Oh, that Hermes: we always knew he was mischievous. But in I Am Hermes!, Mordicai Gerstein's comics-style autobiography of sorts, it's clear that as a kid, the messenger of the gods was a pest of Olympian proportions.
With the help of dialogue balloons, Hermes narrates his own adventures, starting with events from his devilish infancy and toddlerhood. The baby-talking trickster takes delight in sneaking out of his cradle and stealing the cows belonging to his older brother Apollo. When Apollo rats out the brat to their dad, Zeus tells his younger son that it's time to grow up, which Hermes literally does before his eyes: "How's this?" Zeus anoints him on the spot: "You'll deliver messages, some in the form of dreams, to everyone." In the latter part of I Am Hermes!, the wing-sandaled one sets out to rescue Ares, god of war, who has been captured by Poseidon's twin sons; later, he disguises himself as a goatherd to get to know the crush-worthy mortal maiden Penelopeta, who becomes his bride.
Gerstein, author of the 2004 Caldecott-winning The Man Who Walked Between the Towers, has a flair for the comics-style format, which he tested in I Am Pan! Although chockablock with panels, the tidy layouts can accommodate banter and sight gags (an oblivious snail, when Apollo asks it about his cows' whereabouts: "I was inside all morning, housecleaning"). To aid the reader unfamiliar with the book's mythological cast of characters, I Am Hermes! begins with a pseudo team picture in which the gods and goddesses pose above their IDs; several look like good candidates for a starring role in another Gerstein book. Here's hoping there's one forthcoming. --Nell Beram, freelance writer and YA author