bab reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Favourite book to date
352 pages
English language
Published July 28, 2011 by Bloomsbury.
The Song of Achilles
4 stars
(165 reviews)
This is the story of the seige of Troy from the perspective of Achilles best-friend Patroclus. Although Patroclus is outcast from his home for disappointing his father he manages to be the only mortal who can keep up with the half-God Archilles. Even though many will know the facts behind the story the telling is fresh and engaging.
Matto reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The song of Achilles' on 'GoodReads'
4 stars
Original approach to this old Greek Myth, easy to read, and a page turner.
Books That Burn reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song of Achilles' on 'Storygraph'
4 stars
THE SONG OF ACHILLES is the story of Achilles’s boyhood and (most of) the Trojan War, as told by his lover, Patroclus. Patroclus’ focus is ever on Achilles, for Achilles is Patroclus’ love and it’s so moving to tell this story through the warm glow of that adoration and desire.
I like how it handles the very high number of sexual assaults and consent violations which are, in many ways, the backbone of Greek mythology (or at least the family trees). Just giving proper context to this story and to events in Patroclus' and Achilles' lives requires some discussion of these themes, and I think it did as well as it could without feeling very anachronistic. This is a beautiful retelling of a tragic story, it makes me wish that Achilles, Patroclus, and Breisis could have been happy together, but it wasn't meant to be.
This retelling takes the stance …
THE SONG OF ACHILLES is the story of Achilles’s boyhood and (most of) the Trojan War, as told by his lover, Patroclus. Patroclus’ focus is ever on Achilles, for Achilles is Patroclus’ love and it’s so moving to tell this story through the warm glow of that adoration and desire.
I like how it handles the very high number of sexual assaults and consent violations which are, in many ways, the backbone of Greek mythology (or at least the family trees). Just giving proper context to this story and to events in Patroclus' and Achilles' lives requires some discussion of these themes, and I think it did as well as it could without feeling very anachronistic. This is a beautiful retelling of a tragic story, it makes me wish that Achilles, Patroclus, and Breisis could have been happy together, but it wasn't meant to be.
This retelling takes the stance that Achilles was definitely gay, with zero interest in women, and it seems to heavily imply that maybe Patroclus could have been happy with a woman but he has eyes only for Achilles. That does however lead to some interesting story decisions which have to be resolved, given the source material. It keeps one very notable instance of Achilles sleeping with a woman, and artfully dodges another that would be assumed to have happened but technically could be worked around. It did give it a kind of biphobic air to this retelling, like it's working so hard to show the love and devotion between Achilles and Patroclus that it shoves away any hint of intimacy or connection with women on Achilles' part. I'm not a Classics scholar and I don't know if the rejection is part of the myth, it just felt kind of bad in a few places because of it. It ends up working as part of Achilles' slow transformation from a kid who didn't want to hurt anyone into a stubborn asshole who let a lot of people die for his pride, but it did make me dislike him by the end. Patroclus' has a consistently rosy view of Achilles and mourns this change rather than rejecting him for it, which definitely helped me keep caring about the story even as I liked Achilles himself less and less.
I liked it overall and I'm glad I read it, anything that manages to make Achilles feel like slightly less of an asshole than most portrayals of him is doing a great job, and this manages that without stripping away the abrasive parts of his character.
I like how it handles the very high number of sexual assaults and consent violations which are, in many ways, the backbone of Greek mythology (or at least the family trees). Just giving proper context to this story and to events in Patroclus' and Achilles' lives requires some discussion of these themes, and I think it did as well as it could without feeling very anachronistic. This is a beautiful retelling of a tragic story, it makes me wish that Achilles, Patroclus, and Breisis could have been happy together, but it wasn't meant to be.
This retelling takes the stance that Achilles was definitely gay, with zero interest in women, and it seems to heavily imply that maybe Patroclus could have been happy with a woman but he has eyes only for Achilles. That does however lead to some interesting story decisions which have to be resolved, given the source material. It keeps one very notable instance of Achilles sleeping with a woman, and artfully dodges another that would be assumed to have happened but technically could be worked around. It did give it a kind of biphobic air to this retelling, like it's working so hard to show the love and devotion between Achilles and Patroclus that it shoves away any hint of intimacy or connection with women on Achilles' part. I'm not a Classics scholar and I don't know if the rejection is part of the myth, it just felt kind of bad in a few places because of it. It ends up working as part of Achilles' slow transformation from a kid who didn't want to hurt anyone into a stubborn asshole who let a lot of people die for his pride, but it did make me dislike him by the end. Patroclus' has a consistently rosy view of Achilles and mourns this change rather than rejecting him for it, which definitely helped me keep caring about the story even as I liked Achilles himself less and less.
