Shama M

You hear all these male names in history and mythology. Great men who achieved great things. Not many women up there. Why? Well, Atalanta might help you understand that. A quick background. This woman is not your typical princess. And yes, she was a princess. Her father, a King, left her in the woods because he had no use for a daughter when he wanted a male heir. Typical. So she was raised by a mama bear who was kinder than man, and later Artemis and her nymphs. Artemis made her vow she'd never marry, protect her virginity, and be free. And then sent her to join the Argonauts as her champion. And this is where she first experienced sexism. The idea of a woman fighting by their side as their equal was unthinkable to these men. To them, women existed merely as their servants. Whether a girl they kidnapped or a wife, a woman existed to serve them. Not to be their equal. Atalanta proved herself not to be their equal however, but to be way better than all of them combined. And this hurt their fragile male ego. Except Meleager's, who admired her for who she was, and (spoiler alert) died fighting for her honor. Also shoutout to my boy Hippomenes on that note. Anyway, moving on to Atalanta... After bringing back the golden fleece, these men were celebrated but her name was carefully erased. They pretended she never sailed with them at all. Another example of how the patriarchal system erases women's achievements. The most mediocre men are celebrated, and the most extraordinary women erased. This is why you don't hear about a lot of women when you read history or mythology. Because they create a system so against women that they have to push mountains to achieve things men are so easily allowed. And even when they win, they're erased from history. They couldn’t erase Atalanta though. But they sure as hell erased so many other women. This book kept reminding me of Taylor Swift's song "The Man". Felt like when she wrote that song, she had Atalanta in mind. But I know it's only because Atalanta's story is such a universal female experience. You can be just as good as any man, way better even, and still the patriarchy will prevent you from shining. And even when you conquer the mountains they put your way, they'll erase your name. This book was more than just a mythology novel. It's the story of a woman's battle in a patriarchal society. A woman who wanted to be free, and she was. The book ends with her powerful declaration, "I am Atalanta". And I think Atalanta is every woman (a Barbie from Greek mythology, you could say). I really enjoyed reading this book. It was a journey. The language is easy enough to understand despite English not being my first language, poetic and so skillfully written I never got bored for a second. I had to physically force myself to pause reading to focus on other stuff. And yes, she did have a happy (if bittersweet) ending. Not a lot of heroes from Greek mythology can say the same. So, good for her.

A war doesn’t affect only men fighting in battlefields, women are also greatly affected. Men die in battle and there's the end for them. But what happens to the women? What do they have to deal with every minute they're alive? What do they suffer? How does the war affect them? How do they live? How do they die? How often do historians, storytellers, and poets bother telling their stories? And so, she tells us the stories of the often overlooked women of the Trojan War. In her words, "This was never the story of one woman, or two. It was the story of all of them. A war does not ignore half the people whose lives it touches. So why do we? They have waited to have their story told, and I will make them wait no longer." It was obviously sad. But also empowering. The way these women held on, fought, grew; the way they took revenge on the men who hurt them, and the way they preferred death over humiliation - just no words! I had difficulty putting this book down. It pulled me in and wouldn’t let go. It's as if I could see it all unfolding right before my eyes. Amazing how she could do that just with words! My ADHD brain tends to get bored of one task very quickly. I can't keep reading a book for very long at a time no matter how much I enjoy it. But this book, I read more than 150 pages in one day and finished it. I couldn’t stop. I had to know what would happen next. Powerful, powerful storytelling!

Just finished reading this book and just wow! I can't recommend this book enough. Natalie Haynes I love you!

I absolutely loved it and she's my favourite author now. She made me fall in love with Circe.

I love it I love it I love it‌!!! Absolutely devoured this book, or rather, it devoured me, pulled me in and didn't let me go. I struggled to put it down. What a journey!!! It's like, I became Patroclus. I saw everything he saw, felt everything he felt, went everywhere he went, did everything he did. Absolutely amazing storytelling! You can really see, hear and feel everything. You lose yourself in it. No use of scary complex words that made me open the dictionary again and again, yet, so beautifully, so poetically described! This book is proof that you don't need to use difficult words to create a masterpiece. English isn't my first language, yet, I read it just as easily I'd read something written in my own language. I got absolutely lost in the story. I can't express in words how much I love this book. It's an absolute masterpiece. The bestest novel I read in a while. I'll be sure to suggest it to my friends. Much love to Madeline Miller. She's my new favourite author now.