Book Review: Let's Go, Pegasus!
Jean Marzollo seems to be working her way through the myths, with an eye toward explaining them for young minds. Her first book, Little Bear, You're a Star, was a great retelling of the story of the "Big Bear" and "Little Bear" constellations, a sweet story with a fun little bear as the main character. This latest book, Let's Go, Pegasus, is something altogether different. First and foremost, it's a gruesome book. The main focus is on the story of Medusa, the snakes-in-the-hair monster woman whose gaze turned people to stone. Not only is the reader treated to dangers such as this, but also the remedy for those dangers is to cut the head off the monster. It is doubtful that many readers ages 4–8, the target age range for this book, would find this anything less than horrifying. Further, the title character of the book, Pegasus, arrives in the very last scene, because, of course, that's how it goes in the myth: The winged horse springs from the dead body of Medusa. Perseus, the "hero," is a boy who does a man's job, killing Medusa where others have failed. The author tries to lighten up the presentation by including animals that were turned to stone and how they dance and sing when they are released from their torment. But the overall events are still horrible to contemplate. Parents and teachers are cautioned to preview this book before sharing it with very young readers.
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Social Studies for Kids
copyright 2002–2024
David White
