Reviews with content warning for Murder - The Penelopiad

I had to read this as a high school freshman right after my English class finished The Odyssey, and I really loved it then. It has a very second wave feminist approach to Penelope's story and Odysseus's brutal slaughter of her twelve maids, alongside all Penelope's suitors, and it made me realize how much of an aside, an afterthought, the maids were treated as in The Odyssey itself, as well as all the ethical and gendered issues present in classical mythology. I was at an age where I felt like I was constantly given conflicting advice about girlhood then punished no matter what advice I took, and so the main framing of the story hit home. But looking back now, it's... very second wave. In a cliche and kind of predictable way. And I wish we'd gotten more perspectives from the maids themselves, not only their generalized and preachy choruses and Penelope's external, often patronizing take on them. And there's so much crap Margaret Atwood keeps doing that I really only revisited this to see what I think now, and I don't plan to read any more Margaret Atwood after this.

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sophiagl's review against another edition

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dark emotional funny reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.75

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medbh's review

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challenging emotional inspiring reflective medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? No

4.0

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akira_outofthegravity's review

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emotional funny informative sad fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? Yes
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

3.75

A retelling of the Iliad from Penelope’s view. What starts as a very interesting and insightful view into life of such a unique character unfortunately comes to a halt once the story of the Iliad takes place. It starts out very promising, but slowly becomes Penelope’s maid’s story. Which is fine I guess, but it becomes a jumble of things and comes to an unsatisfying end. Shame, because the first half/first two thirds are really impactful.

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rinherondale's review against another edition

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reflective slow-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? No
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

3.0

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readerette's review against another edition

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emotional funny reflective sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? Character
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? No
Diverse cast of characters? No
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I found some of the literary devices confusing, like mixing in the maids singing and performing. However, the whole concept is quite creative and compelling, and I love stories that take the viewpoints of supporting characters. It reminds me of Madeline Miller's works (Circe, Song of Achilles), but more abstract, and perhaps darker. It also leaves holes, still, in the story of Penelope and Odysseus--this is not a book of answers, but one of questioning what is "known", of offering another way of thinking about Odysseus and Penelope and her maids, or maybe even more than one way. I was never quite certain I was getting the whole truth from Penelope, or if she as a character knew the whole truth, herself. It made it difficult to put the book down!

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sofipitch's review against another edition

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reflective fast-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? N/A
Loveable characters? It's complicated
Diverse cast of characters? N/A
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

I'd been looking forward to reading this book for so long I was disappointed by how short it was, I read it in a day, practically one sitting. I expected the epic that Song of Achilles or Helen of Troy had been and was let down. Especially considering how hard it was to actually get a copy of this book at a reasonable price. Otherwise I enjoyed it. I liked the choice to focus on the maids and their murder. I also like that the story doesn't stick only to one version of Penelope, the maids tell the story not of the faithful wife but of the cheating one. Which considering her cleverness and lying in the Odyssey would not be surprising. I think I might have enjoyed that character more. I also dislike the way Helen was portrayed, I think if you can see the feminist retelling that the maids were raped and used by the men it's easy to see how the same could be said of Helen.

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kirkspockreads's review against another edition

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dark sad medium-paced

Plot- or character-driven? A mix
Strong character development? It's complicated
Loveable characters? Yes
Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes

4.5

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