Reviews tagging 'Xenophobia'

Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller

27 reviews

rionstorm's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

4.75

Really loved this! Love a tragic romance, and thought the ending was satisfying if (obviously) sad.

The character development was really well done, felt gradual and natural.

It felt balanced how Patroclus almost rose to meet Achilles in his own way, becoming known for his talents and abilities, and Achilles at the end was almost knocked back a bit to meet Patroclus in his more substantial mortality. I particularly liked the line towards the end, after having Achilles portrayed as invulnerable and unbeatable for so long, when Paris begins to mention the myth of Achilles' heel and invincibility, and is cut off by Apollo reminding him that he is mortal and can be killed. Really grounds Achilles' character all of a sudden.

 

I read it after Circe, and I found the difference in how certain things (especially stuff relating to women, marriage, and assault) are talked about really interesting. This one was definitely a bit more difficult to read in that sense, as sexual assault in particular is talked about relatively flippantly.

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Abandonment, War, Slavery, Violence, Blood, Murder, and Grief

Moderate: Rape, Child abuse, and Suicidal thoughts

Minor: Homophobia, Xenophobia, Self harm, and Outing

uranaishi's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful mysterious reflective medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: War, Medical content, Pandemic/Epidemic, Violence, and Injury/Injury detail

Moderate: Emotional abuse, Self harm, Sexism, Sexual violence, Body shaming, Grief, Homophobia, Infidelity, Pregnancy, Racism, Slavery, Suicidal thoughts, Blood, Domestic abuse, Murder, Rape, Sexual content, Kidnapping, Death, Death of parent, Classism, Mental illness, Bullying, Outing, Physical abuse, Confinement, Misogyny, and Toxic relationship

Minor: Abandonment, Gaslighting, Pedophilia, Xenophobia, Gore, Sexual harassment, Animal death, Alcohol, Cannibalism, Child abuse, Fire/Fire injury, Sexual assault, and Child death

bg_oseman_fan's review against another edition

adventurous emotional sad tense fast-paced

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

5.0

Even knowing the story of Patroclus and Achilles in broad strokes, i was gripped by the incredible storytelling. The role of legacy and memory in the story was done exceptionally well. the roots of the story shone in a retelling with modern sensibilities intertwined with in. This work is an incredible achievement in writing and adapting a story that for many exists only as a footnote in the large story of the trojan war. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Medical content, Medical trauma, Self harm, Injury/Injury detail, War, Death, Blood, Gore, Murder, and Grief

Moderate: Genocide, Homophobia, Sexual content, Sexual harassment, Trafficking, Animal death, Child abuse, Classism, Misogyny, Pregnancy, Slavery, Child death, Emotional abuse, Infidelity, and Kidnapping

Minor: Abandonment, Rape, Cannibalism, Mental illness, Sexual violence, and Xenophobia

gabriella_'s review against another edition

adventurous dark hopeful sad tense medium-paced

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

4.5

“I thought, This is what Achilles will feel like when he is old. And then I remembered: he will never be old.”

I have never read a love story convey so much closeness. Even the physical gap between their bodies must have been too much distance for them to bear.

The prose reads like poetry. The story was incredibly satisfying and kept my interest. I got teary-eyed a few times. This is a story where two characters dare to love in a world where marrying for love is an outlier.

Odysseus was the only other person who was truly in love in this book?

I am at a loss for words for how beautiful this story was. It has renewed my interest in Greek Mythos, which is a tough task.

“Patroclus, I have given enough to them. I will not give them this.”

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Sexism, Alcohol, Animal death, Pregnancy, Murder, Child death, Medical content, Torture, Xenophobia, Sexual content, Body horror, Bullying, Child abuse, Cursing, Abandonment, Animal cruelty, Misogyny, Self harm, Sexual assault, Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Kidnapping, Sexual harassment, Slavery, Death, Grief, Rape, Suicidal thoughts, War, Blood, Sexual violence, Physical abuse, Outing, and Violence

kt2e56's review against another edition

adventurous challenging emotional reflective sad fast-paced

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

4.5

Beautifully written. There is no doubt about Madeline Miller’s skills as a writer. I actually think from a technical standpoint, she’s one of the most gifted writers we currently have. She has just such a way with words and even as someone fairly well-versed in Greek mythology who knows how this all ends, I was hooked as if this was a cast of characters I’d never heard of before.

I read Circe first and I found it to be much, much more relatable due to my own personal history and experiences but this book was just as spectacular. I love that this was all told from the point of view of Patroclus. He’s compelling and it’s lovely to see his own story fleshed out. His love for Achilles is touching but I think Achilles eventually becomes so unlikeable that it’s hard to see what Patroclus still sees in him and why he still so readily would give up everything for him.

