I think I'm too old for this teenage romance stuff. Too old for all this talk of beautiful boys, golden fiery hair ruffling in the wind, and their feeI think I'm too old for this teenage romance stuff. Too old for all this talk of beautiful boys, golden fiery hair ruffling in the wind, and their feet. I can't read without my eyes rolling to the back of my brain.
But I do love a good retelling, so I'm glad I sludged through the romance and got to the Trojan war. There it gets exciting and tragic. What is it with humans and tragedies anyway, why do we get such a kick out of them? I know how the story ends, but I still hold my breath watching the train wreck of events that get us there. They really do upset me. I find myself scolding the characters, oh if only you hadn't done that, if only you had acted a bit faster, if only.
(The musical Hadestown gives a nice explanation that sits with me:
'Cause here's the thing To know how it ends And still begin to sing it again As if it might turn out this time
As if it might turn out this time. But I digress.)
And of course, I adore Hector and hate Paris. I dislike Achilles, but I also find him very human. Which one of hasn't wished doom and destruction on our own friends when they've humiliated us? Oooh they'll regret ever... It's a childlike tantrum and it's completely realistic. I love it. I like Patroclus after he meets Briseis. Of course, I love Briseis, pining after a gay man, a very tragic character indeed. Girl, move on.
One last remark: After all that talk about Achilles' feet - his lovely feet rubbed with scented oils, his perfect toes, his soft pink soles, etc. etc. ugh groan- after all that I can't believe Madeline Miller kills Achilles not with an arrow to the heel, as the legend goes, but by an arrow to his back. Did she think it would be less realistic? I would have rolled with it. I suspended my disbelief for gods and centaurs after all. Why not an arrow to the heel? I think it would have been very poetic....more
I wanted to seize her by the shoulders. Whatever you do, I wanted to say, do not be too happy. It will bring down fire on your head.
Can I get an amen?
I wanted to seize her by the shoulders. Whatever you do, I wanted to say, do not be too happy. It will bring down fire on your head.
Can I get an amen?
Circe is a retelling of the Greek Goddess/witch's eventful life. It is also the story of a woman who believes that being too happy brings down fire on her head and spends lifetimes learning to let go of this belief.
I see her as the original Sansa Stark. Like Sansa and many others, Circe starts out by trying to please everyone. She is quiet, obedient, pleasant. She thinks she will be loved if she says and does the right things. Then, of course, she is let down massively, which is a really fun story in itself. I would be happy to tell it, if you let me spoil this Greek myth for you:
Our good girl Circe meets the mortal fisherman Glaucos. He's the first guy who notices her (note: she's a Goddess, even if she's a minor one) and is somewhat nice to her. Naturally, she falls for him. Now Glaucos is a bit of a loser, first of all he's mortal (yuck), second, he's dirt poor and his dad is bullying him all the time. Luckily, Circe is a super powerful witch (even though she's not aware of it yet) and somehow manages to turn him into a God.
This is where it gets interesting, because Glaucos totally pulls the wool over Circe's eyes. It doesn't matter that she loved him when he was a puny mortal. It definitely doesn't matter that she's always so nice to him. He's not into her, in fact, he's never been into her. Never ever.
So Circe does what a girl's gotta do - she turns Glaucos' beautiful lover into a massive sea monster and dramatically owns up to her crime - winning her an exile on Aiaia (which is coincidentally the name of my favorite veg burger at the local burger joint). There she has free reign to be vengeful and bitter and do all sorts of wicked witchery.
That old sickening feeling returned: that every moment of my life I had been a fool.
At this point, the book reads like a dream, a fantasy: to be a scorned and belittled woman only to find out that you are actually a witch and you can turn men into pigs. I, for one, was absolutely delighted that at least someone got to live out the dream - being a recluse hag, living in the woods, boiling poisons, keeping lions and wolves, terrorizing everyone. Ahhh.
Well. Eventually Circe learns to move past it. Some things are for the best.
We witness the many sides of Circe: naive Circe, enraged Circe, lonely Circe, vengeful Circe (I dig this one), powerful girlboss mamabear Circe. It's a solid journey, a coming of age which takes a long long time. What I liked most was, just when you think Circe knows everything, that she's achieved ultimate wisdom, she learns something new about human nature. She is either fooled again, or she realizes something about herself, or she gains new insight she didn't have before. Just when you think she's become the final version of herself, something throws her off. Isn't that just like life? ...more
I read this book because of Henry Cavill. So there. It's out and in the open now.
