GREEK HERO

Veteran nonfictioneers Manning and Grandström add an entry to their Fly on the Wall series with an engaging, if scattershot, look at the life and times of a fictional fifth-century BCE soldier. Creating a cast of informally drawn, ordinary-looking figures, the authors follow burly young Agathon, fresh from the great victory over the Persians at Plataea, as he settles in the town of Aegina, attends the theater, marries merchant’s daughter Ambrosia, then travels to the Olympics to compete. Handwritten quotes or captions in the pictures supplement the brief text running across the bottom, and side spreads along the way provide comments on schooling, the place of women in ancient Greek society, life in Sparta and other special topics. The general focus on details of daily life makes this a good companion for the plethora of more systematic historical overviews. (combination index/glossary) (Nonfiction. 9-11)