Content levels
Trigger warnings
Heroine archetypes
Protagonist archetypes
Tropes
Themes
Synopsis
Anaxandra is taken from her birth island at age 6 by King Nicander to be a companion to his crippled daughter, Princess Callisto. Six years later, her new island is sacked by pirates and she is the sole survivor. Alone with only her Medusa figurine, she reinvents herself as Princess Callisto when Menelaus, great king of Sparta, lands with his men. He takes her back to Sparta with him where Helen, his beautiful wife, does not believe that the red-headed child is Princess Callisto. Although fearful of the half-mortal, half-goddess Helen, Anaxandra is able to stay out of harm's way--until the Trojan princes Paris and Aeneas arrive. Paris and Helen's fascination with each other soon turns to passion and plunges Sparta and Troy into war. Can Anaxandra find the courage to reinvent herself once again, appease the gods, and save herself? In Caroline B. Cooney's epic tale of one girl's courage and will to survive, Anaxandra learns that home is where you make it and identity goes deeper than just your name.From the Hardcover edition.
Is Goddess of Yesterday appropriate for my child?
Suitable for most readers 10 and up.
This retelling of events leading to the Trojan War includes violence (pirate raid, war preparation) and themes of deception, loss, and survival. The protagonist witnesses death and must repeatedly reinvent herself to survive dangerous circumstances.
What to know going in
This book has moderate violence, no sexual content, and clean language. Content notes include kidnapping, death, mass death, and grief (see the full list above).
Who'll love this
A girl must use her wits and courage to survive after pirates destroy her home, taking on a false identity in the legendary court of Helen of Troy.