The Song of Achilles has left me confused. It stays accurate to Greek mythology while making Patroclus and Achilles vibrant and complete characters. I don’t know how I feel about it. I’ve been putting off writing this review for over a week while the book percolated in my mind. I still can’t decide.
Book Information
Publisher: HarperCollins
Imprint: Ecco
First Published: Sept 20 2011
Format: ebook
ISBN: 9780062060631
Source: Library
Genre: Fantasy, Historical
I love the way Patroclus and Achilles interact together. I appreciate that it’s written from Patroclus’s perspective. Achilles is stiff, but I’m willing to attribute that to his excellence as a warrior. Being a savant in one area can mean a person has limitations in other places, and in my head, that fits Achilles as “Best of All Greeks”. Patroclus has excellent depth of feeling and awareness of the complications he adds to Achilles’s life. I found the way others treated their relationship as interesting as well. It’s acknowledged but not spoken of out loud. I didn’t particularly appreciate how Patroclus had to minimize himself. It rubbed me wrong every time. Achilles’ loyalty to Patroclus is so deeply fulfilling. They are so attuned to one another.
I struggled with later sections of the book. I was not fond of Achilles’ ego or how Patroclus was overlooked when he was trying to talk sense into people. I found it very frustrating. Achilles and Patroclus lose some of their magic so the story can hit the upcoming mythological plot points. I wish it had been handled differently. I didn’t find it satisfying.
Speaking of things I didn’t like, Achilles and Patroclus are boys for most of The Song of Achilles. The Trojan War drags on, and they might hit their early 20s towards the end. I did not like how sexually explicit it got when they were 12-17. My preference would have been for it to fade to black, implied but not specified, or even in the style of many contemporary romances, where the scene continues, but there’s absolutely nothing explicit about it. It does make sense to me that they would begin exploring their relationship as teens. It’s integral to the story, but man, I did not want so many details about it. Every encounter took me out of the book. To be clear, my issue isn’t that teenagers were having sex. It’s how explicitly that sex is written for an audience of adults.
Having recently read another book retelling Greek mythology (Ariadne) has made me think more about my enjoyment of the genre. I’ve decided I prefer loosely inspired stories rather than staying true to the mythology. I like not knowing how it will end and what will eventually occur.
The Song of Achilles will likely be the last accurate retelling I pick up intentionally, and it’s a great note to leave on. The Song of Achilles is beautiful. It’s heart-breaking. Madeline Miller does excellent justice to Achilles and Patroclus with her well-crafted story. I want to love it, but it’s just not there for me. Knowing how it would end, I had a cloud of doom hanging over me the entire time I read. I don’t enjoy feeling that, and I’d hoped there would be enough bright points in the story to overcome it. There may be enough for some people, but not for me.