Ithaca: The exquisite, gripping tale that breathes life into ancient myth (The Songs of Penelope)

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And despite the unpleasant business with Cyclops and sirens, Odysseus also gets a seven-year-long island sex vacation with Calypso and then another slightly shorter one with Circe. Claire North's writing is so distinctive: stately, unflinching, giving equal weight to beauty and brutality.

I didn't realize at the outset that it wasn't a standalone (though I think it could be, especially if you don't care what happens to Telemachus - what a whiny brat! If you’re looking for a tale with an array of different representation of strong females, this is the one.Ithaca is mostly retelling what was happening in the background of The Odyssey, but it also references The Iliad quite often, as that covers why Odysseus left Ithaca in the first place. But the point of view used to narrate the story is all over the place: it opens in third person universal POV, and it doesn't stay but changes all the time, so one time it becomes first person, then second person tense, then third person limited, then. Ithaca is an interesting addition to the wave of retellings and companion stories of classic tales from Greek mythology. A clever, funny, moving retelling of the Odyssey myth—centering not on Odysseus but on Penelope, whose endless clever schemes to keep her kingdom afloat and her suitors at bay are narrated by the goddess Hera, a proud, sniffy, and flat-out hilarious goddess with a soft spot in her spiky immortal heart for scheming queens. Seventeen years ago, King Odysseus sailed to war with Troy, taking with him every man of fighting age from the isle of Ithaca.

Pirates have been raiding her villages, Illyrians, she’s meant to believe, but privately she’s not convinced. But housed within that addictive pacing was deep and moving commentary on the lack of autonomy given to Grecian women and how cruelly they were often treated. Sometimes, I wonder if the author is biased towards Clytemnestra and Helen for subversion of narratives, to go counter to the usual portrayals of these two, than in doing Penelope justice. Die Perspektive ist gut, zumal das Buch as der Perspektive von Hera erzählt wird; wir haben also tatsächlich eine interessante, neue Perspektive.In Ithaca, her story comes to life, and we see the brutality, heartache, determination, and strength of a Queen. From the multi-award-winning author Claire North comes a daring reimagining that breathes life into ancient myth and gives voice to the women who stand defiant in a world ruled by ruthless men. I’ve always disliked Hera, but in the past year or so I’ve read multiple books that showcased facets of her I had never considered. There’s a lot that can be done - the Odyssey picks - and North covers a lot of ground, but perhaps too much. I loved everything about Ithaca, except for the fact that it’s not the standalone I was for some reason expecting it to be.

The writing and tone tip back and forth, but for me at least, it didn’t provide a more friendly connection to Hera which I think was what was intended, to render her accessible to the mortals in the story and those reading her tale. I received an advance copy of this novel from the publisher, Redhook via Orbit Books, in exchange for an honest review. Hera, being a god, can not only tell us what's going on in Ithaca and in her surroundings, but what is happening to Odysseus at the same time (she wryly gives us updates, most of which center on her sarcastic descriptions of him being so tortured about being sexily held prisoner on Ogygia with Calypso). It is told by the goddess Hera, who feels largely forgotten by the poets in the shadow of her husband Zeus, and step daughters, Athena and Artemis. Why does she want Odysseus back, is it because of her love for him or loyalty or maybe only greed to rules like men, like Clytemnestra, her cousin?

She naturally has a certain amount of sympathy for Penelope, as much as a greek god might spare for a mortal. There are moments when she is scathing in her critique of men and disdain for the ancient poets, and moments where she is softer in the fondness she feels for her queens. It was impossible to connect to any of the characters, which led to a lack of connection to the book as a whole, majorly detracting from my enjoyment of it. In this story, it’s more a deep love of her land and her people, her son, and preserving the life she has carved out for herself. Thankfully, Penelope is incredibly clever, and she maintains this balance deftly and with astounding subtlety.

We don’t share your credit card details with third-party sellers, and we don’t sell your information to others.Because of the POV style, not because of the prose; the prose is fine, North has some beautifully crafted passages. And hearing from Hera how much of herself she saw in these queens, how she had experienced the same, really drove home the fact that height of station did nothing to spare these women. Penelope, despite her son’s fault, despite his reluctance to treat his mother with any ounce of the respect she deserves, loves him nonetheless, which makes their relationship so heartbreaking.