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Classic Comparisons

Right away, we should point out that many of the versions listed in these pages are not consistently available here at Exodus. But even if they say "out of stock" the listings still have value! Many of them offer reviews, samples, links to internet versions, and much more. Please let us know if you have questions about anything here!

Once upon a time there was an old blind man with a harp. His name was Homer, and he spoke Greek, and he was really good at composing long poems about the adventures of Greek heroes. He never wrote anything down because that's just not how things were done back then, but other people did, and what Homer sang and they wrote we call The Iliad and The Odyssey.

Much more recently, you (or someone like you) stood in a bookstore and wondered why there were twelve thousand versions of these two relatively short books. Were there sequels? Did people other than Homer come up with the same stories? Or are there just different covers for one or two versions?

It's easy to resolve the problem by simply buying the least expensive copy. And it isn't just the works of Homer that present us with similar decisions: there are multiple editions of Virgil, Dante, The Epic of Gilgamesh, Cervantes' Don Quixote, etc. Does it matter which one you pick? Is cheapest always best?

Well, to quote a great philosopher, the price don't enter into it. The main reason there are so many versions of these books is because there are so many translations, and there are so many translations because foreign or ancient languages can be interpreted in so many ways. Choosing the best one can be exceedingly difficult, as each translation has its own strengths and weaknesses, and one size almost never fits all. With books written and published in English, there might be a wide selection of editions due to editorial changes or a variety of illustrators. Some books have had a number of retellings for children, and our goal is to familiarize you with which ones might best suit your needs.

That's why we've developed the Classic Comparisons pages. The issue here isn't to prove which version is the best—it's to help you figure out which version may become your favorite. Each page includes an original introduction to the text itself, links for further reading and activities online, an exclusive overview, kids' versions, and occasional extras. In the case of translation or editorial differences, we offer a side-by-side comparison chart of several versions, and if it's all about the illustrations, our pages will offer samples of the artwork. 

We started this section with an original dozen titles, but have several more in the works. Please be patient with us as several of those pages are still under construction! We hope you'll find these helpful, and that you'll learn as much from them as we did in making them.

