Wow! Who would have expected that a god would look like every other teen on the face of the earth. This not only is a briliant twist on the classic story. It also shows a light on classic teen problems that everyone goes through who would have expected this briliant story and from the point of Hades perfect.
Mythology has always been fascinating to kids, and the Myth-O-Mania chapter book series by Kate McMullan is certain to thrill them. The interesting twist to this series is that these humorous parodies are written from the viewpoint of Hades, King of the Underworld! In Nice Shot, Cupid! (#4 in the series), Hades tells us that Cupid was no hunk when he first met Psyche. In fact, he was “an awkward, pimple-faced, greasy-haired teen-god with braces on this teeth”! So, what is the “real story” (well, according to Hades) about how Cupid and Psyche got together? This hilarious book gives one side of the story… Kids will love all of the books in the Myth-O-Mania series. http://susanheim.blogspot.com/2011/08/summer-reading-for-children-in.html
3rd Grade Summer Reading List
We are all familiar with Zeus’ version of Cupid and Psyche’s story. Well, it turns out that Zeus is a bit of a myth-o-maniac, someone who spins wild myths that are not entirely true. Now it’s Hades chance to tell the REAL story. In this version of the famous myth, Cupid is struggling with typical teen problems when he falls for Psyche. Aphrodite gets jealous of Psyche and things begin to spin out of control. This is most certainly NOT the original myth, but it is an entertaining take-off that had me laughing along. This series has 8 books that can be read in any order. I want to read them all. They are being re-released with splashy new covers on August 1, 2011. http://readingvacation.blogspot.com/2011/07/myth-o-mania-nice-shot-cupid-book.html
Using a humorous tone to tell the tale, the author is sure to captivate today’s young readers with the pop culture references, the lattes, Hades’ horses Harley and Davidson and other jokes and laughter without straying too far from the original Greek myth.
Reading Nice Shot, Cupid! reminded me of how much I love McCullan’s Myth-O-Mania series, where Hades tells us the ‘true’ stories behind Greek myths. She has modernized the Greek gods and goddesses, giving them unique personalities and very human problems. While it isn’t the best series to offer children when you want to teach them what we know as the Greek myths, it does make for an enjoyable read, especially when you already know the stories! In this story, Cupid isn’t as hot as you think the god of love should be. In fact, he’s suffering from normal teenage beauty problems—pimples and braces and a gangly teenage body. Of course, since Aphrodite is the goddess of love and beauty, she does everything in her power to provide beauty products for him, making him feel disheartened by his appearances. So when he falls in love with Psyche, a beautiful mortal princess, he decides not to take chances courting her in person. Instead, he kidnaps her and doesn’t let her look at him. The story follows Hades as he does everything in his power to help Cupid gain more confidence in himself and arrange a happily ever after for Cupid and Psyche. I love how Cupid reminds us of any teenage boy suffering from puberty. I love how strong and beautiful Psyche is, and how true she remains to her love even after seeing Cupid in all his teen glory. And I love the sense of humor that Hades possesses. I recommend this for those looking for a fun, light-hearted read at the middle-grade and even elementary-grade level. http://imaginaryreads.blogspot.com/2011/06/book-review-nice-shot-cupid.html
This is definitely one book your mythologist would definitely won’t approve of. ‘Nice Shot, Cupid!’ is a part of Myth o Mania series and it will surely make you go wacko with the re-tellings of famous mythological stories. In this one, Cupid is painted as a wimpy geek with a not so attractive feature but fancies Psyche. I couldn’t help myself but laugh when I read this version of the story about Cupid and Psyche. Highly recommended to those who loved mythology and those who are in desperate need of witty humor. I rate this book 4 out of 5 stars. I received an ARC of this book from Capstone via Netgalley. I was not compensated in any ways for writing this review. Book description: The story about the handsome Greek god Cupid and how he met Psyche? Just another lie from that myth-o-maniac Zeus! The truth is, when Cupid met Psyche he was a gawky teen god with bad skin and braces. Psyche was so beautiful, Cupid was scared to even approach her. Instead, he and Zeus cooked up a plan to kidnap Psyche. Hades, King of the Underworld, is here to shine some light on what really happened. A part of the Myth-o-Mania series. http://cleffairy.com/?p=5479
