A review by kredeprnz
The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker

dark emotional informative reflective sad tense medium-paced
  • Plot- or character-driven? A mix
  • Strong character development? Yes
  • Loveable characters? It's complicated
  • Diverse cast of characters? Yes
  • Flaws of characters a main focus? It's complicated

4.0

Wow. I am actually broken because of this book. I'm writing this fresh after finishing it and just, wow. 


I came for another retelling of the Iliad, hoping it would be as beautiful as so many others, and it was. It was beautiful because of the story of Briseis is not. Her story is absolutely ugly and terrifying, a true tragedy as the life for women in ancient times were. It's realistic and historic in it's own ways. Her reactions to the traumas were painted in a way that weren't triggering, but you still felt her raw emotion, the raw emotion of a human being so hurt and tortured. This book was amazing in telling her story and the stories of many other trojan women that were looked over and ignored so many times throughout history. A truly powerful story. 
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