Review by C. Hollis Crossman
C. Hollis Crossman used to be a child. Now he's a husband and father who loves church, good food, and weird stuff. He might be a mythical creature, but he's definitely not a centaur. Read more of his reviews here.
Did you find this review helpful?
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We Love Translations
Another site with a similar goal! She's done more of the French and Russian lit we have yet to do!
98 Items found Print
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Active Filters: 5th grade (Ages 10-11), New Books & Materials
Adventures of King Arthur - Coloring Book
by Arkady Roytman
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$3.39
Adventures of Robin Hood
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Roger Green, illustrated by Walter Crane
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 5th-9th grade
$17.00
Adventures of Robin Hood
Puffin Classics
by Roger Green, illustrated by Arthur Hall
from Puffin Books
Legends and Folklore for 5th-9th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$9.34
Adventures of Robin Hood - MP Student Guide
from Memoria Press
for 5th grade
in Memoria Press Literature & Poetry (Location: LITSG-MP)
$13.95
Adventures of Robin Hood - MP Teacher Guide
by Tanya Charlton
from Memoria Press
for 5th grade
in Memoria Press Literature & Poetry (Location: LITSG-MP)
$13.95 $9.00 (1 in stock)
Adventures of Sir Balin the Ill-Fated
The Knights' Tales Book 4
by Gerald Morris
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$5.94
Adventures of Sir Gawain the True
The Knights' Tales Book 3
by Gerald Morris
from HMH Books for Young Readers
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$5.94
Adventures of Sir Givret the Short
The Knights' Tales Book 2
by Gerald Morris
from Sandpiper Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$7.61
Adventures of Sir Lancelot the Great
The Knights' Tales Book 1
by Gerald Morris
Reprint from Sandpiper Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$6.79
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$10.16
Aeneid for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Roman Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$5.94
Aladdin and Other Favorite Arabian Nights Stories
Dover Children's Thrift Classics
by Philip Smith, editor
from Dover Publications
Eastern Fairy Tales for 3rd-6th grade
$2.55 $1.60 (1 in stock)
Aladdin and Other Tales from the Arabian Nights
Puffin Classics
by N.J. Dawood, illustrated by William Harvey
from Puffin Books
Fairy Tales for 2nd-6th grade
$6.79
Arabian Nights
by Padraic Colum
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 4th-8th grade
$9.34
Arabian Nights - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by John Green
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$3.36
Arabian Nights Entertainment
by Andrew Lang
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-5th grade
$13.59
Arabian Nights Entertainments
by Andrew Lang
from Dover Publications
for 3rd-5th grade
$16.99
Arthur the Always King
by Kevin Crossley-Holland, illustrated by Chris Riddell
from Candlewick Press
for 4th-8th grade
$25.49
Ballad of Sir Dinadan
Squire's Tales Book 5
by Gerald Morris
Reprint from Sandpiper Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$13.56
Beowulf (retold)
by Michael Morpurgo
from Candlewick Press
for 3rd-8th grade
$7.64
Beowulf - A Graphic Novel Adaptation
by Gareth Hinds
from Candlewick Press
for 5th-9th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$14.44
Beowulf - Coloring Book
Dover Coloring Books
by John Green
from Dover Publications
for 2nd-6th grade
in Literary & Fantasy Coloring Books (Location: COL-LIT)
$4.24
Beowulf the Warrior
by Ian Serraillier
from Bethlehem Books
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$10.16 $5.60 (1 in stock)
Black Horses for the King
by Anne McCaffrey
from Magic Carpey Books
for 5th-9th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$11.99
Black Ships Before Troy
by Rosemary Sutcliff & Alan Lee
from Frances Lincoln
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$21.24
Black Ships Before Troy
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Laurel-Leaf Books
Greek Mythology for 4th-8th grade
$7.64
Boys of Blur
by N. D. Wilson
from Random House Books for Young Readers
for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$6.79
Boys' and Girls' Herodotus
by John S. White
from American Home-School Publishing
Ancient History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Ancient Greece (Location: HISW-ANGR)
$23.99
Chaucer for Children
by Mrs. H.R. (Mary) Haweis
from Cheapest Books
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$14.99
Chaucer for Children
by Mrs. H.R. (Mary) Haweis
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$18.66
Chaucer for Children
by Mrs. H.R. (Mary) Haweis
from Living Book Press
for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$8.49
Chaucer Story Book
by Geoffrey Chaucer, retpld by Eva March Tappan
Ill from CreateSpace
for 5th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.61
Chaucer's Stories Simply Told
by Mary Seymour, illustrated by E.M. Scannell
from Hillside Education
