We've got your back. With the Tough-O-Meter, you'll know whether to bring extra layers or Swiss army knives as you summit the literary mountain. (10 = Toughest)
(3) Base Camp
We gave Ovid's book a 3 on the Tough-o-Meter because of his wide range of classical allusions, which can be tricky if you're not used to them. Thanks to footnotes, encyclopedias, and the internet, however, these probably won't cause too much trouble. In any case, Ovid doesn't usually just throw in a detail to confuse you. If he introduces a new topic, chances are that's because he wants to tell a story about it; what he tells you will then provide you all the information you need. Beyond that, however, Ovid's book really isn't that challenging. In fact, once you're done reading Ovid, you'll know so much classical mythology that a lot of other books will suddenly become a lot easier to understand. We're betting that you'll be having so much fun getting there that you won't even notice how much you're learning.