For those who know me you might be able to envision my reaction when I read the opening line from David Elliot’s book, Bull. Sorry Mom, I am just quoting here.

”Whaddup, bitches?”

I literally set the book down.

But like a curious cat the intrigue of why a book would start in this way got the best of me so I reread the preface and started again.

I quickly understood this would be a unique read for me. I seem to stay in the non-fiction genre most of the time and this verse-novel version of the Minotaur tale from Greek mythology piqued my interest early.

With some thematic elements and some literary imagery fit for HBO the story reads quickly and presents the epic in an engaging way. Each of the seven characters communicates through their own poetic form. Another bonus in my mind is given the short stanzas of poetry, the story reads quickly.

At times in the story Elliot’s poetic writing is on point! The poetic nature of the story lends itself very well to character development. There were also moments the rhymes or sentence structure felt forced.

Collectively, the uniqueness of sharing Greek mythology through poetry made this an enjoyable read. I was quite bummed to arrive at the end of this tale.

If you happen to be looking for a book that is quite different, quite edgy, artistic, and still a quick read I recommend grabbing Bull by the horns. Peace.