Margaret Atwood has a writing style that I admire and love. I had already read “the handmaid’s tale” and “alias Grace” by her, so when I found her book “Penelope”, a book about Greek mythology, in the library, I had to read it.
For those of you who don’t me, I am a lover of Greek and Roman mythology. I am even going to study Latin at university next month, so it can’t be a huge surprise that I loved this book.
Margaret Atwood has some typical elements that I noticed in the few books I read; and one of those is how she portrays men. Men always seem to think women are simpleminded or beneath them. And most of the time you hate the men in Atwood’s books. Here no difference.
“Penelope” tells the story of Penelope, the wife of Odyssey. In Greek mythology, we never get to hear her whole story. As usual the Greeks, and the Romans, suck in giving a voice to female heroines or villains. Their feelings and the things that drove them are a mystery to us.
So, when modern retellings say “I think this is how this female character felt”, I can’t help but sheer them on for giving these characters a voice. Even, when they make the Greek hero look like an asshole. Excuse me for my language, but that is exactly how I feel about Odyssey right now.
To not say to much, I will stop here. I recommend this book to lovers of mythology and lovers of Atwood. A bit of knowledge about the myth is however needed.
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