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Wake, Siren: Ovid Resung
In fierce, textured voices, the women of Ovid's Metamorphoses claim their stories and challenge the power of myth
I am the home of this story. After thousands of years of other people's tellings, of all these different bridges, of words gotten wrong, I'll tell it myself.
Seductresses and she-monsters, nymphs and demi-goddesses, populate the famous myths of Ovid's Metamorphoses. But what happens when the story of the chase comes in the voice of the woman fleeing her rape? When the beloved coolly returns the seducer's gaze? When tales of monstrous transfiguration are sung by those transformed? In voices both mythic and modern, Wake, Siren revisits each account of love, loss, rape, revenge, and change. It lays bare the violence that undergirds and lurks in the heart of Ovid's narratives, stories that helped build and perpetuate the distorted portrayal of women across centuries of art and literature.
Drawing on the rhythms of epic poetry and alt rock, of everyday speech and folk song, of fireside whisperings and therapy sessions, Nina MacLaughlin, the acclaimed author of Hammer Head, recovers what is lost when the stories of women are told and translated by men. She breathes new life into these fraught and well-loved myths.
I am the home of this story. After thousands of years of other people's tellings, of all these different bridges, of words gotten wrong, I'll tell it myself.
Seductresses and she-monsters, nymphs and demi-goddesses, populate the famous myths of Ovid's Metamorphoses. But what happens when the story of the chase comes in the voice of the woman fleeing her rape? When the beloved coolly returns the seducer's gaze? When tales of monstrous transfiguration are sung by those transformed? In voices both mythic and modern, Wake, Siren revisits each account of love, loss, rape, revenge, and change. It lays bare the violence that undergirds and lurks in the heart of Ovid's narratives, stories that helped build and perpetuate the distorted portrayal of women across centuries of art and literature.
Drawing on the rhythms of epic poetry and alt rock, of everyday speech and folk song, of fireside whisperings and therapy sessions, Nina MacLaughlin, the acclaimed author of Hammer Head, recovers what is lost when the stories of women are told and translated by men. She breathes new life into these fraught and well-loved myths.
352 pages, Paperback
First published November 19, 2019
About the author
Nina MacLaughlin
5 books203 followersNina MacLaughlin is the author of Wake, Siren: Ovid Resung, a re-telling of Ovid's Metamorphoses told from the perspective of the female figures transformed, as well as Summer Solstice: An Essay. Her first book was the acclaimed memoir Hammer Head: The Making of a Carpenter. Winter Solstice is forthcoming. She's a books columnist for the Boston Globe and her work has appeared in or on the Paris Review Daily, The Virginia Quarterly Review, n+1, The Believer, Agni, American Short Fiction, the New York Times Book Review, Meatpaper, and elsewhere. She lives in Cambridge, Massachusetts.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 467 reviews
December 12, 2019
this has to be one of the most impactful books I’ve read in a long time.
I cannot begin to describe how gut wrenching and enlightening this book is. it is extremely hard to read and has countless triggers (sexual abuse, physical abuse, depression, among many others) but my god did it leave its mark.
this book gives voice to women of ovid’s metamorphosis and shows the brutality they faced in these stories. it is angry, it’s devastating, and it’s absolutely empowering.
this book is not for everyone. it is written in a unique way that many, many people will not enjoy. and you will likely be confused if you don’t have a grasp on greek mythology. but it was the book for me.
I can’t describe this book and the emotional toll it placed on me but I can tell you it was absolutely brilliant, revolutionary, and an utter masterpiece.
I cannot begin to describe how gut wrenching and enlightening this book is. it is extremely hard to read and has countless triggers (sexual abuse, physical abuse, depression, among many others) but my god did it leave its mark.
this book gives voice to women of ovid’s metamorphosis and shows the brutality they faced in these stories. it is angry, it’s devastating, and it’s absolutely empowering.
this book is not for everyone. it is written in a unique way that many, many people will not enjoy. and you will likely be confused if you don’t have a grasp on greek mythology. but it was the book for me.
I can’t describe this book and the emotional toll it placed on me but I can tell you it was absolutely brilliant, revolutionary, and an utter masterpiece.
September 4, 2023
Got to respect MacLaughlin's intention here of giving voice to Ovid's women but I can't say this offers any new insight either as a piece of classical Latin reception work or as a 'feminist' take on Ovid or Roman culture more generally.
Almost all the stories are exactly the same as they are in the Metamorphoses only padded and lengthened, put into pedestrian prose with unnecessarily modern and sometimes quite vulgar diction: where Ovid is deft, adroit, allusive and self-referential, these stories are laboured with MacLaughlin spelling out every point about male sexual violence and women's responses.
