Circe

Madeline Miller doesn't miss! This was so different from The Song of Achilles, yet it still shares the same essential qualities of what makes a compelling novel. This story had a chokehold on me since the moment I first started reading it. Without giving any spoilers, this was the perfect book to transition me from the hot summer days to the hopefully soon to come autumn vibes. A new favorite, for sure.

PS: If you are going to read both, read Song of Achilles first. They're standalone, but they make many references to that story here. Unless you're already super well versed in Greek mythology, then it probably won't make a difference.

4,5!!

eu tamén kero levar unha vida trankila co meu amor navegando o mundo en familia e usando meigallos d cando en cando

Not the worst book I've read this year.
Not the best one. Having read Christa Wolf before, I guess I can't fall so easily for the novelty of this retelling.

I wanted to love this book so much. I tried and tried and almost DNFed it a few times because it was so boring. This book had a lot of hype and I went into it with high expectations. I love Circe (from the little I know about Greek mythology) but this book was completely different from her. This shows Circe as an ugly and weak person which she is not. And another thing that offends me a little is the way Madeline Miller writes women. In her books, there are only two types of women, either very cruel or completely harmless.

I really enjoyed the large scope of this book in terms of timespan! Circe's journey is so expansive and yet powerful and fascinating. Also !! Madeline Miller is an amazing writer frfr, there are so many passages in this book that are just poetry

More like 3.5/5

I started reading this a long, long time ago. But my paper copy of the book is large and stiff and uncomfortable to handle, and I paused.

Then I found the audiobook on Libby.

This really is very good, well-written and I found myself captivated by the character of Circe.

The feminist themes and prose are highlights of this retelling, but its strengths end there and those strengths honestly kind of clash. Perhaps a side effect of the audiobook narrator, but the characterization rings decently hollow for me and the pacing trends towards aimless. A dash of modernity just isn't enough and I just think that if you're going to retell a myth centuries old in today's day and age, it's got to add something more substantive from a modern lens beyond the feminist angle presented here.

A wonderful tale of an underrated goddess. I always enjoyed Circe in both the original Odyssey and Percy Jackson so having her story told and seeing it unfold was lovely to behold 

3.6! Awalnya ngira bakal suka nih ekspektasiku bakal oke konfliknya secara dia witch kan cuma perjalanan menuju ke konflik itu super duper lama bgt. Diaku ini jadinya slow pace bgt

The book opens up with Gods being awful, killing astrologers, bullying, paying attention to appearence. All the while when they are so powerful... so numb...

What if being immortal meant being disconnected from morality? Not facing the struggles that develop one's character?

Circe experiences withdrawal from the other Gods, her father, her siblings. There is so much about her that is human, which they do not appreciate, things she learns only while away from them. Circe is willing to struggle, fix her wrongs as the golden witch of the island, to create and leave something behind, even if it means facing the depths of the sea. The gods continue being the same... even after centuries. Sometimes Circe feels that she grows up more during eventful periods of her life than in eternity of her solitude.

Her fight starts with Prometheus refusing his godhood, subjecting himself to eternal punishment. Seeing him it inspires Circe. She finds freedom while punished, and then cannot help herself, but be punished even further, why not have a child? Fight Scylla, a monster the Gods were not concerned about? Why not transform herself into a human? She thrives on the punishment, and embraces it.

Having no punishment, living forever. Does that nurture you? Does that make you alive? Is seeing an everchanging landscape after hundreds of years comforting?

She has the power to transform people, but is healthy transformation possible if the recepients aren't ready for it? She spend so much time on deciding that she already knows how she will transform before she does it.

This book makes you think about authority figures, and whether being born with everything is a thing to be envied. Well the true “everything” would include non-toxic Gods, but that's not what I mean, there is an illiusion you can catch called “I have read all the books, experienced everything there is to exprience” while that's not possible for us, and even the gods we can imagine, we can't be flawless, no flaw creates the bad in us.

Maybe the beauty comes from exploring the world by yourself, shaping who you are supposed to be even if it's within a cage. There's struggles of parenthood, finding your own voice.

The language is beautiful just like in the author's other book “The Song of Achilles”. Circe really likes the opinion of poets in this book for some reason lol. She mentions them six times while Patroclus in the song of Achilles only mentioned them once. I wonder why because I don't get the impression that Circe read poems, alto she really should have! Where's the chapter of Circe being a bookworm?

I found a ton of Circe's disappointing childhood relatable. Raising Äeetes, the solitude, feeling like a monster. Her feeling inspired by the forest and nature, the feeling of peace after being seperated from the others.

I love this book so much, that I read the author's two short stories instantly after. Very excited about the book she is writing about Persephone!! When I am writing I will definetely be thinking of the way Madeline describes the scenary.

Thank you for writing this book.

Ah Madeline Miller, I love you.

