content: This is no easy reading, and it is not for people totally without basic knowledge. Harrison, a great scholar who wrote in the 20s, won't tell you who Athena is- you should have a basic idea in order to enjoy the complex stories about her and all the Olympian deities! We didn't get the background told at school, only the stage when belief in the Gods was actually dead, preserved only as a cultural phenomenon. Harrison will tell you about the time when belief was ALIVE. If you want to know about the ceremonies, the secret rites, the hidden names, the shift of power from goddess to god... and in all this in a factual, reliable manner- then this is the book you should read!