When Apollo pursues Daphne, for example, we're told 'the smile went away from his voice - he was getting frustrated, mad that I wouldn't stop. It was making him feel small, and when men feel small they are dangerous.' Ovid's original doesn't have to be so crude for us to completely get the point. And MacLaughlin's ending made me do a double-take - as Daphne is turned into a laurel tree we get: 'I laughed to myself. I'd won. Stick your dick into this and you'll get splinters... I was victorious. I'd won.' Er, right. Ovid is far more ambivalent as Daphne becomes Apollo's tree, her laurel leaves forming the wreaths to honour practitioners of the Apollonian arts of music and poetry. There is no victory for a disempowered wood nymph whose fleet feet become rooted in one place. Patriarchal power isn't wished away quite this simply however much MacLaughlin is dying in these tales to make it so.
There are plenty more examples of stories that over-explain the points that the Ovidian text is already making, whether the way Medusa gets punished for being raped by Neptune in Minerva's temple, or Echo gets stripped of her voice for gossiping about Juno's errant husband.
And this is a point which MacLaughlin doesn't comment on: the extent to which the violence done to female bodies may be imposed by female gods. Juno, Minerva, Salmacis who is the nearest thing we have to a female rapist, are given the same stories, enact the same brutal penalties but with no commentary in this book. In some ways these myths are examples of internalised misogyny but, more often, they're part of a power matrix which Ovid's text is opening up for view: female gods are not as powerful as male gods but are definitely higher in status than human men and women, and they act accordingly. The Ovidian text which draws overt parallels between the Olympian gods and Augustus' regime is acutely conscious of power dynamics, of which gendered relations are a part: and let's not forget that Ovid had his books banned from Rome's libraries and was eventually exiled himself by Augustus precisely for his transgressive and subversive writing.
The only story where MacLaughlin makes a creative intervention to the Ovidian myth is 'Eurydice': reworking her as a rock singer in thrall to the singing superstar, Orpheus, we realise that she is also : so there's a whole new reason for his looking back - and in this take, Eurydice turns away and chooses to go back to the basement club that is a stand-in for Hades or the underworld. This is still overlong for what it is but re-makes the myth in a thoughtful way and gives a form of agency to Eurydice, albeit crude and rather dangerously simplistic . Nevertheless, more re-writings like this might have made this book a better experience for me: as it is, it's a sort of Ovid 'lite' retold in pedestrian and long-winded fashion without generally saying anything new or interesting about the stories themselves.
Almost all the stories are exactly the same as they are in the Metamorphoses only padded and lengthened, put into pedestrian prose with unnecessarily modern and sometimes quite vulgar diction: where Ovid is deft, adroit, allusive and self-referential, these stories are laboured with MacLaughlin spelling out every point about male sexual violence and women's responses.
When Apollo pursues Daphne, for example, we're told 'the smile went away from his voice - he was getting frustrated, mad that I wouldn't stop. It was making him feel small, and when men feel small they are dangerous.' Ovid's original doesn't have to be so crude for us to completely get the point. And MacLaughlin's ending made me do a double-take - as Daphne is turned into a laurel tree we get: 'I laughed to myself. I'd won. Stick your dick into this and you'll get splinters... I was victorious. I'd won.' Er, right. Ovid is far more ambivalent as Daphne becomes Apollo's tree, her laurel leaves forming the wreaths to honour practitioners of the Apollonian arts of music and poetry. There is no victory for a disempowered wood nymph whose fleet feet become rooted in one place. Patriarchal power isn't wished away quite this simply however much MacLaughlin is dying in these tales to make it so.
There are plenty more examples of stories that over-explain the points that the Ovidian text is already making, whether the way Medusa gets punished for being raped by Neptune in Minerva's temple, or Echo gets stripped of her voice for gossiping about Juno's errant husband.
And this is a point which MacLaughlin doesn't comment on: the extent to which the violence done to female bodies may be imposed by female gods. Juno, Minerva, Salmacis who is the nearest thing we have to a female rapist, are given the same stories, enact the same brutal penalties but with no commentary in this book. In some ways these myths are examples of internalised misogyny but, more often, they're part of a power matrix which Ovid's text is opening up for view: female gods are not as powerful as male gods but are definitely higher in status than human men and women, and they act accordingly. The Ovidian text which draws overt parallels between the Olympian gods and Augustus' regime is acutely conscious of power dynamics, of which gendered relations are a part: and let's not forget that Ovid had his books banned from Rome's libraries and was eventually exiled himself by Augustus precisely for his transgressive and subversive writing.
