Tag: Natalie Haynes

A Thousand Ships by Natalie Haynes

- Stephanie Leave a comment

“But this is a women’s war, just as much as it is the men’s, and the poet will look upon their pain – the pain of the women who have always been relegated to the edges of the story, victims of men, survivors of men, slaves of men – and he will tell it, or he will tell nothing at all. They have waited long enough for their turn.”
― Natalie Haynes, A Thousand Ships

Natalie Haynes has come into her own with her 2019 retelling of the Trojan War called A Thousand Ships. In previous writings, she has focused on the lives of those ignored in Greek mythology and life. A Thousand Ships amplifies this by telling the story of the Trojan War from an all-female perspective. She has managed to discuss mythology’s greatest war by highlighting the problems of modern day wars. Haynes brings to light the impacts of war on women, children, and families while more traditional retellings instead focus on the bravery of the men in war. Their brutal assaults leave out the impact that war has on society, only focusing on the male heroes and male victims. A Thousand Ships is a blessed divergence from the traditional: instead showing the women’s perspectives, from servants to goddesses and all the women and families in-between.

Calliope, a muse, is singing to a mortal poet man, hoping that he will instead tell the stories of wartime women. She is tired of hearing the stories of the warriors and feels that the women’s stories are equally as important. Through rotating narration, readers are taken from the start of the Trojan War to the sacking of Troy to Penelope finally welcoming Odysseus home after twenty years of his absence. This broader look shifts from Hecuba, Cassandra, Penelope, Calliope, Clytemnestra, Helen, Laodamia, among many others. The title of this book even focuses more on women than men: Helen of Troy is often called ‘the face that launched a thousand ships,’ a phrase coined by Christopher Marlowe in the 17th century. This cast of female characters battles war, politics, and religion as they either survive or come to a bad end.

“A war does not ignore half the people whose lives it touches. So why do we?”
― Natalie Haynes, A Thousand Ships

Stone Blind: Medusa’s Story by Natalie Haynes

- Stephanie Leave a comment

“Why would anyone love a monster?’ asked Perseus.
‘Who are you to decide who is worthy of love?’ said Hermes.
‘I mean, I wasn’t…’
‘And who are you to decide who is a monster?’ added the messenger god.”
― Natalie Haynes, Stone Blind: Medusa’s Story

Greek mythology has been a love of mine for decades. Medusa is one of my favorites, as she is misunderstood and usually only seen as a gruesome monster. My latest read is all about Medusa and other feared women. Stone Blind: Medusa’s Story by Natalie Haynes is full of snarky, sarcastic women and goddesses tired of putting up with anyone’s crap. This was a gorgeous retelling of a classic mythical tale.

Medusa is the youngest of the Gorgon sisters. She is also the only mortal in a family of gods. Unlike her two older Gorgon sisters, Medusa feels pain, grows older, and, confusingly for her family, needs to eat and sleep. Being a mortal, Medusa’s lifespan is also significantly shorter than her sisters. Medusa knows she will die, just not when.

Athene is angry. The sea god Poseidon, her uncle, has assaulted Medusa in Athene’s own temple. She is absolutely furious that her sacred space has been violated. Needing to take out revenge, Athene decides to punish Medusa. Waking from what she thinks is a dream, Medusa is forever transformed into the monstrous creature that is remembered by all throughout history. A writhing mass of snakes has replaced her hair. Medusa’s gaze also holds the power to turn any living creature to stone. Terrified of her new power and scared she will accidentally destroy her sisters with one look, Medusa binds her eyes, winds her way deep into the caves, and decides to spend the rest of her days in solitude with only her snakes for company.

The Gorgons’ lives are forever changed when Perseus agrees to fetch the head of a Gorgon to save his mother from forced marriage to a king. His decision to do so without understanding the consequences means that Perseus has to call upon the help of his father Zeus and other gods, goddesses, and creatures to complete his task. He bumbles his way to the Gorgons, wreaking havoc along the way and forever changing the lives of people he has never met.

Stone Blind: Medusa’s Story is the story of women tired of being used. It tells the story of Medusa, bringing emotion, nuance, sarcasm, wit, and empathy into the devastating life of a mortal woman turned into a monster by a god’s actions. Medusa is blamed, punished, and turned into a monster because of an act that was done to her by a powerful man. She was the victim, yet most retellings of her life only show the monster. I enjoyed Haynes’ retelling as it gives the story of Medusa a modern feminist twist.