Beowulf: Grendel the Ghastly
Grade 4–6—This is the first volume in Szobody's shortened, "modern" retelling of theBeowulfepic in picture-book format. This adaptation is reminiscent of the poem's Old English origins in meter and vocabulary, the boldface heraldic introduction, and the simply stated conclusion. Gerard's dark, brown- or blue-toned full-page paintings have a folkloric quality, the faces almost caricatures. Some scenes are lit by the golden glow of torchlight; others offer dark hints of the horrid beast and the devastation left in his wake. Several enlarged vignettes in sepia tones focus in on Grendel. A small map shows the lands of the Danes and Geats and pinpoints the great hall, Heorot, and Beowulf's route of travel. A glossary includes key words and their pronunciations, in-depth explanations of "epic Poetry," "prosody" (the musicality of Old English poetry); and a number of other poetic devices.—Susan Scheps, Shaker Heights Public Library, OHCopyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.