A review by meenaaa
The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood
3.0
This was my first book my Margaret Atwood. She wrote in a very easy way. I had tried picking up The Handmaiden when I was younger and I found it very dry and couldnt read it completely. So it surprised me a little how easy and quick of a read this was. It might be a little confusing if someone doesnt have any idea about the Odyssey or any of these characters but since I knew about the Iliad and having read the Odyssey previously, this was not an issue for me.
This was the story of Penelope. She doesn't do anything heroic but you can see how smart she is and how noone cares because in ancient greece, nobody cared about women. The only thing is that reading this book will make you dislike Helen and Odyseuss. Helen is portrayed as a very bitchy character which I guess isn't very feminist but the truth is shitty people exist across both genders and there are people like Helen in the real world. Margaret makes you see how Odyseuss is a low value male which I never thought he was before. He is a beloved Tyrion type of character and I liked how she makes you see him from a feminist perspective.
This was the story of Penelope. She doesn't do anything heroic but you can see how smart she is and how noone cares because in ancient greece, nobody cared about women. The only thing is that reading this book will make you dislike Helen and Odyseuss. Helen is portrayed as a very bitchy character which I guess isn't very feminist but the truth is shitty people exist across both genders and there are people like Helen in the real world. Margaret makes you see how Odyseuss is a low value male which I never thought he was before. He is a beloved Tyrion type of character and I liked how she makes you see him from a feminist perspective.