Hercules Detective Agency Case Files are Copyrighted with the U.S. Copyright Office, Library of Congress

As the story goes .....

The famous myths about The 12 Labors of Hercules is a bunch of little stories that together tell the tale of how Hercules used clever tricks and great courage to rid the world of some really nasty critters. Here are the famous 12 Labors, if you would like to read them.

But that was not the end of the story.... In fact, it was only the beginning.

Hercules had a lot of fun solving the 12 Labors, but he wasn't paid for his work. Like everyone in ancient Greece, he needed a job, a paying job. Hercules thought and thought and came up with one of his very best ideas. He would open a detective agency - the Hercules Detective Agency - to help the Greek people solve their problems, especially problems the gods had thrust upon them. He would charge a small fee of food or blankets or something else that he needed. That would solve everything! Hercules was very pleased with himself for thinking of such a brilliant solution.

The first thing he did was to create a rather large sign. He hung it on the outside wall of his hut. The sign said: The Hercules Detective Agency, Founded to Help the Greek People, No Problem Too Large or Too Small, Reasonable Fees, Proprietor Hercules (Roman name), also known as Heracles (Greek name), also known as Herc (Nickname)

After admiring his sign for a considerable amount of time, Hercules began to worry that although his sign was very nice, it did not seem to be working. Hercules knew he was famous. Just about everyone in ancient Greece, both gods and mortals, knew he had solved the 12 Labors. But that was in the past. How to get the word out that he was open for business in the present? Once again, Hercules thought and thought, but this time no brilliant solution occurred to him. As it turned out, there was no need to worry. Word spread like wild fire that Hercules was open for business. Soon, people began bringing their impossible problems to his door. Since Hercules kept finding solutions to their problems, it was not long before the Hercules Detective Agency soon became nearly as famous as Hercules himself.

It all started one evening with a knock on the door of his hut.

"Herc! Open up! I need your help!" shouted a harmless looking individual with tousled hair and very worried eyes.

That's how the Hercules Detective Agency found its first client, case file: (1) The Misunderstood Minotaur and, no matter what you might have heard, how Hercules and the Minotaur became the best of friends.

Case Files from the Hercules Detective Agency (short stories about ancient Greece for kids)

  1. The Misunderstood Minotaur

  2. The Enchanted Well

  3. The Missing Olive Trees

  4. Kerberos on Strike

  5. The Very Inventive Rescue

  6. The Scaredly Fish

  7. The Tricked Bully

  8. The Stone Zoo

  9. The Reluctant Oracle

  10. Olympic Team Herc

  11. The Bad Barber

  12. The Talking Tools

  13. The Mad Machine

  14. The Constant Chatterbox

  15. The Voiceless Storyteller

  16. The Monster Under the Bridge

  17. The Stinky Sandals

  18. The Awesome Actor

  19. Hercules Challenged

  20. The Golden Lyre

  21. The Mischievous Trickster

  22. The Magic Earrings

  23. The Rhyming Poet

  24. The Three Harpies

  25. The Pearl Divers

  26. The Festival Arrow

  27. The Dragon Egg

  28. The Dangerous Dragon

  29. The Golden Nugget

  30. The Moving Mountain

  31. The Monster on the Causeway

  32. The Amazing Matchmaker

  33. The Temple Worm

  34. The Charcoal Burners

  35. The Ionian Sea Pirates

  36. The Island of the Sirens

  37. The Magic Wool

  38. The Minotaur to the Rescue

  39. The Missing Trident

  40. The Terrible Tutor

  41. The Dance Teacher

  42. The Water Rights

  43. The Winged Monsters

  44. The Treasure Map