Review by moonytoast - Divine Might: Goddesses in Greek Myth

A review by moonytoast
Divine Might: Goddesses in Greek Myth by Natalie Haynes

funny informative medium-paced

4.25

Thank you to Netgalley and HarperCollins Publishers for providing me with a digital ARC of this book!

In a time where retellings and reimaginings of Greek mythology are at the height of their cultural relevance—see the current adaptation of Percy Jackson & the Olympians and the continued success of Hadestown on Broadway—Natalie Haynes never fails to breathe some fresh air and new ideas into the public conversation around these myths. This is true of her previous works and of Divine Might, which delves into the goddesses at the heart of many Greek myths... and some who, despite their lack of narrative importance in such stories as the Titanomachy, still held an almost omnipresent space in ancient Greek culture.

Haynes does not just focus on the past importance of these goddesses to ancient Greeks and Romans, though she does excellently examine their roles throughout various poems and epics and their role in the lives of ancient Greeks. She also looks at the way the modern world and media landscape continues engage with these myths and divine figures, our current ideas and values shaping our own perceptions of these goddesses and their stories. (The chapter about Artemis features a brief but delighted mention about the character of Katniss Everdeen.)

The standout chapters for me are on Hestia, Demeter, and Athene, with an honorable mention of The Furies, but every chapter is well written and infused with Haynes' pension for dry humor, candor, and nuanced love for these myths. I always come out of Haynes' works with new eyes for the iconic stories from Greek mythology.

Content Warnings

A review by moonytoast Divine Might: Goddesses in Greek Myth by Natalie Haynes

A review by moonytoast
Divine Might: Goddesses in Greek Myth by Natalie Haynes