The Song of Achilles: The 10th Anniversary edition of the Women's Prize-winning bestseller

by Madeline Miller

SHORTLISTED FOR THE ORANGE PRIZE FOR FICTION 2012

Greece in the age of Heroes. Patroclus, an awkward young prince, has been exiled to the kingdom of Phthia. Here he is nobody, just another unwanted boy living in the shadow of King Peleus and his golden son, Achilles.

Achilles, 'best of all the Greeks', is everything Patroclus is not - strong, beautiful, the child of a goddess - and by all rights their paths should never cross. Yet one day, Achilles takes the shamed prince under his wing and soon their tentative companionship gives way to a steadfast friendship. As they grow into young men skilled in the arts of war and medicine, their bond blossoms into something far deeper - despite the displeasure of Achilles's mother Thetis, a cruel and deathly pale sea goddess with a hatred of mortals.

Fate is never far from the heels of Achilles. When word comes that Helen of Sparta has been kidnapped, the men of Greece are called upon to lay siege to Troy in her name. Seduced by the promise of a glorious destiny, Achilles joins their cause, Torn between love and fear for his friend, Patroclus follows Achilles into war, little knowing that the years that follow will test everything they have learned, everything they hold dear. And that, before he is ready, he will be forced to surrender his friend to the hands of Fate.

Profoundly moving and breathtakingly original, this rendering of the epic Trojan War is a dazzling feat of the imagination, a devastating love story, and an almighty battle between gods and kings, peace and glory, immortal fame and the human heart.

• ISBN10: 1408826429
• ISBN13: 9781408826423
• Publish Date: 5 September 2011
• Publish Status: Out of Print
• Out of Print: 9 June 2012
• Publish Country: GB
• Imprint: Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
• Format: Hardcover
• Pages: 368
• Language: English

Reviews

[Stephanie]

Let me tell you a story.

I had a few pages left of this book. Boss comes over to ask what I am reading. I tell her. She asks me if it's good. I burst into tears.

...if that is any indication of how much I loved this book.

[bestmessever]

This book just like crushed my soul and then put it back together. Basically it's Aristotle and Dante mixed with the Iliad. It made cry and laugh and I just haven't been so emotionally invested in a book this severe in a while.

[jnikkir]

This review can also be found at my blog, There were books involved...

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**PLEASE NOTE** If you are not familiar with The Iliad and/or the Trojan War, this review may contain some (vague-ish, but I'm bad at judging these things, so maybe not-so-vague) spoilers. But considering that The Iliad was written nearly 3,000 years ago, I'm not putting spoiler-cuts anywhere. For what it's worth, though, knowing the basic story beforehand does not at all influence its impact and, in fact, might even enhance it. Just saying.

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I was originally not going to review this book. Ever. After finishing it, I was a mess. The ugly-crying was real, guys. It was full-on, shut-myself-in-my-room, ruined-for-the-rest-of-the-day real.

Um, I also just realized the main reason I'm writing this review is because I'm desperate to push this book on as many people as I can, so if you could just... go ahead and forget that previous paragraph... that would be awesome. Thanks. =S

Yeah, so, anyway... The Song of Achilles is sunshine and rainbows and happiness, and you should read it!!!

Most of that sentence is a lie. The truth? You should read it.

Another truth: If I hadn't heard such good things about The Song of Achilles from people I trust, I would have been hesitant to pick it up. A retelling of The Iliad? Ummmmm... First off, I did not have a good experience reading The Iliad in high school (ugh, the torture), so I wasn't exactly predisposed to be excited about reading a retelling of it. It sounds to me like it could be super dense... and probably not very fun to read. The story is not a terribly happy one, and the characters are these massively "heroic" figures (not, like, oh he's such a hero for doing that amazingly brave and selfless thing; they're Greek Heroes, capital H) whom I have a hard time imagining as real people -- or, at least, I had a hard time doing so, before I read this book.

If you're at all familiar with The Iliad and/or the Trojan War, you know what this book is about, and you probably know the main points of the story, including its ending. Yeah, The Song of Achilles is not made of happiness and rainbows -- but I feel like that's the reason it works so well. The story is told with incredible gravity, with an ever-present pull toward its tragic ending, and it is beautiful. The characters are massively heroic figures -- demigods and kings and generals -- but this book shows the human sides of them, which were impossible for me to imagine, before. The Song of Achilles takes a sweeping epic and focuses it on two characters in a way that I absolutely adored.

I will never think of Achilles and Patroclus the same way again. The Song of Achilles is their story, more than a retelling of The Iliad or the Trojan War. It's the story of their friendship, their romance, their growth into men who believed in each other, men who were flawed but supported each other, men who would die for each other.

And yes, as I've mentioned a couple times, the ending is soul-destroying. But you know what? It's also so incredibly uplifting. I don't know how Miller did it, but the conclusion of this book is a flawless blend of utter tragedy and complete, hopeful perfection.

If you are at all into Greek mythology/The Iliad or historical fiction (despite its mythological elements, it does almost read like historical fiction), if you like a good tragic romance, and/or if you just need a good cry, pick up this book. You will not be disappointed.


PS. I read this as an audiobook -- in fact, it was one of the first books I've read via audio that wasn't a re-read. I usually don't like to read a book this way, because I want my own imagination to do with the voices what it will. That said, I ended up listening to a sample of the audio on a whim, and was sold in about 15 seconds. The narrator is fantastic. So, if you're into audiobooks, I highly recommend it.

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There were books involved...

[vagasker]

I'm always a sucker for Greek mythology and this book didn't let me down. It was an amazing book!

[Amber]

I honestly wouldn't expect me to be very coherent in this review. It's been a couple of weeks since I finished The Song of Achilles, and I'm still having a breakdown over it. Thanks a lot, Tatum.

I both love and hate Tatum for sending me this. she knows how I love my mythology, and how Ancient History tends to ruin my life, and yet she still decided to go right ahead with recommending this one. And yep, my post-Spartacus life is officially ruined. I haven't read the epic poem (yet!) but this makes me even more desperate to check it out. Right. Now.

The Song of Achilles tells Achilles' life story through the eyes of Patroclus. Since I don't read book synopses for fear of spoilers, I wasn't expecting this, and was immediately intrigued by Miller's approach to the tale since this book is not told from the point of view of the classic hero. As the novel moves forward, it follows both Achilles and Patroclus from when they are children, right up until the very end.

Full review on Books of Amber