When I think about The Song of Achilles, the only word that comes in my mind is “masterpiece”.
Madeline Miller recounts the story of the greatest Greek hero, Achilles, from The Iliad by Homer. Miller’s depicts the story of Achilles through the eyes of Patroclus, his best friend. The relationship between the two characters has always been ambiguous, and there had been a lot of debates for centuries on whether Achilles and Patroclus were only friends, or something more.
Miller chose her side. For her, Achilles and Patroclus were soulmates. In The Song of Achilles, Patroclus has a backstory, and the reader follows this character while he experiences failures, friendships, romances etc. The novel shows the mortal side of Achilles: he has flaws, just like any human being. Their relationship is complex, but they have deep feelings for one another.
Most people know the story of Trojan War, either because people have read The Iliad, because they have seen the movie Troy, or just because it is a famous story. Miller’s The Song of Achilles is basically a retelling of the story, but with a different point of view, and with a lighter writing. You don’t have to be a huge fan of Greek mythology to appreciate the novel; you don’t even need to know about the story of The Iliad.
The novel mainly shows the cruelty of men, and how it can impact the life of other people.
I’ve heard about the novel a few years ago. I followed lots of Greek mythology’s fans on Twitter, and I remember someone who tweeted that she didn’t sleep, one night, just because she couldn’t put the book down: it was THE novel. It intrigued me, and I’ve bought the book immediately. But as usual, I didn’t read it right away. I don’t know why. I finally decided to read it in September 2019. And WOW. I knew the end, but I didn’t know it would affect me that much.
“But then I see the tomb, and the marks she has made on the stone. ACHILLES, it reads. And beside it, PATROCLUS […] In the darkness, two shadows, reaching through the hopeless, heavy dusk. Their hands meet, and light spills in a flood like a hundred golden urns pouring out of the sun.”
I have no cinematic adaptation to compare the book with. But how did I despise the movie Troy. The only good thing that I remember from was the hotness of Brad Pitt as Achilles. I am really picky in terms of cinematic adaptations of Greek mythology, but I would really like to see a cinematic adaptation of The Song of Achilles.
Thank you for taking your time to read my review, and I hope you liked it.
With love,
NANCEY Sophia.
L'engagement des mots 