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smepsmorp's review against another edition
4.0
I kept this on my bedside table and read a few chapters/myths whenever I felt like it which was nice:)
My all time favorite myth is about hyacinthus and Apollo and I loved reading it! It’s the main reason I got the book:)
Also in Orpheus and Eurydice there’s a part that goes “and now, as she died for the second time, she never complained that her husband had failed her - what could she complain of, except that he’d loved her?”
I though that’s as really pretty:)
I underlined a lot of parts but that’s one of my favorite:)
My all time favorite myth is about hyacinthus and Apollo and I loved reading it! It’s the main reason I got the book:)
Also in Orpheus and Eurydice there’s a part that goes “and now, as she died for the second time, she never complained that her husband had failed her - what could she complain of, except that he’d loved her?”
I though that’s as really pretty:)
I underlined a lot of parts but that’s one of my favorite:)
creamyforestmushroom's review against another edition
3.0
A nice book to read in order to learn about mythology and the founding of Rome. I personally didn't know much about Italian mythology so I learned quite a bit. I also learned some really interesting things through the notes added. Therefore, overall, a good book.
bookshelfmonkey's review against another edition
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75
As a text by itself, this is definitely a good read. It's one of the more accessible and interesting classics and I really enjoyed the way all the myths flowed into each other.
What really made this book for me, though, was that it changed how I saw myself as a trans person. In the UK, at the moment, it's hard to exist as a trans person without seeing someone referring to the choices I've made as mutilation and otherwise making transitioning and trans people out to be monstrous. Weirdly, this collection of ancient myths helped me both fully understand that people like me have always existed and always will exist and helped me see my transition as something much more beautiful.
What really made this book for me, though, was that it changed how I saw myself as a trans person. In the UK, at the moment, it's hard to exist as a trans person without seeing someone referring to the choices I've made as mutilation and otherwise making transitioning and trans people out to be monstrous. Weirdly, this collection of ancient myths helped me both fully understand that people like me have always existed and always will exist and helped me see my transition as something much more beautiful.
theladyhollyw's review against another edition
adventurous
challenging
dark
emotional
informative
inspiring
reflective
slow-paced
4.0
amandapgold's review against another edition
adventurous
dark
funny
slow-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? It's complicated
3.75
franchenstein's review against another edition
challenging
dark
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Plot
- Strong character development? Yes
- Loveable characters? No
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? Yes
It might sound cliche, but this anthology of Greco-Roman myths have a singular main character (who is very plural): Difference. Difference is manifest as all the desires - between what one has and what one wishes to have. All the gods and mortals lusting uncontrollably. Difference of power - gods can exert their desires over those lesser than them and nobody can stop them. Difference is manifest as change, as all the transformations that turn tragedies into legends. Difference becomes apparent through repetition. This is a very repetitive text. Most legends follow a certain pattern of someone desiring something, and as a consequence of that desire they are transformed into a different sort of being. Their becoming-animal is made actual by divine powers. It's a book of horror, as unbound desire and power means overpowering and assault and rape. At the same time it piously reveres the gods' powers, it also relates each instance in which they act as uncontrollably as the animals their victims become. The one who makes that apparent, Arachne, is punished for her talent.
This epic of difference is subversive to power, and yet it tries to amend its criticisms by praising the Emperor. Had it finished with the ominous praise to Rome that Pythagoras gives - preceded by instances of previous empires that fell - it would have fulfilled magnificently its subversive role. That last attempt of still praising the Emperor, deifying him, could taint this work. But a deified Caesar or Augustus is put in the same level as the bestial uncontrollable gods. Was that real praise?
This epic of difference is subversive to power, and yet it tries to amend its criticisms by praising the Emperor. Had it finished with the ominous praise to Rome that Pythagoras gives - preceded by instances of previous empires that fell - it would have fulfilled magnificently its subversive role. That last attempt of still praising the Emperor, deifying him, could taint this work. But a deified Caesar or Augustus is put in the same level as the bestial uncontrollable gods. Was that real praise?
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape and Violence
butterfly2507's review against another edition
3.0
ENDLICH bin ich damit fertig :D Hat ja auch nur zwei Wochen gedauert :D
Aber was für ein Buch! So viele Stories, so viel Interessantes, so viel GUTES einfach :D Kann ich jedem empfehlen der sich für Griechische Mythologie interessiert :)
Aber was für ein Buch! So viele Stories, so viel Interessantes, so viel GUTES einfach :D Kann ich jedem empfehlen der sich für Griechische Mythologie interessiert :)
beanformation's review against another edition
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? A mix
- Strong character development? It's complicated
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? Yes
- Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated
4.75