for 5th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$12.71
Child's Garden of Verses
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Tasha Tudor
from Simon and Schuster
Poetry for 1st-5th grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$16.99 $11.60 (1 in stock)
Child's Garden of Verses
by Robert Louis Stevenson
from Dover Publications
for 1st-5th grade
in Poetry for Children (Location: POET-CHIL)
$4.00 $1.50 (1 in stock)
Children's Homer
by Padraic Colum & Willy Pogany
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$9.34 $4.80 (3 in stock)
Children's Plutarch: Tales of the Greeks
by F. J. Gould
from Yesterday's Classics
Greek History Reference for 4th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$11.86 $5.60 (1 in stock)
Children's Plutarch: Tales of the Romans
by F. J. Gould, Reteller
from Yesterday's Classics
for 4th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$10.16 $5.60 (1 in stock)
Dangerous Journey
by Oliver Hunkin (abridger)
from Eerdmans
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 3rd-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$21.25
Dangerous Journey - Comprehension Guide
by Emily Fischer
from Veritas Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Veritas Press Literature Guides (Location: LITSG-VP)
$19.00
Dark Is Rising Sequence - Boxed Set
by Susan Cooper
from Aladdin Paperbacks
Fantasy for 4th-7th grade
in Boxed Sets & Literature Packages (Location: FIC-BOX)
$38.24
Gilgamesh (retold)
by Bernarda Bryson
from CreateSpace
for 4th-8th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$26.87
Gilgamesh the Hero
by Geraldine McCaughrean
from Eerdmans
for 4th-8th grade
$17.00 $9.60 (1 in stock)
Heidi
by Johanna Spyri, translated by Helen B. Dole and illustrated by William Sharp
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Realistic Fiction for 4th-8th grade
$17.00
Heroes Every Child Should Know
by H. W. Mabie
from Yesterday's Classics
Biography for 5th-8th grade
$13.56
Heroes Every Child Should Know
by H. W. Mabie
from Living Book Press
Biography for 5th-8th grade
$11.89
Iliad for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
for 5th-8th grade
$10.16
Iliad for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
for 5th-8th grade
$6.79
King Arthur
by Andrew Lang, illustrated by H.J. Ford
from Dover Publications
for 4th-8th grade
$6.79
King Arthur and His Knights
by Maude Redford Warren
2nd edition from Yesterday's Classics
Arthurian Legends and Myths for
$10.16
Lioness and Her Knight
Squire's Tales Book 7
by Gerald Morris
from Clarion Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$16.99
Little Christmas Carol
by Charles Dickens, illustrated by Joe Sutphin
from Moody Press
for 3rd-Adult
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$25.49
Little Pilgrim's Progress
by Helen Taylor
from Moody Press
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$11.04 $6.40 (1 in stock)
Little Pilgrim's Progress
by Helen Taylor, illustrated by Joe Sutphin
from Moody Press
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 4th-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$29.74
Odyssey (retold)
Puffin Classics
by Geraldine McCaughrean retells Homer
Puffin Classics from Puffin Books
for 4th-6th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$9.34
Odyssey for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Yesterday's Classics
for 5th-8th grade
$11.86
Odyssey for Boys and Girls
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
for 5th-8th grade
$6.79
Odyssey Graphic Novel
by Homer, adapted by Gareth Hinds
from Candlewick Press
for 4th-6th grade
in Comic Books & Graphic Novels (Location: FIC-COMIC)
$16.99 $9.60 (1 in stock)
Pilgrim's Progress
by John Bunyan
Facsimile Ed from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-7th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$16.11
Pilgrim's Progress (adapted)
by Written by Anna Trimiew, illustrated by Drew Rose
from Great Commission Publications
Allegorical and Moral Stories for 1st-6th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$16.96
Pilgrim's Progress (retold)
by John Bunyan (retold by Gary D. Schmidt), illustrated by Barry Moser
from Eerdmans
Christian Prose Epic/Allegory for 5th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$14.88
Pilgrim's Progress: The Journey Journal
by John Bunyan; forward by Ken Ham
from Master Books
in British Literature Curriculum (Location: LITCUR-BRI)
$21.59
Pinocchio
Puffin Classics
by Carlo Collodi, translated by E. Hardin and illustrated by Gioia Fiammenghi
from Puffin Books
Fantasy for 3rd-8th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$6.79
Pinocchio
by Carlo Collodi, illustrated by Alice Carsey
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Fantasy for 3rd-8th grade
$15.30
Pinocchio - Comprehension Guide
by Deb Chapin & Laurie Detweiler
from Veritas Press
for 2nd-5th grade
in Veritas Press Literature Guides (Location: LITSG-VP)
$19.00
Plutarch's Lives for Boys and Girls
by W.H. Weston (reteller), Plutarch
from Yesterday's Classics
for 3rd-6th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$15.26 $7.20 (1 in stock)
Quest of the Fair Unknown
Squire's Tales Book 8
by Gerald Morris