The only story where MacLaughlin makes a creative intervention to the Ovidian myth is 'Eurydice': reworking her as a rock singer in thrall to the singing superstar, Orpheus, we realise that she is also : so there's a whole new reason for his looking back - and in this take, Eurydice turns away and chooses to go back to the basement club that is a stand-in for Hades or the underworld. This is still overlong for what it is but re-makes the myth in a thoughtful way and gives a form of agency to Eurydice, albeit crude and rather dangerously simplistic . Nevertheless, more re-writings like this might have made this book a better experience for me: as it is, it's a sort of Ovid 'lite' retold in pedestrian and long-winded fashion without generally saying anything new or interesting about the stories themselves.
December 20, 2019
3.5 stars
Um, so content warning for everything from rape to incest and other extreme violence...no, really, brace yourselves.
I thought this was quite an interesting collection. I remember liking Ovid's Metamorphoses, but if you've read Greek/Roman myths, you know they come with an aftertaste of fucked up. (WHY is Zeus allowed to scamper around the countryside turning into animals and surprising unsuspecting women with sex?) Nina MacLaughlin dials all of that up and brings the stories into the modern world.
I liked MacLaughlin's interpretations of the stories, and the way each story experimented with narrative style — some stories were crass, others contained only one word, and others were told in a solemn but recognizable to the modern ear tone. And each was told from the perspective of the women who feature in the background of the stories about the gods. Some stories were more personally appealing than others, but I didn't feel that there was a great dissonance between the stories as sometimes happens in collections. The stories were all in conversation with each other, they built off of each other and coloured the contexts of the stories around them without creating annoying repetitiveness. Some worked, some didn't, but overall I enjoyed the experience.
I have to say that many of the stories here left me deeply uncomfortable. I was even made dizzy by the violence, at times. However, the violence didn't strike me as gratuitous. It was in the realm of possibility for the stories and for the state of the world today. It felt too real. The acts of metamorphosis themselves were violent or sad. In Ovid's version, they are easy to interpret as whimsical, magical and fun, but here they are indisputably acts of necessity, desperation, and helplessness. Here they are a taking of agency, an imposition on a story rather than a making of one. I liked that perspective on Ovid.
I find it odd that there are people who denounce modern retellings of old stories, that beg the reader to respect the source text. How is this possible? These myths are products of their time and are equally as flawed as things written today. Why do they deserve more respect? They are not an ideal, even if they did inspire much of Western culture. And what is literature anyway if it doesn't comment on the literature around it? And while we're there: there's plenty to comment on Ovid and the myths.
Anyway, an arresting exploration of Ovid's Metamorphoses and one worth trying out if you can stomach it. :) Also: knowledge of Ovid or said myths not necessary!
Um, so content warning for everything from rape to incest and other extreme violence...no, really, brace yourselves.
I thought this was quite an interesting collection. I remember liking Ovid's Metamorphoses, but if you've read Greek/Roman myths, you know they come with an aftertaste of fucked up. (WHY is Zeus allowed to scamper around the countryside turning into animals and surprising unsuspecting women with sex?) Nina MacLaughlin dials all of that up and brings the stories into the modern world.
I liked MacLaughlin's interpretations of the stories, and the way each story experimented with narrative style — some stories were crass, others contained only one word, and others were told in a solemn but recognizable to the modern ear tone. And each was told from the perspective of the women who feature in the background of the stories about the gods. Some stories were more personally appealing than others, but I didn't feel that there was a great dissonance between the stories as sometimes happens in collections. The stories were all in conversation with each other, they built off of each other and coloured the contexts of the stories around them without creating annoying repetitiveness. Some worked, some didn't, but overall I enjoyed the experience.
I have to say that many of the stories here left me deeply uncomfortable. I was even made dizzy by the violence, at times. However, the violence didn't strike me as gratuitous. It was in the realm of possibility for the stories and for the state of the world today. It felt too real. The acts of metamorphosis themselves were violent or sad. In Ovid's version, they are easy to interpret as whimsical, magical and fun, but here they are indisputably acts of necessity, desperation, and helplessness. Here they are a taking of agency, an imposition on a story rather than a making of one. I liked that perspective on Ovid.
I find it odd that there are people who denounce modern retellings of old stories, that beg the reader to respect the source text. How is this possible? These myths are products of their time and are equally as flawed as things written today. Why do they deserve more respect? They are not an ideal, even if they did inspire much of Western culture. And what is literature anyway if it doesn't comment on the literature around it? And while we're there: there's plenty to comment on Ovid and the myths.
