A taste of Greek History done Wonderfully
Have you ever had a book suggested to you and you are not
sure where it is going to go for you? I loved that this was suggested because I
do not think that I would have picked this up on my own. This is my first novel by Madeline Miller and
I am sure that this will not be my last. I am not a fan
of historical fiction or retellings of old myths that go beyond whatever flesh
and bone we have left of them, but Miller here achieves the near
impossible–refreshing old stories with her vivid, fitting descriptions and
meditations on the world they arose from. I love Greek Myths this is why this
was on my reading list and I finished it in one day.
Some reviewers have felt a lack of plot in
Circe, but on the contrary I think although it can certainly slow at times and
not all phases of Circe’s life are equally interesting, that this tells her
story wonderfully in its fits and its lulls. Miller is a truly gifted writer
and I think only a few steps she took were false ones. It’s a poetic writing
style that makes me feel like it’s a song with high notes and low notes with a
lovely end.
The real genius to this book is how it–despite
playing with the myths a bit (not that they were always consistent) –takes on
larger issues. Helios may not have been as strident and unfeeling in the few
myths we have of him, but Miller using him, his family, his peers, and his
rivals as a meditation on how immortals might behave, countering it with
meditations on mortals and their lot is nothing less than brilliant. I wish
that there was a bit more written about the female Gods but that is not
something that I would take stars away from. I enjoyed it way too much to be picky.
A shimmering, thought-provoking book with a
cover to match. I find myself wanting to recommend this to any person who likes
this style just to see what a person who is more comfortable with this genre
then I am. I look forward to reading The Song of Achilles this year just to
have another taste of this author.
