Meet the Olympians: A Collection of Limericks on Greek Gods

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a collection of limerics

Written by Toby D Illustrated by Farnood J

Disclaimer

No part of this publication may be reproduced in whole or in part or stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form by any mean, electronic, mechanical, photo copying, recorded or otherwise, without the prior permission of the author.

Dedication

This book is for those kids who love to learn mythology through rhymes.

Gather ‘round everyone; I have a tale to tell, Tale of gods who made the world shrink and swell. The tale of old gods, Who were always at odds; Even so, you should know it’s all well that ends well. 1

Once was a big god on a mountaintop, Who could make the thunder start and stop, Defeated Cronus, Ruled over Olympus, His name was Zeus and that's a full stop. 2

Cronus was his cruel father, Whom Zeus defeated with his sister and daughter, His sister was Hera, His daughter Athena, Also Poseidon, Hades and Demeter. 3

Hera was Zeus’s sister and his wife, That was the nature of old Olympian life. She was the goddess of family, Often behaved angrily, And was always with Zeus in a bitter strife. 4

Athena was the goddess of wisdom and war, Had a helmet and armour that often she wore. She cracked her father’s head. Zeus gave her go-ahead, As he knew she was not the one to ignore. 5

Zeus’s brother, Poseidon was the god of the sea. He was so stubborn, with no one could agree, Fished with his trident, Was worse than a tyrant, Ruled over the oceans and let no-one flee. 6

For anyone who died, Hades held the key. He was the god of the Underworld, that no-one could see. He was mostly alone, Sitting on his throne, And no-one was there to get him some tea. 7

Demeter was a goddess responsible for growth, Responsible for the spring to get green clothes. The earth was her domain. Her bird was the crane. And to Mount Olympus, she barely got close. 8

There was also one goddess nobody talked about, But Hestia did hard work day in and day out. She kept the hearth at home, Provided shelter and dome For all the honest men who worked a long time out. 9

These are not the only gods in our little tale, As we are going to get into more detail. Gods had girls and sons, Lots of little ones. They had heavy duties too when put on a scale. 10

If someone wanted to fight, they would go to Ares. He was like a general who wouldn’t give ‘at ease’. He carried a spear, Shield was his main gear, The god of war was not so easy to appease. 11

Zeus’s daughter, Artemis, was the lady of the hunt. She was in search of animals, from every single front, Had her bow and arrow, Was a sister to Apollo, And was a virgin goddess, you could not confront. 12

Apollo, the god of music, was Artemis’ twin He was also the god of archery and medicine He had lots of talent And was pretty gallant But in his love affairs, he couldn’t always win. 13

If gods wanted a messenger, they would go to Hermes, As he could run fast and fly at ease. He looked like a young boy, Who was never coy, But whatever Zeus wanted he’d bring in a breeze. 14

With Aphrodite in the mix, love would be all around. As the goddess of love, she was perfectly crowned. Matching beauty with beauty, It was her sole duty, Although she married someone with no such background. 15

Hephaestus was her husband, and had an ugly look. He was a good craftsman and not at all a crook. He would build things nonstop, Volcanoes: his workshop, He fashioned the first woman and gave her a pretty look. 16

Our last Olympian is Dionysus; he was the god of wine. He thought of drink and dance as sacred and divine. He was in festivals, Loved the spectacles, And driving everyone mad was his main action line. 17

Here is the end of our wonderful tale. Neither was it short nor was in detail. Hope you liked the writing, As well as the painting, And now this short book is up there for sale. 18

This was not much a tale though; it was a teaching course. For knowledge of ancient times, it was a suitable source. Though it was too short, I still need your support, For a bunch of limericks no-one would endorse. 19

THE END

Written by Toby D Illustrated by Farnood J