READING GROUP GUIDE for

TROY and ITHAKA

by Adèle Geras

Praise and Honors for Troy

An ALA Best Book for Young Adults
A Publishers Weekly Best Children’s Book of the Year
A Smithsonian Magazine
Magazine Notable Book for Children
A Carnegie Medal Finalist
A Whitbread Award Finalist
A Boston Globe–Horn Book Honor Book
A New York Public Library Book for the Teen Age

★“With exceptional grace and enormous energy, Geras recreates the saga
of the Trojan War from a feminist perspective . . . Captivating.”
—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
★“Geras handles both her chosen perspective and her subject’s grand themes
with aplomb.”—The Horn Book (starred review)
“A sexy, sweeping tale, filled with drama, sassy humor, and vividly imagined
domestic details.”—Booklist
“Delivers the sack of Troy as an ambitious, cinematic affair.”
—The New York Times Book Review

Praise for Ithaka

★“Geras once again shows her skill at fashioning multidimensional characters from
mythological figures and making them accessible to a 21st-century audience . . . A
fresh, thought-provoking twist to the classic tale.”—Publishers Weekly (starred review)
“Filled with intrigue and subterfuge and replete with visits from the gods, this
visceral, lusty, tragic retelling will draw older teen readers.”—Booklist
“Mysterious, multilayered, and well developed, this interpretation of Ithaka . . . will
be an irresistible draw for Greek myth fans, romance readers, and those who enjoy
strong character development along with their battle scenes.”—The Bulletin
“Geras masterfully weaves her own story . . . while remaining true to the spirit of
Homer’s epic.”—VOYA
TO THE TEACHER
Troy and Ithaka are companion novels appropriate for readers in
Troy
grades nine through twelve, or students ages fourteen to eighteen.
The books are inspired by Homer’s epic poems, The The Ilia
Iliadd and The
Odyssey. This guide was created for use in the classroom, or with
smaller reading groups. The guide includes a variety of questions.
Some involve comprehension of each story, and others prompt
readers to draw conclusions, speculate, make connections, and
“dig deeper” into the story. The questions could be adapted as
writing prompts. The guide also includes creative projects and
writing activities for each book.
ABOUT THE BOOKS
In Troy, Homer’s epic poem T The Iliad is retold from the point of
he Iliad
view of two Trojan sisters who live at the palace of King Priam.
Marpessa serves as handmaiden to Helen. Xanthe nurses
wounded soldiers in the Blood Room, an infirmary. The city of
Troy has been under siege by Greek armies for ten years and the
war is nearing conclusion. Inside the walled city, food is scarce—
but death is abundant. From the heights of Mount Olympus, the
Gods watch the carnage and devastation. Aphrodite, Goddess of
Love, is bored with the endless, dreary war. With the aid of
Eros’s arrow, Aphrodite causes Xanthe to fall in love with the
wounded warrior Alastor. She then brings Alastor and Marpessa
together despite Marpessa’s objections and drives a wedge
between the sisters. Troy is an intricate and compelling drama
filled with passion, romance, and tragedy. The book is a vivid
interpretation of the classic story.
In Ithaka, ten years have passed since the end of the Trojan
War, and Penelope is still waiting for her husband, Odysseus, to
return home. The city of Ithaka is overrun with unsavory
characters from nearby islands who are vying to win Penelope’s
hand in marriage, thereby gaining control of the land. Inspired
by Homer’s Odyssey, the story is told through the eyes of fourteen-
year-old Klymene, who desires more than friendship with the
young prince Telemachus. Like Troy, Ith Ithaaka
ka is a lively, provocative
introduction to a classic Greek myth.
PREREADING ACTIVITIES FOR BOTH BOOKS
• Readers will benefit from familiarity with Greek mythology
to fully appreciate Troy and Ithaka. Have the students research the
backgrounds of the Greek gods who are depicted or mentioned
in the stories—Aphrodite, Ares, Artemis, Eros, Hades,
Hephaestus, Hera, Hermes, Poseidon, Pallas Athene, Phoebus
Apollo, and Zeus. Have the students research other common
references in Greek mythology, such as the Amazons, Elysian
Fields, the Fates, Hydra, Mount Olympus, and the River Styx.
Encourage them to use books, magazines, and the Internet for
their research.
• Although the Trojan War is a myth, there is evidence that an
ancient city of Troy did exist. Have the students research what
archaeological and historical facts have been established about
the city, such as its present-day geographical location and the
period of its existence.
• If students have not read The
The Ilia
Iliadd and The Odyssey, provide a
synopsis of both so they will have context for understanding the
inspiration for each story.
