Odysseus was a famous Greek man who played a huge part in the Trojan War that took place in the mid-1200s B.C. He came up with the brilliant idea of building a huge, hollow wooden horse to fool the Trojans. You can read more about that under "The Trojan Horse." After the war, Odysseus left for his home. This part of his life is captured in the epic poem and legend, "The Odyssey." He encountered many dangers and obstacles that he had to overcome in order to get back to his wife, Penelope, and his son, Telemachos. After a long and tiring struggle, Odysseus finally made it back to his hometown of Ithaca where he spent the rest of his life.