|| Olympus || Book Review ||

|| Book Review ||

Olympus by Devdutt Pattanaik

When it comes to Indian readers and mythology, people are crazy over either Devdutt Pattanaik's illustrated books or Amish Tripathi's Shiva trilogy. I never read any of these two author's work so I couldn't share my opinions on them until recently I picked up Devdutt Pattnaik's Olympus. I'm also planning to read his take on Mahabharta in 'Jaya', which was suggested to me by many. 

For today, I will be talking about just the Olympus.

What the book is about?

The book takes its name from Mount Olympus, the home of Greek gods. Greek Mythology is as rich and varied as the Indian mythology. Both, the Indians as well as Ancient Greeks wrote some of the most bizarre, absurd and twisted tales throughout history. Both of them share a lot of common ideas while staying culturally different and distinct. In this book, Devdutt Pattanaik is trying to emphasize the connections or ideas shared by both the mythologies whether it's about creation, daily lives of Gods, the fight of good and evil, morality, polygamy, homosexuality, human-animal hybrids, etc. He is held as a good researcher when it comes to this type of mythological studies so the sources, connective links, and references are provided in the footnotes.

What I liked about this book?

The book begins with the creation myth of the Ancient Greeks. The book covers each and every aspect of the greek mythos while trying to contain the vast information into as few words as possible. The Greek Mythology in itself is quite interesting so from the first page to the last, the book remains exciting. All the major stories such as the story of Heracles, Troy, Sysiphus, or Prometheus are nicely written here. 

The illustrations. There are one to two illustrations on each pair of pages which are minimal yet interesting and make the book more fun to read.

The constant comparisons of the Greek stories with the Indian ones were sometimes enjoyable. 

Another thing I like about the book is the pages with family trees and maps of Ancient Greeks simplifying the convoluted relations of the Gods and Demi-Gods.

What I disliked about this book?

A book about Greek mythology written and simplified by an Indian author well known for his mythological writings would have easily worked on its own. The grand vision of comparing and connecting the Indian mythology with the Greek one did not work well for most of the parts of this book. While the Greek stories remain gripping, the footnotes and dots connecting the stories with Indian myths are constant distractions and take the reader out of the Greek narrative. Some important stories should have been more detailed.

The stories can get confusing at times but maybe the Greek names are to be blamed. 

Final Verdict

If you are interested in Greek mythology or some light reading then you should definitely read this book. It's written in a very simple language and keeps the reader engaged.

I needed a light reading and as a student of sociology and philosophy we are more connected with the Greek mythos, I enjoyed the book from the start to finish. 

Buy Olympus On Amazon: https://amzn.to/2PxH8sF