Published By: Picador
Pages: 304
Released On: 28/09/2023
We meet Athene, who sprang fully formed from her father’s head: goddess of war and wisdom, guardian of Athens. We run with Artemis, goddess of hunting and protector of young girls (apart from those she decides she wants as a sacrifice). Here is Aphrodite, goddess of sex and desire – there is no deity more determined and able to make you miserable if you annoy her. And then there’s the queen of all the Olympian gods: Hera, Zeus’s long-suffering wife, whose jealousy of his dalliances with mortals, nymphs and goddesses lead her to wreak elaborate, vicious revenge on those who have wronged her.
We also meet Demeter, goddess of agriculture and mother of the kidnapped Persephone, we sing the immortal song of the Muses and we warm ourselves with Hestia, goddess of the hearth and sacrificial fire. The Furies carry flames of another kind – black fires of vengeance for those who incur their wrath.
These goddesses are as mighty, revered and destructive as their male counterparts. Isn’t it time we looked beyond the columns of a ruined temple to the awesome power within?
*****
Thanks to NetGalley and Picador for the advanced copy of this title in return for an honest review.
I was so confused at first when reading this as I assumed it was a fiction book. And so when I first started it, I thought Natalie was giving a little background in the introduction as to why she was writing the book. I thought at first it was a character talking, but then she started talking about the internet and Wonder Woman and Batman, so I thought “okay, she’s giving us a little background information”.
But then that viewpoint didn’t change. So I went back online and looked it up and, yes, it is a non-fiction, which made a lot more sense to me. And if I’m honest I think I prefer that. I’ve said before that I have never been a huge fan of mythological retellings, they’ve never really hit the mark for me – except for the brilliant Clytemnestra by Costanza Casati earlier this year – but I also like Natalie’s work, so I went in with an open mind. But I love history and so enjoyed this more as a non-fiction than I think I would as a fiction. I recently got a tattoo of one of the muses from Disney’s Hercules, and I felt it was almost telling me to read this book.
If I’m honest, I was overjoyed to see Natalie had paid homage to Hercules early on in the book. Animated films generally don’t get the credit they deserve for teaching audiences. They’re seen as too lowbrow. But I’m sure I’m not the only person who has had their first taste of history, and how history can be cool and fun, through Disney animation. And to see a popular author using it to make a pint about historical events, it was just wonderful to see. Even if it did have a mix of The Gospel Truth and Zero to Hero in my head throughout.
She has mentioned a lot of artwork, poems, books, and stories, and in such detail that I sat there Googling, wanting to see the artwork for myself as she described them, making note of the books mentioned so I may look them up for further reading.
I admit, like many others, that when I think of Gods, I do only think of Gods, I rarely think about Goddesses, even if the female counterparts proved the most important (in my opinion). It’s fascinating that all this history (whether true or mythological) has been lost all because we teach and learn through a male viewpoint. That’s not necessarily a bad thing. I don’t think we need to force a feminist or masculine viewpoint just because, I’d rather we learnt everything from a neutral viewpoint. But looking back, we are often taught about the Gods like Zeus and Poseidon and Hades, but very rarely do we learn about Hera and Eris and Gaia or Nyx. They’re names we might recognise but we’re not familiar with their stories. And I think this book is a great starting point if you want to learn more about Goddesses. Its not something I would have thought all that much about before, but she’s really piqued my interest.
It’s not an easy book to read. It’s not one to read when there’s other distractions, with the telly on, or with company, or if you’re waiting for the oven timer to beep. It requires your full attention, and that can be intense. But it’s worth it.
Books By Your Bedside 