And Achilles himself is seen as complex here! Which is fine! Complex is good and I’m glad that he wasn’t always the attentive, loving, nurturing boy that Patroclus fell for and believed in. I think the story of Achilles here (and eventually Pyrrhus although he’s a much more extreme example) is a fascinating look at masculinity. Achilles is beautiful and sensitive and kind. He loves music and pretty things and nature. We see this throughout. But it isn’t until he starts demanding the treatment he believes he deserves and stamping out all that’s beautiful and tender about him that he could be seen as great and powerful by the world around him. He believes he’s entitled to greatness and he reaches a point where he really buys into his own hype and doesn’t care who he’s harmed as long as he gets what he believes he deserves as this pinnacle of masculinity, the best of the best. He can only become a hero by embracing cruelty and he’d rather be a hero and be remembered by everyone than remembered only by his love, Patroclus: the only person who ever really knew him at all.

I’ll be thinking about this book for awhile. It’s hard not to. It’s so rich and textured. I’m giving this a 4.5 instead a 5, only because I started to grow a bit numb from reading cruelty after cruelty and atrocity after atrocity but I can absolutely recognize that that has nothing to do with Miller’s skill as a writer, and has everything to do with my own personal preferences. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Child death, Murder, Sexual assault, Death, Kidnapping, Gun violence, Misogyny, Injury/Injury detail, War, Violence, Rape, Blood, Genocide, Gore, Grief, Self harm, Sexual violence, Slavery, and Toxic relationship

Moderate: Outing, Animal death, Homophobia, Xenophobia, Suicidal thoughts, and Trafficking

kate_lemer's review against another edition

medium-paced

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

2.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Domestic abuse, Misogyny, Rape, and Xenophobia

The tears did not come. It could be because the ending is obvious, it is an almost exact copy of the Illiad after all. Or it could be that disregarding the first few pages, this book failed to rouse any other emotion but disgust. It's false marketing, in a way. In the beginning, the plot sucks you in, despite the fact you know how it will end. A Greek tragedy is quite predictable in that way, unfortunately. Any joy I had from spotting the famous quotes is swiftly ruined. I detested Patroclus' defeatest approach towards almost anything in his life (if there appeared to be a sliver of non-defeatism, it was apparently gods' will). I suppose we are supposed to read it as being a product of his environment - his father had literally beaten him down until there was not a sliver of self-respect left within his body. He will not try. He explicitely refuses to do so.

There is this scene where he and Achilles are in the mountains and Chiron asks him whether he would like to become better at his fighting skills. It's not a lost cause, he says. However, one look at ‘perfect’ Achilles and he gives up, there’s no need he says. Is he afraid of being abandoned by Achilles were he to improve? How can such a person pass as Achilles in the Trojan war? That is the whole point of him! (It is not, but at this point, it's my utter frustration with this drivel of a book speaking) The whole thing at Scyros comes out of nowhere. He makes a complete 180 from his character before, doesn’t really fit. Without absolutely no character development, where does this assertive person comes from? Another absolutely senseless character trait of Patroclus: if he loves Achilles so much, and is convinced of the duplicity of others, why does he never make a move to protect him from this duplicity? Odysseus and Thetis come to mind, but there are many other cases when it was done by others... Not even a mid-way through the book, the adoration of Achilles does get a bit too much and I did start to hope for it to end. Please end! Because apart from a bit of Illiad recap, there's not much of a plot to speak of. Maybe I've let myself be influenced by the reviews I read, but in a way, by pointing out the fallacies, you begin to notice them. Then again, I took a break from reading the book about a third through, and that may have put a damper on my enthusiasm a bit. You stop reading the book through pink lenses and see it a bit more objectively, or as much as a subjective reader can get objective. Some parts seem as if standing on their own in the text - shining beacons masquerading as quotes. But surrounded by tar. None of the characters in this book are symphathetic in any way. Though on the bright side, sometimes it’s so cute it makes me smile. One sentence review: Achilles and his glossy hair is a device of Patroclus' weepy martyrdom.

bloodishdaisy's review against another edition

adventurous emotional hopeful inspiring reflective tense fast-paced

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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Moderate: Xenophobia, Death, War, and Violence

Minor: Blood

chlorai's review against another edition

adventurous challenging dark emotional inspiring reflective sad tense slow-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

5.0

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Violence, Slavery, Sexual violence, War, Death, Xenophobia, Child death, Blood, Genocide, and Kidnapping

Moderate: Abandonment, Rape, and Misogyny

Minor: Homophobia

elysedc's review against another edition

adventurous emotional medium-paced

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

4.25

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Homophobia, Death, Medical content, War, Gore, Grief, Blood, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, and Violence

Moderate: Blood, Abandonment, Gore, Sexual content, Homophobia, Murder, Grief, Violence, and War

Minor: Bullying, Medical content, Medical trauma, Murder, Xenophobia, War, Injury/Injury detail, Misogyny, Sexual content, Slavery, Adult/minor relationship, Gore, Grief, Homophobia, Rape, and Violence

feliz_in_a_bucket's review against another edition

adventurous emotional fast-paced

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

3.5

The book certainly shines in it's character descriptions and emotional scenes. Although the story is adapted for a modern audience, the descriptions of the very young characters in the beginning of the book were quiet off-putting. 

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Content Warnings

Graphic: Blood, Abandonment, Sexual violence, Animal death, Violence, Child abuse, Death, Emotional abuse, Grief, and War

Moderate: Homophobia, Injury/Injury detail, Murder, Rape, Slavery, and Vomit

Minor: Xenophobia and Sexism