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A review by thewallflower00
Circe by Madeline Miller
3.0
This was attempt number two at reading. Not the book’s fault, it was me. At the time, I wasn’t in the headspace to read something heavy and steeped in the Classics. But now, Greek mythology is having a renaissance (or did it ever disappear?) with God of War, Hades, Lore Olympus. That, combined with my own ambition to write a book about Medusa, I felt I had to give this one a second try for research.
Madeline Miller is obviously versed in classics and Greek mythology so the text is not easy. I mean, it’s not Proust or anything, but you will feel like an adult reading this. Don’t come into this with a mindset that this is Disney’s Hercules. Or even Sam Raimi’s Hercules. This is more like a royal princess in her kingdom with her distant father, political marriages, and treading a balance beam of rebellion vs. obedience.
This is the story of Circe, who, if you recall, is a minor character in the Odyssey. She’s basically an obstacle for Odysseus. And them ding dang women always be tempting men, so evil they are. But this is the “real story” from her birth as a demigod, interacting with various gods and goddesses, and it really starts when she creates Scylla and is exiled to a mortal island for witchcraft. At its core, it’s not dissimilar to a “witches vs. patriarchy” story. It basically follows what the other characters in Odyssey were doing behind the scenes.
But for it trying to be a feminist retelling (which is how I interpreted it) the main character does develop a dependency on men, even though she has nothing but bad relationships with them. Circe’s inclinations are only slightly better than the usual greedy, selfish, scornful kind. In other words, Miller tried to elevate her above her relationships with men, but failed. Although, maybe that’s the point.
But the question is will you enjoy this book? Well, if you enjoy classics and myths, maybe. If you enjoy literature that makes you feel smart, maybe. If you enjoy feminist literature, maybe. If you can check all three of those boxes, I recommend it. But if you crave less character-based, more action-based, less characters-holding-the-idiot-ball, more drama, less relationshippy, then probably you can skip it.
Madeline Miller is obviously versed in classics and Greek mythology so the text is not easy. I mean, it’s not Proust or anything, but you will feel like an adult reading this. Don’t come into this with a mindset that this is Disney’s Hercules. Or even Sam Raimi’s Hercules. This is more like a royal princess in her kingdom with her distant father, political marriages, and treading a balance beam of rebellion vs. obedience.
This is the story of Circe, who, if you recall, is a minor character in the Odyssey. She’s basically an obstacle for Odysseus. And them ding dang women always be tempting men, so evil they are. But this is the “real story” from her birth as a demigod, interacting with various gods and goddesses, and it really starts when she creates Scylla and is exiled to a mortal island for witchcraft. At its core, it’s not dissimilar to a “witches vs. patriarchy” story. It basically follows what the other characters in Odyssey were doing behind the scenes.
But for it trying to be a feminist retelling (which is how I interpreted it) the main character does develop a dependency on men, even though she has nothing but bad relationships with them. Circe’s inclinations are only slightly better than the usual greedy, selfish, scornful kind. In other words, Miller tried to elevate her above her relationships with men, but failed. Although, maybe that’s the point.
But the question is will you enjoy this book? Well, if you enjoy classics and myths, maybe. If you enjoy literature that makes you feel smart, maybe. If you enjoy feminist literature, maybe. If you can check all three of those boxes, I recommend it. But if you crave less character-based, more action-based, less characters-holding-the-idiot-ball, more drama, less relationshippy, then probably you can skip it.