Shapeshifters: tales from Ovid's Metamorphoses retold by Adrian Mitchell
Ill.
by Alan Lee. Frances
Lincoln Children's Books, 2009.
(Age
11+)Metamorphoses
has inspired writers through the ages. The Roman poet's tales about
interaction between the gods and humans have been adapted as plays,
poems,
music and stories.
Shapeshifting,
or metamorphosis, is a common theme in legends
and folklore. Adrian Mitchell has used it as a metaphor for the
inevitability of
change, bookending his adaptations of ancient Greek myths with his
thoughts
about the subject of transformation. The result has a satisfying unity,
beginning with the creation of order out of chaos and ending with the
creation
of art, represented by the work of the boastful weaver Arachne, who was
changed
into a spider.
Writing
styles vary from prose poems and rhyming verse
to conventional storytelling in prose. Readers can view the resulting
anthology
as a whole work or use the table of contents to dip into the tales of
their
choice. At times, the writing is evocative. At times, it disappoints.
Occasional
facetiousness and colloquial expressions seem out of place. Tense
changes mar
the storytelling. A glossary of the gods and a guide to the
pronunciation of Greek
names are welcome but a brief 'Note on Ovid' seems offhand at the end
of a book
which includes his name in the title. Readers are left to deduce the
connection
between the terms 'shapeshifters' and 'metamorphoses'.
Alan
Lee's vivid watercolour illustrations wrap around
the text on every page. The heroic,
dreamlike
images enhance this large print, quality hardcover publication.
Despite
its unevenness, Shapeshifters is a
visually arresting and effective retelling of some of the world's best
known
myths. The author's reflections about their meaning are sincere and
thought-provoking.
Elizabeth
Bor