So begins Matthew Fitt's exciting, hilarious and boisterous retelling of the ancient myth of Hercules and his twelve labours. When the mighty Hercules commits a terrible murder, his father, Zeus, punishes him by making him the slave of his step-brother Eurystheus. To win his freedom back, Hercules must perform twelve seemingly impossible tasks or trauchles. Hercules has to use all his strength and cunning to defeat terrible creatures, like the Lion of Nemea and the Bull of Crete, but not even he believes he can journey to Hades, the underworld, and come back alive with the fearsome fufty-heidit dug Cerberus. Matthew Fitt's rich but familiar Scots will delight young readers and draw them into the ancient world of gods, monsters and mortal combat. Vividly enhanced by Bob Dewar's energy-packed illustrations, Hercules is a perfect way to encourage children to read a sustained piece of Scots prose and also to introduce them to one of the greatest stories of all time.