ALA Booklist (Mon Sep 01 00:00:00 CDT 2003)

McCaughrean employs her supple style in this version of the oldest recorded story in the world. Gilgamesh was a real king around 3000 B.C.E. in the Sumerian city of Uruk (now in Iraq). This tale, originally engraved on 12 stone tablets whose thousands of pieces are still studied and puzzled over, is rendered with simplicity and power. Gilgamesh finds a kindred spirit in Enkidu, the wild man, and the two of them together conquer the guardian of the forest and the bull of heaven. When Enkidu dies, Gilgamesh overwhelmed with the loss and terror of his own dying, goes on a long quest to find the secret of everlasting life, undergoing many trials and learning lessons. He hears the story of the flood--not much different from the biblical version. Siduri the innkeeper tells Gilgamesh the joys of life: Children. That's the shape of happiness . . . Cherries in bed . . . Someone to sit with in the shade. Parkins' muscular images, inspired by Assyrian art and reminiscent of Leonard Fisher's art, are a fine foil for the text, which begs to be read aloud.

Horn Book

In this version of the epic, the mythic strongman, whose unrestrained vigor in building his city makes him more tyrant than hero, battles with Enkidu, a "wild man" who signifies the natural, uncivilized world. The two become friends and join in heroic adventures. There are fascinating echoes of stories from many traditions in this venerable root story. Parkins's illustrations capture the epic's primitive power and universal emotions.

Kirkus Reviews

McCaughrean turns in a robust, exciting rendition of the world's oldest written epic. After many astounding feats, proud, powerful king Gilgamesh sees his beloved sidekick Enkidu die, and becomes terrified of doing the same. Abandoning self-respect, he searches the world for the secret of immortality, crosses the Waters of Death to hear the tale of undying Utnapisthim (better knows as Noah), and at last returns home, to make wiser bids for immortality by telling his tale, and raising children. Thanks to the former, as McCaughrean points out, he's better known today than Ishtar, Enlil, or any of the other "immortal" gods he fought and worshiped. Enhanced by Parkins's expressionistic tableaus of gnarled, dramatically posed figures, she relates his adventures with gusto—"Gilgamesh calmly strung his bow. Don't launch the funeral barge yet. What can go wrong with the two of us side by side?' Do you really want me to tell you?' said Enkidu"—while vividly capturing his pride, soul-deep anguish, and the personal cost of his hard-won wisdom. The most riveting retelling yet of this ancient, ageless tale. (introductory note) (Folktale. 10-14)

Publishers Weekly (Fri Oct 06 00:00:00 CDT 2023)

Geraldine McCaughrean retells the oldest recorded story, adapted for children, in Gilgamesh the Hero, illus. by David Parkins. The great king Gilgamesh fights Huwawa, Guardian of the Cedar Forests, slays the Bull of Heaven, seeks the secret of immortality and travels the world in this dramatic story of a powerful ruler who is both loved and hated by his people.

School Library Journal (Mon Dec 01 00:00:00 CST 2003)

Gr 6-9-Long before Homer, Sumerians were creatively tackling the human condition. Their epic, preserved by other Near Eastern cultures, focuses especially on themes of friendship and mortality. Gilgamesh is overactive and oversexed (McCaughrean handles this, and a later seduction scene, discreetly), and his status affords plenty of opportunities to act out. The gods balance his personality by matching him (jaded, cultured) with Enkidu (innocent, wild). The pair finds socially constructive outlets-and then Enkidu dies. Gilgamesh suddenly understands his own vulnerability, and sets out to seek immortality. His journey echoes in the Odyssey and in the biblical flood story. McCaughrean's retelling is superb. Faithful to the fragmentary originals, her adaptation adds inspired details, similes, dialogue, and description. It enriches readers' understanding without violating the source. Unlike David Ferry's spare, poetic redaction in Gilgamesh: A New Rendering in English Verse (Farrar, 1992), McCaughrean grippingly and tenderly elaborates. Her language is both vernacular and classic, her pace unslacking, her characterizations deft. This volume will add luster to the author's glittering reputation. The illustrations recall Charles Keeping's bold style; Parkins's thick, dark line gains energy from its rough, unfinished edges. Unframed vignettes seem to emerge out of the text; full-page pictures spill over to the facing page. The somber palette evokes the desert setting, and the style is slightly archaic and wholly vigorous. It would be a pity if the single instance of a bare bottom in one vignette discouraged purchase: this fabulous introduction to the epic tradition deserves a wide readership.-Patricia D. Lothrop, St. George's School, Newport, RI Copyright 2003 Reed Business Information.