The Beautiful Stories of Life: Six Greeks Myths, Retold Audiobook, by Cynthia Rylant Play Audiobook Sample

The Beautiful Stories of Life: Six Greeks Myths, Retold Audiobook

The Beautiful Stories of Life: Six Greeks Myths, Retold Audiobook, by Cynthia Rylant Play Audiobook Sample
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Read By: Alyssa Bresnahan Publisher: Recorded Books, Inc. Listen Time: at 1.0x Speed 0.83 hours at 1.5x Speed 0.63 hours at 2.0x Speed Release Date: May 2009 Format: Unabridged Audiobook ISBN: 9781440719141

Quick Stats About this Audiobook

Total Audiobook Chapters:

6

Longest Chapter Length:

24:04 minutes

Shortest Chapter Length:

01:34 minutes

Average Chapter Length:

12:05 minutes

Audiobooks by this Author:

59

Other Audiobooks Written by Cynthia Rylant: > View All...

Publisher Description

Winner of the Newbery Medal, Cynthia Rylant has also received the Caldecott Award and numerous other honors. In The Beautiful Stories of Life, Rylant vividly retells the Greek myths of Pandora, Pygmalion, Narcissus, Perse-phone, Orpheus, and Psyche. Exploring classic themes of love, destruction, vanity, and redemption, these tales will introduce young readers to the exciting world of Greek mythology.

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"I listened to the short audio book with this one. Without the experience in Greek mythology to pick this retelling apart, I enjoyed listening to these stories in the way they were presented in this book. It definitely sparked further interest into the mythological world. The narrator was easy on the ears and it's something my 3rd grader could enjoy."

— Bridget (4 out of 5 stars)

The Beautiful Stories of Life Listener Reviews

Overall Performance: 3.92592592592593 out of 53.92592592592593 out of 53.92592592592593 out of 53.92592592592593 out of 53.92592592592593 out of 5 (3.93)
5 Stars: 1
4 Stars: 23
3 Stars: 3
2 Stars: 0
1 Stars: 0
Narration: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 (0.00)
5 Stars: 0
4 Stars: 0
3 Stars: 0
2 Stars: 0
1 Stars: 0
Story: 0 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 50 out of 5 (0.00)
5 Stars: 0
4 Stars: 0
3 Stars: 0
2 Stars: 0
1 Stars: 0
Write a Review
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Gavin's taking Mythology.....so, I figured I could brush up on a little of the stories myself! "

    — Leslie, 2/20/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Wonderful for reading aloud to a class undertaking the study of this genre. "

    — Lasporer, 1/14/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " I do love me some good Greek mythology, even if it is a 15 min read "

    — Tabitha, 1/13/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Rylant does a nice job retelling some classic Greek myths. I think my students will enjoy this addition to our mytholgy books. "

    — katsok, 1/9/2014
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Interesting recap of several Greek myths. We listened to it in the car. The kids were transfixed. "

    — Maureen, 11/28/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Beautiful retellings of six Greek myths. Familiar stories, but a pleasure to read over and over. "

    — Victoria, 11/25/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " I do not have a lot of familiarity with Greek mythology beyond the Disney version of Hercules. :) I found these to be beautifully written, moving stories with nice moral lessons about life. "

    — Lisa, 10/3/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Simplified versions of 6 ancient myths. "

    — Lee, 8/19/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Beautifully and simply told. A delightful quick read and nice review of those classic tales on a PG scale. "

    — Dayna, 7/1/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Pandora, Orpheus, etc... Love the storytelling here. Humorous, clever, interesting. For folks who need to brush up on their Greek myths, this is a painless way to do it... and fun for children. We listened to the audio version and really enjoyed it. "

    — Jane, 4/24/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Some of my favorite Greek myths are re told and I really like it. "

    — Marilyn, 4/23/2013
  • Overall Performance: 5 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 55 out of 5

    " Simply written beautifully illustrated. A gentle, child-friendly reminder how much of life and its lessons can be told and learned thought stories. "

    — Caroline, 2/13/2013
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Nice stories, pretty pictures (but I wish they'd been in color) "

    — Emily, 12/21/2012
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " A simple but elegant retelling of six Greek Myths. Simple enough for kids but with enough commentary on life to be interesting for adults. "

    — Kevin, 9/16/2012
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " Love Rylant's retellings of Pandora, Persephone, Psyche, and more, but the illustrations make this book look old, like 70's old. Browsers might pass this one by, which is a shame. "

    — Kris, 8/19/2012
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " I loved her version of the tales. My 6yo advanced reader picked this up and enjoyed it. I actually think it is best appreciated by children older. "

    — 'jean, 7/13/2012
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " MH read this and put it in my bag to return to work. I read it during my break and liked it very much, especially the last myth about Psyche and Cupid. Love is the most beautiful story of life. "

    — Theresa, 5/4/2012
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Interesting recap of several Greek myths. We listened to it in the car. The kids were transfixed. "

    — Maureen, 6/28/2011
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " It was fun to hear a few of the classic Greek Myths. They are retold in an excellent way for youth to understand. "

    — Elisa, 5/9/2011
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Pandora, Orpheus, etc... Love the storytelling here. Humorous, clever, interesting. For folks who need to brush up on their Greek myths, this is a painless way to do it... and fun for children. We listened to the audio version and really enjoyed it. "

    — Jane, 4/15/2011
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Some of my favorite Greek myths are re told and I really like it. "

    — Marilyn, 2/10/2011
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Rylant does a nice job retelling some classic Greek myths. I think my students will enjoy this addition to our mytholgy books. "

    — katsok, 4/25/2010
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " I do love me some good Greek mythology, even if it is a 15 min read "

    — Tabitha, 2/14/2010
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " A simple but elegant retelling of six Greek Myths. Simple enough for kids but with enough commentary on life to be interesting for adults. "

    — Kevin, 11/22/2009
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Simplified versions of 6 ancient myths. "

    — Lee, 10/21/2009
  • Overall Performance: 4 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 54 out of 5

    " Beautiful retellings of six Greek myths. Familiar stories, but a pleasure to read over and over. "

    — Victoria, 9/30/2009
  • Overall Performance: 3 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 53 out of 5

    " As a classical mythology fan, I found this collection to be disappointing. The book is beautifully designed and illustrated, but Rylant’s storytelling is poor and stilted (and these are wonderful stories!). I’ll stick with d’Aulaires’ Book of Greek Myths! "

    — Susie, 9/10/2009

About Cynthia Rylant

Cynthia Rylant is the author of more than one hundred books for young people, including the beloved Henry and Mudge series. Her novel Missing May received the Newbery Medal in 1993 and A Fine White Dust won a Newbery Honor; she is also the author of two Caldecott Honor–wining picture books. Some of her other notable works include the Annie and Snowball series, the Poppleton series, the novel The Islander, and a number of other poetry books and story collections. She lives in Lake Oswego, Oregon.

About Alyssa Bresnahan

Alyssa Bresnahan is a dynamic dancer, actor, and audiobook narrator. She has narrated over two hundred audiobooks, has earned twenty Earphones Awards, and was named one of AudioFile magazine’s Golden Voices. In 2009 she was a finalist for the prestigious Audie Award for best fiction narration.