I liked it overall and I'm glad I read it, anything that manages to make Achilles feel like slightly less of an asshole than most portrayals of him is doing a great job, and this manages that without stripping away the abrasive parts of his character.
Marcus reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
A beautifully written and devastating story.
bee reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
My heart aches and my tears won’t stop pouring. This exceeded my expectations. I was a broken piece of pottery put back together, yet the cracks remain.
& reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
bro..
Aστραίᾱ reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
there will be no review, i’m too mentally shattered for this shit
Amy Page reviewed The Song Of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song Of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
I loved this book more than I thought I would, this might be one of my favorites of the year and actually the most engrossed/unable to stop thinking about it I have been in a while. The narration was really beautiful and made me feel. Kind of got weepy about it near the end (even knowing the story, it still hit me in the heartstrings). Overall would recommend.
vinibaggio reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Madeline Miller is a great writer! Cool, different perspective of characters from the Iliad. I recommend you reading that before The Song of Achilles.
Lewistrick reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
Didn't meet my expectations as far as the reviews went, but still a very good book.
altlovesbooks reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
4 stars
I went into this mentally preparing myself for a book that wouldn't be as good as Circe was, because honestly I really really loved Circe. I was pleasantly surprised with Song of Achilles, because it hit all the right notes and came out just as entertaining as Circe was. There's a bit more romance elements in this story than I remember there being in Circe (admittedly it has been a while since I've read Circe), but the character development of Patroclus and Achilles is exceptional. The ending especially was very well written, up to the very end.
wdhertog reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Wat een prachtige hervertelling van de bekende verhalen van de Ilias.
luddite reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
Good heavens, can Madeline Miller write.
This book has all the feels. It's so beautifully written, and so very intimate. I've been a big fan of the Iliad and Greek myths in general since 6th grade, but Miller brings an intimacy that livens up every old legend I know.
Read this.
meeg reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
5 stars
By far, one of the most beautifully written books I've ever read. This is a story that deserves to be told and Madeline Miller does it justice.
Lavinia reviewed The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
Review of 'The Song of Achilles' on 'Goodreads'
3 stars
Having recently read her delightful and empowering Circe, I felt that I should also read Madeline’s Miller first book, The Song of Achilles.
The book was a surprise hit and it won the 2012 Orange Prize for Fiction. It is about the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus, or rather Madeline’s vision of their relationship. Her interpretation is quite inventive and original. The story has all the characteristic of an epic drama. There is friendship and romance, sacrifices and death, feuds and war, powerful and selfish gods, cunning and heroic mortals.
There are, of course, historical inaccuracies, but, like in Circe, I don’t think Miller’s purpose was to write an academic thesis. Based mainly on Iliad, and by giving voice to a person (Patroclus) who in Homer’s Iliad remains in the shadows, she tells a nice epic story. She explores the conception of homosexuality in the ancient world, and she shows …
Having recently read her delightful and empowering Circe, I felt that I should also read Madeline’s Miller first book, The Song of Achilles.
The book was a surprise hit and it won the 2012 Orange Prize for Fiction. It is about the relationship between Achilles and Patroclus, or rather Madeline’s vision of their relationship. Her interpretation is quite inventive and original. The story has all the characteristic of an epic drama. There is friendship and romance, sacrifices and death, feuds and war, powerful and selfish gods, cunning and heroic mortals.
There are, of course, historical inaccuracies, but, like in Circe, I don’t think Miller’s purpose was to write an academic thesis. Based mainly on Iliad, and by giving voice to a person (Patroclus) who in Homer’s Iliad remains in the shadows, she tells a nice epic story. She explores the conception of homosexuality in the ancient world, and she shows how reputation and the urge for eternal fame can drive someone to choose death instead of life. So unlikely with today’s celebrity culture which is focused on the immediate benefits of fame, such as attention, glamour and money.
I have mixed feelings about The Song of Achilles. I liked the interpretation of the story but in places it is over the top. I suppose that is true of all epic stories. I think it is a story more suitable for young adult readers.
Subjects
- Trojan War
- Achilles (Greek mythology)
- Male friendship
- Fiction