The Goddess Girls Set: Athena the Brain; Persephone the Phony; Aphrodite the Beauty

Goddess Girls #1-3

by Joan Holub, Suzanne Williams

Goddess Girls follows four goddesses-in-training – Athena, Persephone, Aphrodite, and Artemis– as they navigate the ins and outs of divine social life at Mount Olympus Academy, where the most priviledged gods and goddesses of the Greco-Roman pantheon hone their mythical skills. In each book, readers get to see how each goddess became who we know today. These much-beloved classic myths are given a modern twist and follow storylines familiar to modern tweens, from dealing with bullies (Athena and Medusa) to first crushes (Persephone and Hades). Athena the Brain follows Athena's first days at Mount Olympus Academy. She always knew she was smart and special, but she didn't realize that she was a goddess! When she's whisked away to MOA, she worries about fitting in and dealing with her dad (Zeus). Luckily, she meets the Goddess Girls and finds the best friends she's ever had.

In Persephone the Phony, Persephone develops a crush on bad-boy Hades. Her mom (Ceres) doesn't approve, and neither do her friends. Persephone finds herself sneaking around to see him, but he ultimately tells her that she should tell them the truth and it's revealed that he isn't all that bad, just misunderstood! The GG support her and eventually her mom comes around too.

Aphrodite the Beauty features Aphrodite, goddessgirl of love, as she deals with jealousy after giving Athena a makeover (godboys pay more attention to her!), and dealing with a crush from an unlikely place -- the nerdy Hephaestus (god of the smith).

Genres: Mythology

512 pages, Kindle Edition

First published July 26, 2011

About the author

NY Times bestselling children's book author:
GODDESS GIRLS series + HEROES IN TRAINING series (w Suzanne Williams); THIS LITTLE TRAILBLAZER a Girl Power Primer; ZERO THE HERO; I AM THE SHARK. Lucky to be doing what I love!

Reviews

[Isabella · Rating 4 out of 5]

These books are very interesting with lots of suspension. I like these books because the have a lot of twists. The books are about 4 goddess girls named Athena, Persephone, Aphrodite, and Artemis. Once you have read one chapter of the book you won't be able to put it down. I recommend reading all of the books in this series.

[Lgordo · Rating 1 out of 5]

If you want your kid reading a book in which yassified, sparkly girls seem to do nothing except fight over who gets a boy's attention, then this is the book for you. (There's also gossiping and forming cliques and succumbing to peer pressure, to be fair.)

If you want your kid reading a book in which kids can do extraordinary things without effort or practice, then this is the book for you.

If you want your daughter reading a book in which the girls' primary extracurricular is cheerleading, this is the book for you.

My kid was reading Gods in Training and picked this up thinking it was similar. I was appalled. This is certainly not what I want him thinking about the role of girls in his life. I am unsure why anyone with daughters would think differently.

[Lilly]

All of these were awesome!!! Ditto what I wrote about Athena the Brain!!!

[Mirei S · Rating 5 out of 5]

Young goddess Athena is suddenly transferred to the Greek gods and goddess school, Mount Olympus Academy. Upon hearing that her father is the principal and the king of the gods, Athena must now adjust to the strange and magical world of the deities. This is complicated as her new role as a goddess gives her active control over mortal lives. As she navigates inventions for mortals and influences her hero Odysseus’s life in her classes, a mean mortal Medusa seems intent on harassing her for popular god, Poseidon's attention. One of Athena’s inventions results in her friend Pandora turning into a statue by Medusa. Thanks to her new friends at Mount Olympus Academy, she is able to bring back Pandora to her human form and stop Medusa from wreaking more havoc. She wins the invention contest, making Zeus proud and winning the chance to bring her earth friend to Mount Olympus.

This book seems to be marketed towards older elementary and young middle school kids, with vibrant descriptions and settings that retain a creative mind’s attention very well. While this was a very charming novel, I found that it’s convoluted plot points created a very disorganized story. Adding the Odysseus hero class, the invention competition, and Medusa’s bullying eliminated the chance to make a single concrete conflict. Despite that, I feel that a very beautiful world was created in a very limited word count which would draw in a lot of young readers. This book creates a vibrant word that compensates for a lackluster plot, possibly fostering an interest in mythology and history in young audiences.

[Swaraa Iyer · Rating 5 out of 5]

I love this book.it is awesome!!! I finished the book 3/2/15

[Jaritza Gonzalez · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is one of my fav books i the series so far.

[Shannon Powell]

Love how voice is betrayed