The World of Greek Mythology
Reviewed by: Bill Nagelkerke for the Magpies Magazine
"Inspired by Rick Riordan’s Percy Jackson series of novels, eleven year old Ben Spies’ third book focuses on characters and events from Greek mythology. He says on his website: I started developing a huge interest in the Greek myths, gods and heroes. I began researching the myths when I came home after school and reading any books I could get from the library that would help me. Ben enthusiastically and vividly recounts some of these stories, including early creation myths, tales of Zeus, episodes from the Trojan War and—one of his favourite chapters in the book —the island-hopping voyages of Odysseus. Ben doesn’t always get it right—the main Greek army didn’t return to Greece, leaving behind just a selected band in the Trojan Horse. They only pretended to do so—but that doesn’t really matter. Ben’s book isn’t intended to be a work of reference, as reinforced by the absence of an index and bibliography and, at one point, by the author's disclaimer that, but hey, I’m only guessing. Rather, it’s a contemporary retelling of a selection of the classical stories in the personal and colloquial voice of a talented young writer. The book is professionally designed and produced to a high standard. I especially enjoyed the creative and often very funny chapter headings, for example: Kronos eats a rock and Hera throws her baby out of the window. The Ancient Greek versions of these are an additional treat. It’s not always easy to sustain an extended piece of writing—not even for adult writers—so The World of Greek Mythology is, on many counts, an admirable achievement."

The World of Greek Mythology
Reviewed by: Nadine Molloy, Library Assistant, Remarkables Primary School (Otago) for the 'School Library' - NZ Book Council
"If you enjoy Greek mythology, with a little humour thrown in, then this will be a great book for you. Knowing only a little about this topic myself, I was uncertain whether I would be able to keep track of all the Greek names. Thankfully, the author assists with this by kindly reminding us what important characters did in an earlier chapter, along with including a family tree of the Greek gods and goddesses which I referred back to many times.
I hadn’t got too far into the book when it crossed my mind that the language was of a style my 12 year old daughter would use. It was then that I realised the author is an 11 year old boy! And what a talented boy he is. This book contains enough action to hold the interest of any young reader, and it’s appealingly gruesome in parts too (just a little!).
The short chapters will appeal to those readers who want all the action without being bogged down with boring details. They’ll laugh at Ben’s little asides, and feel like a friend is chatting to them (rather than reading a book) about the Trojan War, the voyage of Odysseus and many other Greek myths."

The World of Greek Mythology
Reviewed by Annabella Gamboni - Regional News
"Ben Spies is an author from Kapiti who has written not one, but three novels in his short 12 years. They're books written for kids his age, or maybe a little younger. It's been 14 years since I was 12, so I hope I can still review Spies' latest book faithfully - in fairness, I know next to nothing about Greek mythology, so it's good compromise.
The World of Greek Mythology is a selection of ancient myths told in short chapters. Spies tackles The Odyssey and the tale of maybe-true Trojan War, as well as myths particular to a god or goddess. Before he gets to the meaty stuff, Spies outlines the Greek creation myths starring Gaia, Chaos, and the Titans, and even lays out the Greek god family tree. It's very useful, and I flick back to it more than a few times.
Even during these expository chapters, Spies' voice comes through strongly. He's very funny, peppering his sentences with little asides and explanations like he's addressing friends. For example, when discussing er, interbreeding, that the Greek gods conducted, large text declares "now I know what you're thinking; why would you marry your sister or brother!!!!!' And then with a charming simplicity, Spies answers the question: "The Titans didn't think of it that way though".
Other elements of the prose are compelling and exciting. One of the most harrowing sections is when Odysseus and his sailors are trapped in a cave with the cyclops Polyphemus, who squashes a couple of men for a snack every so often. Modernised, kid-friendly dialogue is inserted into other moments to keep the story accessible. When the Trojan Horse slowly lowers its plank inside the unsuspecting city of Troy, one young spectator wonders aloud if the horse is doing a poo.
After reading through "The World of Greek Mythology," a lot of cultural references - even names - made a lot more sense. I'd recommend the work to a young person without hesitation - especially if they love to laugh."