Current U.K. Children's Laureate Joseph Coelho shapes a vulnerable, thoughtful take on the myth of Theseus in his novel-in-verse for young adult readers, The Boy Lost in The Maze.
When his English class begins to study Greek mythology, 17-year-old Black student Theo can't help but see himself in the story of Theseus; both he and Theseus fight to find lost fathers and prove themselves men in a labyrinthian world. Inspired by reimagining Theseus's story as a poetry project for class, Theo begins to search for his father. But as obstacles pile up--all uncanny parallels to the monsters in Theseus's story--Theo must decide how far he will go to find his father and what kind of man he wants to be.
Coelho deliberately steers away from the toxic and performative masculinity--"everything is about muscle and horns"--that often defines both myth and men. Instead, a struggling Theo pictures his Theseus as "more confused/ about his manhood-hunting goal," which leads both hero and boy to embrace the strength found in kindness and emotional growth.
Coelho collaborates once again with Kate Milner (The Girl Who Became a Tree) to evocatively inspirit the hero's saga; Milner's ink illustrations highlight the story's original and softer elements. Choose-your-own-adventure sections help emphasize the inevitable failure of doing only what is expected. Teen readers who love both Greek mythology and poetry will find The Boy Lost in the Maze an original and refreshing must-read. --Nicole Brinkley, bookseller and writer