“He is half my
soul, as the poets say”
A New York Times Bestseller and winner of 2012
Orange Prize for Fiction; the debuting novel of Madeline Miller is a warm and
tender retelling of Homer’s Iliad filled with a punch of passion, romance,
ambition, death and a good dose of drama. Set on the brink of a war that in
future will be seen as the biggest event in the Greek mythology, The Song of
Achilles is Miller's way of portraying a love so true that amidst all chaos is
capable of transcending the soul.
The book is from the perspective of a not
so notable character in the Greek mythology, Patroclus; the gentle, brave and empathetic lover, an
exiled prince who was banished from his kingdom, how he finds solace in his
love for Achilles, a demi-god who fits the mold of a legendary ancient Greek
hero, characterized and remembered by his pride, rage and invulnerability.
The plot mainly rotates around the two contrasting heroes who become inseparable as the story progresses towards the Trojan War and the involvement of various other gods and demigods who directly or indirectly affect the course of not just our lead but of the other sub characters too. The main build-up of the story comes from Thetis (Achilles mother, goddess of water) pushing her son to pursue his fate, who was prophesied to either achieve great battles, glory and die young or live an old unremarkable life in shadows. Achilles chose the former and decides to battle in the Trojan war with Patroclus by his side.
“I could recognize
him by touch alone, by smell; I would know him blind, by the way his breaths
came and his feet struck the earth. I would know him in death, at the end of
the world.”
Our thoughts on the
book and would we recommend it?
With The Song of
Achilles Miller did steal a lot of hearts but she wasn’t untouched by critics
who may have judged the novel too harshly on the limits of a genre. They argued
that Achilles, who was a solitary perpetrator of genocide was centrally themed
to a romance fiction, however therein lies the beauty of it. Others didn’t
quite like the idea of portraying Patroclus and Achilles as lover, as the
history claims them to be companion or friends. Well, Miller doesn't confine
herself solely to the scope of the Iliad, she reads between the lines and
crafts the splendid lifelike stories of her characters that beautifully blurs
the realms of human and the myth.
She enriches the ambiguities of the Iliad and expresses it through a contemporary lens. She avoids explicitly categorizing "homosexual" in the narrative and yet makes it one of the most intimate and passionate romances of the two legendary heroes.
“That is — your friend?"
"Philtatos," Achilles replied, sharply. Most beloved.”
Also recommended to the LGBTQ+ communities as the novel beautifully describes a mature relationship between the legendary heroes who dominated one of the longest and finest battles of the Greek mythology.
Final Thoughts
The Song of Achilles is a very wholesome read, an emotional roller-coaster that takes you to the heights of pure admiration and pushes you down the depths of agonizing separation. The book might just become a gateway for you to explore a whole new realm of mythological retellings like Circe again by Miller or Ariadne by Jennifer Saint.
PS: What a normal
conversation in Patrochilles universe looks like:
"Name one hero who was happy."
"You can't."
"I
can't."
"I know. They never let you be famous and happy."
He lifted an eyebrow.
"I'll tell you a secret."
"Tell me." I loved it when he was like this.
"I'm
going to be the first." He
took my palm and held it to his. "Swear it."
"Why me?"
"Because you're the reason. Swear it."
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