READING AND UNDERSTANDING TROY
Please note: Page numbers are listed for both the hardcover and paperback
editions of the book; page numbers for the paperback appear in italics. If only
one page number is noted, the page number is the same for both the hardcover
and the paperback.
What is the cause of the war?
What does Alastor realize about the war when he is standing
on the Plain? (p. 7)
What words would you use to describe Boros?
Why does Alastor’s mother not want Xanthe to treat her son?
(pp. 17–18)
Xanthe believes it is “better to be an ox” than a poor girl.
What does this belief reveal about the status of women in
Trojan society? (p. 17)
How does Alastor feel about his mother? (p. 19)
What does Xanthe tell Alastor about her parents? (p. 19)
Xanthe describes her sister Marpessa as “strange.” What does
she mean? (p. 19)
What is the significance of the tapestries Marpessa weaves? (p. 23)
What is the role of the Gossips in the story? Use the discussion
as an opportunity to introduce the concept of the chorus in
classical Greek literature.
What is Polyxena’s misfortune? (p. 31)
Why does Iason prefer the company of horses to people?
(pp. 33–34)
What does Xanthe say happened to her in the Blood Room?
What is Marpessa’s response? (p. 40)
Why does Marpessa worry about Xanthe? (p. 41)
Why does Boros go to see Andromache? What is her reaction?
(pp. 42–43)
What are Andromache’s fears? (pp. 44–45)
What are Polyxena’s views of love? (p. 48)
Why are the Trojans so terrified of the Greek warrior Achilles?
(p. 50)
What does Hecuba reveal about Paris to Marpessa?
(pp. 87–88; 89)
Who does Halie meet at the fish market? What does he reveal
to her? (pp. 92–93; 93–94)
What does Aphrodite reveal to Marpessa in the Blood Room?
(p. 103; 105)
What does Iason find Hephaestus making for Achilles?
(pp. 106–107; 108–109)
What does Achilles do with Hector’s body? Why does he do
it? (pp. 112–14; 114–16)
What impact does Hector’s death have on the people of Troy?
What does Iason want to reveal to Xanthe in the stables?
(pp. 172–73; 178–79)
What does Iason ask of Polyxena? (pp. 174–75; 180–81)
How is Paris killed? (p. 216; 226)
Why does Marpessa end her relationship with Alastor?
(pp. 240–41; 251–53)
What does the Black Warrior reveal to Alastor in a dream?
(pp. 253–55; 265–67)
Why does Marpessa go to Mother Poison? (p. 256; 268)
What do the Trojans believe when they see the great horse?
(p. 265; 279–80)
What is Xanthe’s response to Iason’s marriage proposal?
(p. 268; 282)
What does Poseidon reveal to Marpessa? (pp. 273–74; 288)
How does Xanthe respond to Marpessa’s confession about her
relationship with Alastor? (pp. 280–83; 295–98)
Why do the Greeks kill Astyanax? (p. 310; 326–27)
What do you think the future holds for Marpessa, Xanthe,
and Alastor?
In Troy, gods and goddesses meddle in the affairs of mortals.
Would you characterize the meddling as benevolent,
mischievous, or malevolent? Cite specific examples from the
story to support your characterization(s).
FOR TROY
OTHER ACTIVITIES FOR
• Marpessa tells stories through the tapestries she weaves.
Making tapestries is one way humans have used art to tell stories
and detail events. What other ways have humans used art to tell
stories and their own histories? For a creative project, have each
student re-create a favorite scene from Troy using whatever media
he or she chooses.
• The Singer recounts events through song. Ask each student
to write a song or poem that relates to a scene from the story. Or,
to inspire a more personal connection between art and one’s life,
have each student write a song or poem that relates to a year in
his or her life.
• During wars throughout history, women have tended the
wounded, sick, and dying. Xanthe is a fictional character, but her
role as a woman during wartime is historically accurate. Today,
many women are soldiers. How would the story of the Trojan
War be different if women had been soldiers in Homer’s time?
Have each student write a fictional account of the Trojan War in
which the gender of key characters has been changed.
• As with Adèle Geras’s Troy, there are many films and plays
based on Homer’s Iliad. They include the play The Trojan Women
by Euripides, and the films Troy (Warner Bros., 2004) and In
Search of the Trojan War (Discovery Channel, 2004), among others.
Read The Iliad, or excerpts from it, and then read Geras’s
corresponding interpretation in Troy. Follow up by viewing film
versions of the story or by reading Euripides’ play. How are the
various interpretations similar in their depiction of the Trojan
War, as well as of the gods and mortals? How are they different?
