The Gods of Olympus

A History

By: Barbara Graziosi

Narrated by: Anne Flosnik

The gods of Olympus are the most colorful characters of Greek civilization: even in antiquity, they were said to be cruel, oversexed, mad, or just plain silly. Yet for all their foibles and flaws, they proved to be tough survivors, far outlasting classical Greece itself. In Egypt, the Olympian gods claimed to have given birth to pharaohs; in Rome, they led respectable citizens into orgiastic rituals of drink and sex. Under Christianity and Islam, they survived as demons, allegories, and planets; and in the Renaissance, they triumphantly emerged as ambassadors of a new, secular belief in humanity. Their geographic range, too, has been little short of astounding: In their exile, the gods and goddesses of Olympus have traveled east to the walls of cave temples in China and west to colonize the Americas. They snuck into Italian cathedrals, haunted Nietzsche, and visited Borges in his restless dreams.

In a lively, original history, Barbara Graziosi offers the first account to trace the wanderings of these protean deities through the millennia. Drawing on a wide range of literary and archaeological sources, The Gods of Olympus opens a new window on the ancient world, religion, mythology, and its lasting influence.

©2014 Barbara Graziosi (P)2019 Tantor

Excellent detailed history of the gods.

I was honestly unaware of the early history and evolution of the Olympians. The further descriptions of their evolution throughout history was fascinating.

Misleading Title and Poor Narration

This book was described as being a survey of the ancient Olympic Pantheon, however the book is actually a survey of the religious atmosphere of classical Greece into late antiquity. The substantive discussion of the actual myths and gods is pretty sparse and is instead replaced by musing on more general sociological aspects of Hellenic society. Outside of the title and description misnomers, the narrator is very difficult to listen to. This issue was so pronounced that I had to quit the book about halfway through because I couldn't stand the droning sound of the narrators voice. There are better books about the Olympian Pantheon that should be given preference before beginning this book.