Anyway, an arresting exploration of Ovid's Metamorphoses and one worth trying out if you can stomach it. :) Also: knowledge of Ovid or said myths not necessary!
November 7, 2022
Unflinching, resonating, and vibrant, this stunning retelling allows for the wronged women of Ovid’s Metamorphoses to tell their stories in their own voices. Disturbingly honest, with sarcastic, bitter charm and beautifully rendered sorrow and anger, we feel the injustice of the gods taking liberties where they please, the pain of having oppressors control so many narratives and histories. The range of these stories, from playful to pensive, horrific to victorious, modern to classical, shows the true power of story telling, of memory, of picking up the pieces scattered over centuries. A marvel of a collection.
June 18, 2019
If the folks in Ovid’s Metamorphoses were from New York and somewhat uncouth, they might sound like these retelling of their stories from MacLaughlin. Some of the reworking are fun in terms of humor and eroticism, but I didn’t really feel like these offered new insights or changed the relevance of the stories. There’s a lot of justifiable anger in the stories, but little in the way of new reckonings or new angles, Still, thiis collection might find a home in literature classes on adaptation or revisiting classical works.
April 16, 2022
A collection of stories allowing the women of The Metamorphoses of Ovid to speak for themselves. I liked certain stories more than others (some I thought were really, really clever), but given that I don't think ancient mythology is for me (I keep trying and failing to be as thrilled by myths as other people are), I think other readers will find this more enjoyable than I did.
April 3, 2022
“I am the home of this story. After thousands of years of other people’s tellings, of all these different bridges, of words gotten wrong, I’ll tell it myself.”
Calling all mythology fiends!!
Every chapter/section of this book is the story of a different woman who appears in Ovid’s Metamorphoses - an ancient work that broadly focuses on transformation. Despite all being written by the same author, each mythological woman has a distinct voice, which made the whole book amazing to read.
Nina McLaughlin uses many mediums to tell these stories, from poetic metre to a therapy session to email exchanges, making it accessible even if you’re completely unfamiliar with Ovid and the women in the book.
I was recommend this book by a professor, and ever bolstered by academic validation, I ran to read it. I am so glad I did.
The interesting thing about retellings is that they will be differently received by readers depending on their familiarity with the original source material. The following are what I imagine will be the summative reactions of folks with various levels of Classical knowledge.
People with an above average knowledge of Classics: “Okay I definitely have to re-read Metamorphoses rIGHT THIS SECOND.”
People who have read Percy Jackson: “Huh, I recognize some of these characters, but they’re very different in this re-telling. Maybe that’s because ancient mythological depictions of women were written by men….”
People with no exposure to/interest in Classics: “Idk who this Jove guy is, but he sure is an ass hat.”
The bros in my classics courses who start every answer with “it appears to me”: “Well this isn’t the Ovid’s Metamorphoses [mispronounced] that I know and love 😡🤢🤮”
Yeah Brad.. almost like that’s thE POINT
Wake, Playlist:
- Woman // Isa Ma
- Maniac // Phoebe Green
- Lady Stardust // David Bowie
A quote that makes me weep and cry and weep:
“We all wait for the long silence. We are all transformed by time. I will continue to disappear, from body, to whispers, to sighs. It is better this way, I know it now…
Immortality is the death of beauty. Beauty begins in endings.”
Calling all mythology fiends!!
Every chapter/section of this book is the story of a different woman who appears in Ovid’s Metamorphoses - an ancient work that broadly focuses on transformation. Despite all being written by the same author, each mythological woman has a distinct voice, which made the whole book amazing to read.
Nina McLaughlin uses many mediums to tell these stories, from poetic metre to a therapy session to email exchanges, making it accessible even if you’re completely unfamiliar with Ovid and the women in the book.
I was recommend this book by a professor, and ever bolstered by academic validation, I ran to read it. I am so glad I did.
The interesting thing about retellings is that they will be differently received by readers depending on their familiarity with the original source material. The following are what I imagine will be the summative reactions of folks with various levels of Classical knowledge.
People with an above average knowledge of Classics: “Okay I definitely have to re-read Metamorphoses rIGHT THIS SECOND.”
People who have read Percy Jackson: “Huh, I recognize some of these characters, but they’re very different in this re-telling. Maybe that’s because ancient mythological depictions of women were written by men….”
People with no exposure to/interest in Classics: “Idk who this Jove guy is, but he sure is an ass hat.”