READING AND UNDERSTANDING ITHAKA
What are Penelope’s reasons for not wanting Odysseus to fight
the war in Troy? (pp. 3–4)
How does Klymene feel about Telemachus? Why will she not
admit her feelings to her brother? (pp. 11–12)
What became of Ikarios and Klymene’s parents? (pp. 13–14)
Why does Pallas Athene appear as a white owl? (p. 18)
What does Penelope believe about Argos, Odysseus’s hunting
dog? (p. 24)
How does Klymene feel about Argos? (p. 25)
What fears does Penelope hide from Telemachus? (p. 39)
What is happening to Odysseus in the first story Penelope
weaves? (p. 42)
Who is the stranger Ikarios meets on the shore? What does
Ikarios beg him not to do? (pp. 45–46)
What does the second story Penelope weaves reveal about
Odysseus? (pp. 68–69)
What secret does Melantho share with Klymene? How does
Klymene respond? (pp. 72–73)
What does Klymene realize when she sees Melantho and
Telemachus together? (pp. 63–64)
How does Melantho taunt Klymene? (pp. 71–73)
What does Telemachus believe is the real reason behind
Leodes’s visit to his mother? (pp. 97–98)
What happens to Odysseus in the third story Penelope weaves?
(pp. 106–107)
What does Poseidon reveal to Ikarios at the tavern?
(pp. 112–13)
What does Melantho tell Klymene about her feelings for
Telemachus? (pp. 131–32)
Why does Penelope keep Antikleia’s unfinished shroud?
(p. 139)
What happens to Odysseus in the fourth story Penelope
weaves? (pp. 150–51)
What does Penelope announce she must do before she chooses
a suitor? (p. 167)
What becomes of Odysseus in the fifth story Penelope weaves?
(pp. 185–86)
What is Telemachus’s opinion of his mother’s suitors?
(pp. 190–92)
Why does Telemachus leave Ithaka? (p. 194)
What does the sixth story Penelope weaves reveal about
Odysseus? (pp. 209–10)
What does Penelope believe Telemachus would do if she agreed
to marry Leodes? (p. 231)
What does the seventh and final story Penelope weaves reveal
about Odysseus? (p. 241)
What does Ikarios overhear the Bear and the Rat discussing?
(p. 252)
Why does Odysseus pretend to be a beggar when he returns to
Ithaka? (pp. 267–68)
What does Penelope think when no story comes for her to
weave? (p. 283)
Why does the Rat kill Ikarios? (pp. 287–88)
Why does Artemis keep Argos alive for Odysseus? (p. 304)
How does Nana recognize Odysseus? (pp. 308–309)
Why does Pallas Athene commend Klymene for lying? (p. 348)
Does it seem plausible that Penelope is unable to recognize
Odysseus? Explain why or why not.
Do you think Melantho’s disfigurement is a just punishment?
Explain why or why not.
Was Penelope’s falling in love with Leodes a betrayal of
Odysseus? Explain why or why not.
Do you think Penelope is happy that Odysseus has returned?
Cite specific references from the story to support your answer.
Do you agree with Mydon when he tells Klymene that she is
right to be happy when so many are dead? Why or why not?
FOR ITHAKA
OTHER ACTIVITIES FOR
• Readers learn of Odysseus’s adventures through the stories
Penelope weaves. Her weavings feature beings and creatures
including the Cyclops, Circe, Charybdis, Scylla, the Sirens, and
Calypso. Ask the students to research these figures and choose
one to write a minireport about.
• Using the geographic details in Troy and Ithaka—as well as
details postulated by modern historians—ask the students to
create a map depicting Odysseus’s journey from Troy to Ithaka.
Label the map with the Greek and modern names for the
countries and seas.
• Read Homer’s Odyssey, paying close attention to sections that
reveal Penelope’s story. What liberties has Adèle Geras taken in
telling Penelope’s version of the story? Can you think of other
stories that are told from two points of view? Would you have
written Penelope’s story differently? If so, how?
• Read aloud with the students the poem “Ulysses” by Alfred
Lord Tennyson. Tell the students that Ulysses is the Latin name
for Odysseus. The poem is told from the point of view of
Odysseus. Does Tennyson’s voice for Ulysses match that of
Adèle Geras’ Odysseus in Ithaka? What story points and characters
appear in both Tennyson’s poem and Ithaka?
INTERVIEW WITH ADÈLE GERAS
Did you always intend to write both novels or did you decide
to write Ithaka after you’d finished writing Troy ?
It was only after I saw how much I enjoyed writing Troy, and
then saw that the reaction to it was enthusiastic, that I began to
turn my mind to The Odyssey.
