SPGretchenRoesch-+Nobody's+Princess

[|Esther Friesner's Website]

Nobody's Princess tells the story of Helen of Troy as a young girl. Helen knows from a young age that she is beautiful, but she also knows there must be more to life than beauty. She wants to see the world and make her own decisions. Friesner explores how Helen was before the Trojan War occurred, and how the Greek mythology comes into play. Helen knows the role the gods play in her life, but she also wants to choose for herself and not leave everything up to fate. This is also juxtaposed with Helen's adolescence and coming of age. Throughout the novel, Friesner introduces historical figures, such as Helen's brothers, Castor and Polydeuces, Helen's sister Clytemenstra, and Theseus, the hero who slew the minotaur.
 * SUMMARY **

Background information on the real **Helen of Troy**

// "Helen, the face that launched a thousand ships, was a tantalizing enigma from the very first. She was flesh and blood certainly, but she was also immortal, since her father was none other than Zeus. Her mother was the beautiful Leda, queen of Sparta, who was ravished by the father of the gods in the form of a swan." //

I really liked this book. It was short and easy to read. Helen was an interesting character, and the reader got to see her go through different stages of adolescence. The plot was really interesting, and Friesner intertwined the mythology very well. The gods weren’t actually present, but she captured the way the gods would have affected those who believed in them at this time. This is the first book in the series, and while it wasn’t the most interesting book I’ve ever read, I would probably read on. I think if I were a 12 year old girl I would absolutely love this book. It was definitely at a middle school reading level, but it was interesting and enjoyable.
 * My Thoughts: **


 * MEDIA **

media type="youtube" key="OvNjihFycoU" height="315" width="560" align="center"

A video high schoolers made of Nobody's Princess! This is an example of a project I might do with my students if I were to teach this book.

media type="youtube" key="G4fqnXUm7ak" height="315" width="560" align="center"

Another project, this time an interview. I really like this one!

I made a **wordle** for the novel.

rss url="http://princessesofmyth.com/category/blog-posts/" link="true" number="3" author="true" **Esther Friesner's blog**. She posts fun stuff about her new books coming up, mythology, or just tidbits about her life.

I could do a lot of different things with this novel. It has a great female protagonist, it deals with Greek and Roman history, and Greek mythology.
 * Possible Lesson Plans **

**Play Acting:** I would have my students act out myths like I did in my 6th grade class. This was a really fun experiment, and I still remember certain myths because we actually acted them out on the stage. We had rehearsals and everything. By acting out the myths, we got into the minds of the characters and we remembered the myths more clearly.

**Influences of Mythology:** I think a definite thing I could teach with this novel would be the importance of mythology in the life of people in Ancient Greece. Mythology affected every decision these people made, as evident through Helen and her family. I can teach students about influences and how they affect our decisions. Back then it was mythology that affected what everyone did, but now it is factors like society and parentage. I think this would be an interesting lesson and could show students how times have changed.

**Wordle:** Wordle is a website where you can take any words and it makes a little picture for it, like the one above. It also makes the more important words bigger. Wordles are fun because each student can create their own and see the differences in what words they each chose. If I used this in class, I would have them chose the words from the novel that they thought were the most important. In mine, it's interesting that fiction and mythology are the most prominent words when the story of Helen of Troy is based on fact. I would emphasize the difference between fact and fiction with my students if I taught the novel.

**Video Projects:** I like both of the video projects that I found and placed above. I think video projects are great because they force students to work creatively with a novel, which shows comprehension. It also allows them to be creative and to work in groups.