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xaliongal's review against another edition
challenging
emotional
reflective
sad
slow-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? N/A
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
anastasiarozova's review against another edition
3.0
*Read for class.
I loved Cassandra. And I don't mean the book, I mean the character. I adore books that are about women from Ancient Greece, or Troy in this case. Don't get me wrong, the book was good itself, but it wasn't anything groundbreaking for me. Maybe it was once, when it was written.
So, Cassandra. She stayed true to herself. She loved Aeneas, but even though he called her with him to leave, she never did. She was a true Trojan till the very end. She cared about her people like men never can. She loved her people, she tried to save their lives instead of their pride and so-called honor. That is why she was so different from men of war. That is why she was proud to be a woman.
In addition to that, it is a feminist novel, actually, this is one of the main themes in Wolf's work. So it was very interesting to read about powerful women of that time period. Glad we read this one for class.
I loved Cassandra. And I don't mean the book, I mean the character. I adore books that are about women from Ancient Greece, or Troy in this case. Don't get me wrong, the book was good itself, but it wasn't anything groundbreaking for me. Maybe it was once, when it was written.
So, Cassandra. She stayed true to herself. She loved Aeneas, but even though he called her with him to leave, she never did. She was a true Trojan till the very end. She cared about her people like men never can. She loved her people, she tried to save their lives instead of their pride and so-called honor. That is why she was so different from men of war. That is why she was proud to be a woman.
In addition to that, it is a feminist novel, actually, this is one of the main themes in Wolf's work. So it was very interesting to read about powerful women of that time period. Glad we read this one for class.
kygpub's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
reflective
sad
medium-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
5.0
Dear one. You did not say that it would not happen to you. Or that I could protect you from it. You knew as well as I did that we have no chance against a time that needs heroes. You threw the snake ring into the sea. You would have to go far, far away, and you would not know what lies ahead.
I am staying behind.
o haunting, aching, bleeding heart of troy which lives on the very edges of its city walls. which cannot stop the process of decay, taking root and festering in the empty ribcage of the citadel. which savours the time, knowing it will inevitably run out. which cannot survive in a time that needs heroes, but still strives for even the smallest impact in the aftermath.
this is a book that truly understands its characters, that knows how to take a epic-tragic figure of myth and make her real, fallible, sympathetic in all her suffering and despite her mistakes—and believe me, she makes mistakes. that doesn't stop me from wanting to beat 90% of the men over the head with bricks, which is really the least they deserve. christa wolf is such a masterful writer. will get to the four accompanying essays and the rest of her work in due course (aka: when i finally, somehow, finish processing this book).
Content Warnings
Graphic: Death, Mental illness, Misogyny, Blood, Grief, Murder, and War
Moderate: Rape, Sexual assault, Sexual violence, Slavery, Suicide, and Suicide attempt
Minor: Abortion and Pregnancy
coco_lolo's review against another edition
4.0
The novel itself was quite unlike any Greek adaptation I've read. Wolf weaves between past and present with such grace that, though the style Cassandra is presented in initially came across as overwhelming, I soon found myself reading large sections with little awareness of the time passing. I was also intrigued by the way she focuses so much on pre-Greek religions that center around female influences, and how she crafted personas for characters like Priam and Aeneas. The essays themselves were mostly tedious to me, so I'd say you can take them or leave them.
ilegnealle's review against another edition
challenging
dark
emotional
sad
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? N/A
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? It's complicated
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
5.0
lichtgeist07's review
adventurous
dark
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
3.0
mmreads93's review against another edition
inspiring
reflective
sad
fast-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
4.5
manmehakkaur's review against another edition
4.0
The novel was simply sublime. I enjoyed the essays as well, though at times I had struggle following their line of reasoning and connection to the Cassandra figure. But ultimately, Christa Woolf has become one of my favourite fictional voices, on par with the likes of Marguerite Yourcenar, that bring to live with such delicacy and fierceness remote figures of antiquity, and manage to imbue them with a distinct texture of their own.