An intriguing, enchanting novel rooted in Greek mythology with powerful feminist undertones. Centring around gods, witches, monsters, magic, solitude, motherhood, love, loss, and rivalry, Miller entirely transports you into her cleverly constructed world. I adored every second.

I didn't know quite what to expect when I started this book, but the narrator, Perdita Weeks, drew me into the unfolding story of a nymph who cannot find her place with her divine family. She breaks a rule, and the gods banish her to an island alone. There she must become everything for herself. The story is touching, at times violent, and ultimately heartwarming. Along the way we meet Hermes, Odysseus, Telemachus, and Penelope, as well as others. 

Weeks is a masterful narrator, bringing all the vulnerability and power to create complexity and depth in Circe. This is critical as we see the story through Circe's point of view. And what a point of view! She grew up the daughter of Helios, the sun God, whom she reverenced though he barely noticed her. It is only when she is banished that she learns who she is and what she can do. She is amazing, and I am grateful for the richness of Miller's imagination in creating her world for us to enjoy.

Niet helemaal mijn ding denk ik. Ik vond het boek erg mooi, maar niet wat ik had verwacht. Het ging voor mijn gevoel een beetje van hot naar her in het midden van het boek. Het begin was redelijk duidelijk, maar daarna ging het heen en weer. Ook het einde was voor mijn gevoel erg abrupt, dus dat vond ik wel jammer.
Wel heel mooi dat ze verwijzingen heeft naar “The Song Of Achilles”. Ik raadt je ook aan om die eerst te lezen, omdat je die verwijzingen dan juist erg leuk vind (was bij mij in iedergeval zo).
Schrijfstijl van Miller is nog steeds erg mooi en ze legt het verhaal heel goed uit. Zelfs als je niks van mythologie weet.

I'm not going to lie it felt like a struggle to get through the first half of the book as it was quite slow paced but I really enjoyed the second half and didn't want to put it down after.

I loved the The Song of Achilles and it made me so happy to read references of it made in this book. I have always appreciated and loved Greek mythology so that's an immediate plus for me.

You can't help but feel sorry for Circe. All she wanted was to love and be loved. She was such a strong character for me. The entire time reading this I was just hoping for her happy ending.

I think the most important thing to do before going into reading this book is to not compare it to The Song of Achilles because they are in no way similar.

I really enjoyed this.

“You have always been the worst of my children. Be sure you do not dishonor me.”“I have a better idea. I will do as I please, and when you count your children, leave me out.”

Very fun book, enjoyed a lot.

ах, какая книга! просто все сказки, что рассказываешь себе перед сном, чтобы забыть тяжелый день, в этой книге. и я когда то мечтала быть лесной колдуньей, и повелевать зверями (особенно кошками всех размеров). и любовь тут конечно тоже есть, куда уж без неё, ну ладно, пускай будет, в самом конце, как прощальная нота. наверно буду перечитывать в качестве антидепрессанта. но как же достали мужики, и боги, и особенно мужики боги.

If you want a book depression, read this one

Uno de los mejores libros que he leído este año. Historia cautivadora y que hace sentir viva a la historia de aquella ninfa. Me encantó.

update: i genuinely remember nothing that happened in this book?? i remember liking it but i also feel like it might've been recency bias talking

original rating: 5.0/5.0

Circe is such a unique character - she is a goddess who despises her immortality but makes use of it for the good of others (most of the time), as opposed to the other Greek gods. The writing style is awesome and I like the way Madeline Miller describes situations and scenes. Overall, although I disliked the fact that Circe goes on to marry Thelemacus (In my opinion a mother-son relationship would have fitted better.. With Circe always searching for a stable connection with someone and just losing her son and all that.. but it's the original story of Circe sooooo) the whole retelling was very well written and I'm impressed with the way the author makes me like characters which are always portrayed as heartless and cold in the original stories.

my first “pure” 5-stars in a while. What a great story. I mean yeah it's re-imagining Greek mythology but when you do it this movingly, deliciously and respectfully i don't even think about the original ones. Circe, as a book and also as the character, will stay with me. I was afraid it would not live up to The Song of Achilles (which i read like 8 years ago) but at this point in my life I believe Circe means more to me. So that's another home-run from Madeline Miller. The writing is as beautiful as i remember and for the first time in my life i wanted to tab a book! AND MAYBE I WILL!!! The power of Circe!

Idk this probably deserves 5 stars but it's hard to follow up TSOA

where do i begin... first time in a long time that a book's made me tear up. incredible book.

so so in love with the prose. my favourite thing about it is probably how madeleine writes about the relationships in the book (not just the romantic ones). the way characters & their relationships to circe are explored ... UGH!!!!!!

also greek myth weirdness aside i enjoyed circe/telemachus but i still wish it had been her and penelope instead