To elaborate: it's a different kind of joy to witness that level of cI read this book because of Henry Cavill. So there. It's out and in the open now.
To elaborate: it's a different kind of joy to witness that level of charisma on screen. Cavill's Witcher is a cool man of few words. He's charismatic and invincible. Of course, he's handsome. But now I have met Sapkowski's Witcher -and suprisingly I have more feelings for this one.
First of all, this Witcher is a bit more friendly, and a bit more pathetic. I feel so sorry for this Witcher, because the world rejects him and he is actually upset by this. We're also led to believe that he's a total freak - not at all the handsome charmer Cavill portrays (not holding him guilty for that though - how could he help it). More than a few times, his smile is described as "hideous", how sad is that?
And this Witcher is far from invincible, but the extent of his powers is uncertain. When he faces the striga it almost kills him. The bruxa almost gets him good too. And the sylvan totally knocks him out. But when he faces the seven followers of Renfri - plus Renfri herself - he literally butchers them. Hmm.
Aside from that the world building so far is quite enjoyable, the different professions, kingdoms, characters. I always enjoy a good fairytale retelling and this book has quite a few of those. There's even some thought provoking social commentary with elves.
This is the first line of J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. I have a long time fascination with this char**spoiler alert** “All children, except one, grow up.”
This is the first line of J.M. Barrie’s Peter Pan. I have a long time fascination with this character, so charming, shallow, whimsical, careless, cocky, afraid of change. But what would Jodi Lynn Anderson’s Pan be like? She adds a bit more clarity to the character. He acts overly confident, to hide how he is deeply insecure. He’s vain and thus constantly needs to be appreciated and reassured. It makes him less whimsical and charming, but it makes sense.
But here’s the one thing that bugs me: why Peter, shallow, vain falls for Tiger Lily in the first place. When they first meet, he even tells her, very matter-of-fact, “I think we could be good friends. It’s perfect because I wouldn’t fall in love with you, like i do with the mermaids. Girls always seem so exotic. But it would be okay with you, because you’re more like… you know. Not like a girl.” Not ever considering that might hurt her feelings. That’s typical, that’s Peter Pan. So I am confused how he goes from there to telling her he loves her so much. How very vulnerable and un-Peter Pan-like is that! But okay fine, this is Andersen’s Peter Pan. And this seems to be the thesis of this book: what if Peter Pan were to fall deeply in love with Tiger Lily, way before he ever meets Wendy Darling?
Apparently, this happens: Tiger Lily, being stoic and proud and tough never really lets Peter feel that his love is reciprocated. When Wendy shows up, pretty, clumsy, needing his protection, showering him with praises, Peter uses her to get over Tiger Lily. First love, heartbreak, betrayal. It’s a proper teenage drama, and it’s a goddamn tragedy. I still keep thinking about it all.
I mainly like this book because of Tiger Lily, who really is brave and tough and she also suffers for it. Her virtues are also her vices. Her tough exterior also means that she’s bad at showing she cares- and so she loses Peter. She’s very proud and doesn’t take shit from anyone, but this also means she’ll never plead for Peter to choose her. And in the end, because she never really says what she wants, she never gets it.
Tiger Lily does what Tiger Lily can't help doing, and she learns her lesson the hard way: If your boyfriend doubts your love for him and starts going around with people-pleasing girly-girl Wendy bird, rather than maybe confronting him about it, you try to kill them. But then you might end up losing the guy. But it’s good. It’s how it is.
Another reason I like this book is it also gives a nice example of healthy affection, by introducing Pine Sap. This scrawny twig loves Tiger Lily just as she is and doesn’t need her to be smaller for him. He doesn’t constantly doubt her love, or feel less like a man because she’s braver and stronger than him. I urge everyone to take inspiration from Pine Sap.
In the end I’m extremely frustrated because Wendy Darling got what she wanted and Tiger Lily didn’t, just because she didn’t ask for it. Isn’t that a nice life lesson?...more
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