A Thousand Ships

The Trojan War is the subject of many epics, stories, books, songs, movies, and its heroes are widely known. Odysseus, Achilles, Hector, and what they're all called. But who knows about the story of Briseis, captured during raids around Troy? Of Clytemnestra, who never forgave her husband for sacrificing their eldest daughter? Of Oenone, the first wife of Paris? Natalie Haynes has made it her mission to tell the stories of the women surrounding the Trojan War. The stories of those who were abandoned and left at home, the stories of those who died, and the stories of the women who faced a fate harsher than death. In doing so, she draws on the few mythological sources available and so, of course, tells the stories of the men – most notably Agamemnon, Achilles, Paris, and Odysseus – as well. Since I have devoured Madeline Miller's books and very much (!) appreciate, no, love them, this book of course also captivated me. The fact that here the story is told by different women does not detract from the narrative. Unfortunately, a few of the chapters degenerate into mere reproductions of the stories we already know. Here, the woman is not really in the center but serves purely as a mouthpiece. However, these chapters are the exception, and no reason to deduct any stars from my rating. In most cases, new light is shed on characters already known or just mentioned in passing. Very refreshing and encouraging. Haynes has definitely succeeded in her task of showing that women in the war were at least as great heroes as Achilles and company.

Dieses Buch hat mich vollkommen in seinen Bann gezogen. Als Nacherzählung des weltbekannten Ilias-Epos liegt der Fokus ganz bewusst auf den Schicksalen der vielen Frauen, die hier endlich die Stimmen bekommen, die sie schon immer verdient haben. Moderiert von der Muse der Dichtkunst kommt hier jede zu Wort, göttlich wie sterblich, ob Athene oder Helena und zieht den Leser in den Bann dieser erstaunlichen, tragischen Heldinnen. Ein Muss für jeden Mythenliebhaber!