What were the greatest challenges in writing these novels?
I didn’t really see Troy as a challenge at all when I started on that.
I just wanted to try to do a teenage love story set at that time. I
wanted to see the war from a different perspective and one we
don’t often get: that of the noncombatants! All the stories that
Theano and the others tell one another; all the stuff about the
Gods and the Homeric background—I felt I had to put in for
those children who didn’t grow up with these stories from an
early age. The challenge with Ithak Ithaka was much, much greater.
Ithaka
First of all, because of the success of Troy, I now had “a hard act
to follow,” as it were. I was also conscious of the fact that if you
take away the adventures of Odysseus, there’s not that much
drama in just hanging around and waiting for someone to come
home—or at least, not the same kind of drama. So that was a
challenge. . . . I also enjoyed the challenge of the poetry. I love
writing poetry, and this was a chance to do it in the middle of a
novel, which I relished but which had to convey what I wanted
to convey.
Many reviewers characterize Troy and Ithaka as retellings
of Homer’s epics. Do you agree or disagree with that
assessment? Was it your intention to retell the stories in
these novels?
As they say, “Disagree most strongly !” They are not retellings.
What they are, are novels about completely fictional people
(whom I’ve made up and who are the focus of my interest) mixed
in with a version of Homer. As I said previously, when I started I
wanted to ignore the Trojan War, but I was conscious of the fact
that everything makes more sense if you know the background.
So I put in accounts of what’s gone before in the mouths of
various people. I also decided that, like Homer, I’d have the
Gods in there, too. What’s good enough for him is good enough
for me, and I cannot understand the decision behind leaving
them out of the movie Troy. Besides, for those who do know
Homer, it’s fun to see a different interpretation. There have been
so many “versions” of this dramatic story, the horse and so forth,
that of course in one way mine is just another . . . but I still hope
that it’s Xanthe and Marpessa, Iason and Polyxena, Klymene
and Ikarios, and so on that readers really care about. Of course,
it’s fun to take figures like Helen of Troy and Penelope and
subvert the common view of them, so I enjoyed making Helen
much nicer than she’s been shown by other writers, much kinder
and more intelligent; and I also liked making Penelope human
and subject to the same sorts of temptations that any wife of a
soldier who doesn’t return might experience—and react the
same way to them, too! So, no, when people say “retellings,” I
jump up and down and squeak loudly!
I have read several reviews that refer to the novels as
providing a “feminist perspective” on The Iliad and The
Odyssey. Do you agree or disagree with that assessment?
I sort of agree. It’s certainly the women’
women’ss viewpoint I wanted to
focus on. I wanted to bring women into the foreground because
in all those wars and events, they’d been sidelined and pushed
out of the picture. So, yes, I was interested in their point of view.
But of course you have to be historically accurate as much as
possible, so there are obviously things going on, attitudes to
women and girls which would shock our young people. But I
guess I’d have to say I was interested in “empowering”—don’t
like that word, but you know what I mean—the young women
in my stories.
At what age were you introduced to the stories of The Iliad
and The Odyssey ? What inspired you to write your own
stories based on them?
A very early age. When I was about six, I had a book (still on my
shelves) called Tales of Troy by Andrew Lang. Then there was
Tanglewood Tales by Nathaniel Hawthorne. When I went to school,
we still did Latin, for which I’m endlessly grateful. We did Aeneid:
Book IIII by Virgil, which is basically about the sack of Troy. In
English we read Troilus
Troilus and Cressid
Cressidaa by Shakespeare, which is the
best thing ever about what happens to men at war. Thersites is
my favorite character: “Lechery, lechery, still wars and lechery.
Nothing else holds fashion.” Shakespeare said it, and it’s true to
this day: sex and violence, in other words, which are, of course,
the motors driving most fiction! So I’ve known the stories all my
life, practically. The Odyssey came later, but it’s a stunner. I think
I first read it at school after we’d finished the Virgil. Terrific
stuff, and full of monsters and storms and all the ingredients
kids love. That’s why it’s been retold for children so often. I
should also say that the Gods have always appealed to me—
don’t really know why. It seems such a logical system of belief!
When there are earthquakes, floods, etc., I always think of
Poseidon, who’s become quite real to me, along with the others.
In Troy, the battlefield event you describe in greatest detail is
the murder and mutilation of Hector. Why did you choose to
focus on this particular battlefield incident?
Well, because it’s so ghastly. It’s haunted me for years and years.
