ralentina reviewed The Penelopiad by Margaret Atwood
A fun retelling
4 stars
Atwood's retelling of Penelope's story is very enjoyable and herudite, and if I was more cultured or less self-conscious the word divertissement could very well feature in this review. Having spent a disproportionate amount of school time falling asleep over the Odissey, I was well positioned to appreciate Atwood's allusions and irony. The book explores different plausible interpretation and theories, which were new to me. The feminist perspective, and the search of human traits in the mythical characters were a good touch - too bad there was none of that at school. The novel did not seem 'dazzling' or 'monumental' to me, as some of the critical reviews on the back cover suggest. But that's really the critics' mistake, isn't it?