold in the highly successful 10-volume series ‘Folk Tales from Greece’.

Menelaos Stephanides’ name is now familiar in many parts of the world, thanks to the translation of both his mythology and the folk tales into several foreign languages. In 1989 his book ‘Jason and the Argonauts’ was awarded two Pier Paolo Vergerio honourable distinctions by the University of Padua, while in 1998 his entire published work was recommended by the Hellenic Ministry of Education for inclusion in school libraries, having already long been recognised as a source of reference for publishers, the reading public and educationalists.

Reviews

[Lena Korkovelou · Rating 5 out of 5]

I grew up with the Stephanides brothers ''Greek Mythology'' series. These were among the first books I ever read, and they literally shaped my identity -I first realised what my cultural heritage meant, thanks to them, and their influence remained with me ever since, motivating me to read Homer, the tragics and Greek philosophers in later years. The text and illustrations were aimed at children, but, revisiting them as an adult I still find them lyrical, evocative and beautiful. Great books have no limits, really, no specific target groups, and their language speaks to one and all, at all times -young and old, Greek or otherwise. Powerful pictures can convey the meaning of a thousand words, and this is definitely the case here -the illustrations capture the brightness of the Attic light, as well as the vivid imagination of the ancient Greeks, one foot in the light the other in darkness, at times aethereal, at others robust and colorful. The lines of these designs 'flow' on the static page, clearly inspired by the way ancient Greek statues often manage to be ''alive', full of movement. The Orpheus and Eurydice myth is among the most beautiful and inspiring that Greek mythology has to offer, and this volume is one of the best in the series. Would highly recommend this to everyone with an interest in Greek mythology -hopefully this will inspire you to read the Orphic texts themselves, and who knows, perhaps it will even lead you all the way to studies like Guthrie's amazing ''Orpheus and Greek religion.'' Thank you, Menelaos and Yannis - I would be someone else without the world you opened for me back in 1993. It still reads as if a day hasn't gone by.