I don’t go with the “fighting can be glorious” thing, but I do
recognize that (a) wars are necessary, and (b) in the course of
them, gallantry, bravery, heroism, etc., are often shown—that it
does sometimes, in other words, bring out good qualities in
people. But this is horrendous and not to be countenanced—a
war crime, in the days before this concept existed in law, an
atrocity. You always have to respect the enemy dead. Homer put
it in because it’s a shocker, and so did I. Dreadful horror on a par
with anything we’ve seen since, and we’ve seen plenty! It is also
very dramatic—you couldn’t leave it out.
In Ithaka , the adventures of Odysseus are recounted
through the tapestries Penelope weaves. Marpessa also
weaves stories in Troy. What inspired you to use that
narrative device?
The fabrics, the weaving, the knitting, the embroideries, the
lace—that sort of thing is one of my obsessions, and a version of
it appears in so much that I do. I can’t help it. I regard all those
sorts of handicrafts as a good metaphor for life. (An irrelevant
remark here: Harcourt will soon republish what was almost my
first novel, called Apricots at Midnight, and guess what it’s about? A
patchwork quilt in which each patch has a different story that
goes with it! I’ve also written two books in which someone tells
the future from their knitting. They’re now out of print, but
they’re called TThe
he Fabulous Fantora FilesFiles and The Fabulous Fantora
Photographs.) While I was writing Troy, I realized that weaving was
Photographs
probably one of the only “fun” things for a young woman to do
when she wasn’t engaged in domestic work, so I gave the weaving
Ithaka
Ithak
to Marpessa. Itha ka wasn’t in my mind at that time. When it
came to writing about Penelope . . . Well, Homer’s given us the
weaving, so I had to run with it—and it was a pleasure to do so.
The poem at the front of the book by the appropriately named
Penelope Shuttle is one I heard on the radio one day when I was
just starting to think about the book. I thought: That’s it! She’s the
one who “makes” the adventures . . . kind of conjures them out of the weaving.
And recounting those famous O Odyss
dyssey stories as small pictures on
a loom kind of reduced their importance. Cut them down to size.
In Troy, Boros is so vividly disgusting and vile. Did you have
any specific inspiration in creating that character?
I’m happy to say I didn’t. Never met or seen anyone nearly as awful,
but just as you can make your heroes fulfill your best fantasies
(and that’s half the fun of writing books!), you can make your
villains do the reverse—bring your worst nightmares to life.
Prices and availability are subject to change without notice. Prices are higher in Canada. Copyright © 2006 by Harcourt, Inc. All rights reserved. Jacket illustrations copyright © Erich Lessing, Art Resource, NY
What reactions have readers had to Troy and Ithaka? Do the
stories seem to appeal to one gender more than another?
Troy is equally liked by both boys and girls. I’ve had nothing but
good reactions, though I guess the ones who hated the books
wouldn’t bother to write and tell me. I think the boys like the
violent bits! Am I being sexist? Probably, but I notice that lots of
copies get bought in schools where I read aloud the short chapter
about Alastor getting wounded. I was most worried that boys
would be bored by the domesticity and “weavingness” of Ithaka,
but the ones I’ve heard from seem quite happy. So far so good.
What advice, if any, would you offer to teachers who may be
considering teaching Troy and Ithaka?
Goodness, I wouldn’t presume to give advice to teachers. If they
can get their classes to enjoy the book and possibly go on to
reading “the real thing,” i.e., Homer, then that’s great. Otherwise,
I’m fine with whatever they want to do. I’d hate to think of
anyone being forced to read the novels if they really hate them,
though. And I wouldn’t like to think that reading them in class
might put them off. It’s never happened to me, I have to say. I
used to love what we read in class and understand it much better,
but for a lot of kids, the books they read in school irritate them
or get their backs up in some way. I’d hate for that to happen.
Pleasure is what it’s all about. You can quote me on that!
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
Adèle Geras has written more than ninety books for children
and young adults. In addition to Troy and Ithaka, her books
include the acclaimed Egerton Hall Triology—The Tower Room,
Watching the Roses, and Pictures
Pictures of the Night
Night —as well as two adult
Facing
novels, Fa cing the Light
Light and Hester’s Story.
Adèle Geras has lived all over the world, including in Jerusalem,
North Borneo, and Gambia. She currently lives with her husband
in Manchester, England. For more information about the author
and her books, visit her website at www.adelegeras.com.
Troy
0-15-216492-8 Hardcover $17.00
0-15-204570-8 Paperback $6.95
Ithaka
0-15-205603-3 Hardcover $17.00
About the guide’s author: Edward T. Sullivan is a librarian and author
who lives in Oak Ridge, Tennessee. He has written many articles,
books, and reviews about children’s and young adult literature.
www.HarcourtBooks.com