from Clarion Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$13.59
Robin Hood
by David Calcutt, illustrated by Graham Baker-Smith
from Barefoot Books
for 3rd-6th grade
$11.04
Robin Hood - Comprehension Guide
by Diane Coleman
2nd edition from Veritas Press
for 4th-7th grade
in Veritas Press Literature Guides (Location: LITSG-VP)
$19.00
Robin Hood and His Merry Outlaws
Dover Evergreen Classics
by J. Walker McSpadden
from Dover Publications
for 4th-8th grade
in Action & Adventure Stories (Location: FIC-ADV)
$7.64
Robin Hood in Easy-to-Read Type
Dover Children's Thrift Classics
by Bob Blaisdell (reteller), illustrated by Thea Kliros
from Dover Publications
for 3rd-5th grade
$3.40 $1.60 (1 in stock)
Saint George and the Dragon
by Margaret Hodges & Trina Schart Hyman
from Little, Brown & Company
Fairy Tales, Fables, and Legends for 2nd-3rd grade
1985 Caldecott Medal winner
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$8.49
Shadow Spinner
by Susan Fletcher
from Aladdin Paperbacks
for 5th-8th grade
$6.79
Song of Robin Hood
by Anne Malcolmson & Grace Castagnetta, illustrated by Virginia Lee Burton
from Houghton Mifflin
for 2nd-Adult
1948 Caldecott Honor book
in Picture Books (Location: PICTURE)
$19.54
Squire's Tale
Squire's Tales Book 1
by Gerald Morris
from Clarion Books
for 5th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$8.49
Stories from the Faerie Queene
by Edmund Spenser, retold by Jeanie Lang and illustrated by Rose Le Quesne
from CreateSpace
for 3rd-6th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$7.50
Stories of Beowulf Told to the Children
by H. E. Marshall
from Yesterday's Classics
Myth & Legend for 2nd-5th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$8.46
Stories of Don Quixote
by James Baldwin, retold from Miguel de Cervantes
from Yesterday's Classics
for 5th-7th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$11.01
Stories of Don Quixote
by James Baldwin, retold from Miguel de Cervantes
from Living Book Press
for 5th-7th grade
in Classics Retold (Location: FIC-RET)
$8.49
Stories of Robin Hood Told to the Children
by H. E. Marshall
from Yesterday's Classics
for 2nd-5th grade
$8.46 $4.40 (1 in stock)
Story of the Iliad
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Greek Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$8.49
Story of the Odyssey
by Alfred J. Church
from Living Book Press
Greek Mythology for 5th-8th grade
$7.64
Tales from the Odyssey, Part 1
by Mary Pope Osborne
1st edition from Disney-Hyperion
for 2nd-5th grade
$7.64
Tales from the Odyssey, Part 2
by Mary Pope Osborne
1st edition from Disney-Hyperion
for 2nd-5th grade
$7.64
Tales of King Arthur and the Round Table
by Andrew Lang, illustrated by H.J. Ford
from Living Book Press
for 4th-8th grade
$7.64
Treasure Island
Puffin Classics
by Robert Louis Stevenson
from Puffin Books
Action/Adventure for 5th-9th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$7.64
Treasure Island
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Mervyn Peake
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
for 5th-9th grade
$18.70
Treasure Island
Scribner Illustrated Classics
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by N.C. Wyeth
Deluxe from Atheneum
for 5th-9th grade
in Scribner Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SCRIB)
$21.24
Treasure Island
by Robert Louis Stevenson, illustrated by Louis Rhead
from SeaWolf Press
for 5th-9th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$8.49
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Penguin Classics
by Jules Verne, translated by David Coward
from Puffin Books
Science Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in 19th Century Literature (Location: LIT6-19)
$11.90
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (abridged)
Puffin Classics
by Jules Verne
from Puffin Books
Science Fiction for 5th-8th grade
in Science Fiction (Location: FIC-SCI)
$5.94
Wanderings of Odysseus
by Rosemary Sutcliff
from Laurel-Leaf Books
Greek Mythology for 3rd-8th grade
$7.64
Wind in the Willows
Everyman's Library Children's Classics
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Arthur Rackham
from Alfred A. Knopf, Inc.
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
$17.00
Wind in the Willows
Puffin Classics
by Kenneth Grahame
from Puffin Books
Humorous Animal Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
in Puffin Classics (Location: FIC-PUF)
$9.34
Wind in the Willows
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard
75th Anniversary Edition from Atheneum
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$18.69
Wind in the Willows
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Robert Ingpen
from Sterling Publishing Co.
Humorous Animal Fantasy for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$21.24
Wind in the Willows
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Paul Bransom
from SeaWolf Press
Historical Fiction for 4th-8th grade
in Seawolf Illustrated Classics (Location: FIC-SW)
$9.99
Wind in the Willows
by Kenneth Grahame, illustrated by Ernest H. Shepard
from IDW Publishing
for 4th-8th grade
in Fantasy Fiction (Location: FIC-FAN)
$16.99
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