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A review by jelkebooks
The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker
challenging
dark
medium-paced
- Plot- or character-driven? Character
- Strong character development? No
- Loveable characters? It's complicated
- Diverse cast of characters? No
- Flaws of characters a main focus? No
2.0
Maybe something is wrong with me but I truly do not understand how this could ever be considered a feminist retelling. The only female character that mattered in this book was our main character, Briseis. The other female characters could have just been called slave #1, slave #2, and so on because they were not distinct characters, and barely played a part in this book in general. On top of that Briseis is such a passive character. Her only purpose in this book is just narrarating what all these men are doing. She herself added absolutely nothing to this book. The only thing that felt "feminist" about this book were the random quotes added in every so often, that were indeed about female empowerement but felt so random within the story. It just read like the author had those quotes ready and build a story around that, rather than those things feeling natural to the story.
Now, I do have to say that I didn't hate this book. I did quite like the writing. It was also a really quick read, and I do think some things were really interesting in this book. Especialy when it comes to the idea of having to be around the people who murdered your people, and seeing them have to make the best of things. The inner conflict surrounding that was quite interesting. I also quite liked that we got perspectives from Achilles and Patrocles at times. It just brought us a bit more in the action than Briseis' POV could do. It isn't much, but it is something.
So yeah, this wasn't a terrible book, I just kind of didn't get the point of it. It was a bit of nothing, and I just overall felt very underwhelmed with this book. I was quite bored towards the end as well. I don't know. I'll probably not continue with the series, even though I have heard amazing things about book two.
Now, I do have to say that I didn't hate this book. I did quite like the writing. It was also a really quick read, and I do think some things were really interesting in this book. Especialy when it comes to the idea of having to be around the people who murdered your people, and seeing them have to make the best of things. The inner conflict surrounding that was quite interesting. I also quite liked that we got perspectives from Achilles and Patrocles at times. It just brought us a bit more in the action than Briseis' POV could do. It isn't much, but it is something.
So yeah, this wasn't a terrible book, I just kind of didn't get the point of it. It was a bit of nothing, and I just overall felt very underwhelmed with this book. I was quite bored towards the end as well. I don't know. I'll probably not continue with the series, even though I have heard amazing things about book two.
Content Warnings
Graphic: Rape, Sexism, and Slavery
Moderate: Grief
Minor: Fatphobia