Don't know much about Greek mythology? Let Gryllus help you.

These books are fun ways to introduce yourself to the gods and goddesses, from Aphrodite to Zeus. They include a helpful Who's Who and What's What glossary so you won't confuse the sirens with the lotus eaters or wander into Tartarus thinking you're in the Elysian Fields.

(Ages 10 and older)

You would think that saving the world once is all that could be asked of any one pig. But no, Gryllus the Pig is back in this sequel to "The Pig Scrolls," and once again the fate of the world rests on his hammy shoulders.

How fortunate it was that when the Greek goddess Circe turned Gryllus into a pig, he retained the ability to talk. Otherwise, we would know nothing about his adventures with the wandering warrior Odysseus, the teenage poet Homer, the fearsome cyclops Polyphemus (keep your eye on him!), a mysterious grasshopper, the head of Orpheus and the rest of his colorful gang of friends and foes.

Even if you haven't read the first book, you'll be up to speed quickly with the fact that Gryllus saved the cosmos once already -- as he reminds readers every page or two. In the sequel he continues his quest to find Circe and have her reverse her curse, turning him back into a man.

But the inhabitants of the Underworld have other plans. They want to destroy the world and have put the gods on Mount Olympus to sleep while they execute their evil scheme.

Gryllus is a reluctant hero -- he would much rather be off eating warm pies -- but when the world's fate is at stake, what's a pig to do?