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Cassandra By: Christa Wolf
Christa Wolf
Apollo & Cassandra
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The author, Christa Wolf, born March 18, 1929, in Landsberg an der Warthe, Germany (now known as Gorzów Wielkopolski, Poland), was a screenwriter, essayist, and novelist. She, despite being raised by pro-nazi parents, wrote with a pure and honest heart determined to uncover the truth no matter the circumstances . After her long and successful career of writing and inspiring, she passed away of leukemia at the age of 82 in Berlin on December 1, 2011.
Cassandra is a modern retelling of the Trojan war and the events that took place during that time told from Cassandra’s point of view. The daughter of King Priam and Queen Hecuba, Cassandra is a prophet cursed by Apollo to know the outcome of “doomsday” and to never be listened to . One, among many, important quotes from the novel Cassandra is one from the narrator herself reading, “We did not see ourselves as an example. We were grateful that we were the ones granted the highest privilege there is: to slip a narrow strip of future into the grim present, which occupies all of time”. This quote illuminates the reader as to how Cassandra feels about her social status. She feels like the people of lower classes are more fortunate with their freedoms than she is with her riches. This is a look into her character and the things that she values. |
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House Of Names By: Colm Tóibín
Colm Tóibín
Clytemnestra before killing Agamemnon
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Colm Tóibín, the author of House Of Names, has a lengthy and impressive portfolio as a novelist, poet, short story writer, critic, essayist, playwright, and journalist. Tóibín was born on May 30, 1955, in County Wexford, Ireland. He is currently the Professor of the Humanities at Columbia Univerosty in Manhattan, New York. Tóibín was named one of Britain’s top 300 “public figures leading our cultural discourse” in The Observer. His book House of names, one of many in his portfolio, was published on September 29, 2016. House Of Names follows the aftermath of Agamemnon’s, King of Mycenae, detrimental decision to sacrifice his daughter and his families plots of revenge for years to come. Murder, power, and revenge are only a few of the major players in this tragic page turner.
One quote that touches on the themes listed above is said by Clytemnestra, Agamemnon’s scorned wife and acting ruler while Agamemnon was gone. She says, “I planned to attack my husband when he returned. I would be waiting for him, all smiles. The gurgling sound he would make when I cut his throat became my obsession”(Tóibín, Colm. House Of Names) This is just one embodiment of the rage-fueled journey House Of Names takes its audience on. Readers get to better understand and ruminate upon the fascinating characters in this greek tragedy retold. |
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The Lost Books Of The Odyssey By: Zachary Mason
Zachary Mason
Odysseus
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Written by Zachary Mason,The Lost Books Of The Odyssey is a fresh take on Homer's classic tale, The Odyssey. This story, like the original Odyssey, follows Odysseus through his journey from Troy to Ithaca alongside some Trojan War flashbacks. This time, however, Odysseus seems to have a witty charm and self-realized aspect to him. His clever problem solving skills and trickery lead him home safe away from the many obstacles he faces on his journey. Parallel to the original, Odysseus faces challenges with cunning solutions, but in Mason’s version, Odysseus does not have the “show-off” quality. He is true to himself and does not have the fatal flaw of self-deception, like Homer’s version did.
As for the author, Zachary Mason was born in 1974 and grew up in Silicon Valley. He received a PhD from Brandeis University and currently works for a startup business in Silicon Valley after, regretfully, turning down a job for Google “two weeks before their I.P.O”. The Lost Books Of The Odyssey put him on the New York Times Best Seller list. Along with being a novelist, Mason is also a computer scientist and has also written a novel on specialized search recommendation systems titled Calculus of Writing, Applied to a Classic. Constantly searching for new intelligence, Mason aims to ‘understand thought with computational precision’. |
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Circe By: Madeline Miller
Madeline Miller
Circe
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Madeline Miller, the author of Circe, is an American novelist who has her BA and MA in Latin and Ancient Greek from Brown University. Circe was her second novel, following Orange prize winner The Song of Achilles, and made it to #1 on the New York Times Bestseller list when it was released. Circe has won many prizes like the Indies Choice Best Adult Fiction of the Year Award, the 2018 Elle Big Book Award, and The Red Tentacle Award, among a few others. This novel is also reportedly being adapted for a HBO Max series. Miller proves undeniably to be a very accomplished and talented writer.
In her unique spin on Circe’s character, Miller gives the witch a somewhat relatable twist. Circe seems to take on the modern day feminist’s disposition. A quote that shows her inner thoughts and personality in this novel reads, “Humbling women seems to me a chief pastime of poets. As if there can be no story unless we crawl and weep”(Circe). Miller’s take on Circe as a woman gives her a quality that so many other women can relate to in that, however trivial and futile it may be, it is an uphill battle to be perceived interesting or worthy of respect to a man in society today and many years ago as well. |
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The Penelopiad By: Margaret Atwood
Margaret Atwood
Penelope
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Written by Margaret Attwood, The Penelopiad is an ancient myth retold in modern times. Atwood is a critically acclaimed author with over 50 publications of poems, short stories, novels, and other fiction. She earned her bachelors from Victoria College and a masters from Radcliffe College. While she is very well known for her futuristic dystopian fiction The Handmaid's Tale, her novel The Penelopiad is another great imagining from Atwood as well. Her last project and publication was a sequel to her wildly popular The Handmaids Tale called The Testaments.
The Penelopiad was published in 2005 and focuses on Penelope and her story after death. Atwood being the poet and author she is, writes some of the story in prose and some in verse. The audience reminisces with Penelope on her relationships and wrong doings, seeming to never take full responsibility for her actions. With a twisted drama, an untrustworthy narrator, and a renowned author, the novel could be nothing short of stellar reading. |