The bros in my classics courses who start every answer with “it appears to me”: “Well this isn’t the Ovid’s Metamorphoses [mispronounced] that I know and love 😡🤢🤮”
Yeah Brad.. almost like that’s thE POINT
Wake, Playlist:
- Woman // Isa Ma
- Maniac // Phoebe Green
- Lady Stardust // David Bowie
A quote that makes me weep and cry and weep:
“We all wait for the long silence. We are all transformed by time. I will continue to disappear, from body, to whispers, to sighs. It is better this way, I know it now…
Immortality is the death of beauty. Beauty begins in endings.”
November 27, 2019
(4.5 stars)
*trigger warning for mention of sexual violence in review and a general trigger warning for the book in general*
I’m incredibly irritated with the reviews critiquing the vulgarity of this book. How it “disrespects” original narratives. I read this book as a reclamation. Rape is vulgar. Much more vulgar than the language Maclaughlin has used here. To give voice to the cast of women in the book the author chose to engage in a level of vulgarity, and justifiably, righteous anger. Parts are hard to read. But, she is taking these stories and expressing raw emotion. As a survivor, I appreciate the spectrum of unfiltered emotion. I thought it was inspired and refreshing. It was cathartic and real and relatable for a new generation. All the eye-rolls to the pearl clutching purist. There are so many beautiful passages I re-read and highlighted and revisited. I very much appreciated the bold approach of the author.
*trigger warning for mention of sexual violence in review and a general trigger warning for the book in general*
I’m incredibly irritated with the reviews critiquing the vulgarity of this book. How it “disrespects” original narratives. I read this book as a reclamation. Rape is vulgar. Much more vulgar than the language Maclaughlin has used here. To give voice to the cast of women in the book the author chose to engage in a level of vulgarity, and justifiably, righteous anger. Parts are hard to read. But, she is taking these stories and expressing raw emotion. As a survivor, I appreciate the spectrum of unfiltered emotion. I thought it was inspired and refreshing. It was cathartic and real and relatable for a new generation. All the eye-rolls to the pearl clutching purist. There are so many beautiful passages I re-read and highlighted and revisited. I very much appreciated the bold approach of the author.
November 3, 2021
4,5*
Vždy ma prekvapí, ako každý autor prerozpráva grécke mýty po svojom. Zamysleli ste sa niekedy nad osudmi žien z týchto príbehov? Veľakrát zostali znásilnené, nepochopené, jednoduché “nie” muži nebrali ako odpoveď. Nepočúvali ich, brali si všetko, po čom túžili a nechali sa ovládnuť zverskými pudmi. A ich ženské kolegyne, bohyne, svojou krutosťou nezaostávali za ich mužskými partnermi, druhmi a priateľmi (áno, pozerám sa hlavne na teba, Héra). A práve Nina mlčanie týchto žien prerozprávaná svojím jedinečným hlasom.
To, čo predviedla Nina Maclaughin som ešte nezažila. Autorka zmiešala rôzne štýly písania, hrala sa s nekonečnou predstavivosťou a do každého príbehu vniesla niečo originálne. Kľudne ste mohli končiť mailovou formou a začínať básňou. Páčilo sa mi to. Niečo staré bolo obohaté moderným, spolu to tvorilo veľmi zvláštnu, ale pritom jedinečnú kombináciu. Musíte sa pripraviť, že aj hrdinky príbehov rozprávali moderným jazykom, nebáli sa používať vulgarizmy. Zvykať si na “boháča” vo vetách bolo najprv prekvapujúce, potom to prešlo do fázy nepáčisamito, ale nakoniec som si zvykla a pripomenulo mi to, že tie zvery, monštrá ovládané svojimi pudmi - inak nazývaní aj alfasamcami - žijú s nami doteraz a nie vždy sa správajú pekne.
Ale. V knihe nájdete naozaj rôzne príbehy. Niektoré sú aj o láske. Ale väčšina si neberie servítku pred ústa. Možno vám táto forma prerozprávania gréckej mytológie nesadne, možno sa vám zapáči. To je už len na vás. Ja vám to rozhodne odporúčam, je to niečo nové, možno pritiahnuté do extrému, ale ja tento extrém prijímam.
Vždy ma prekvapí, ako každý autor prerozpráva grécke mýty po svojom. Zamysleli ste sa niekedy nad osudmi žien z týchto príbehov? Veľakrát zostali znásilnené, nepochopené, jednoduché “nie” muži nebrali ako odpoveď. Nepočúvali ich, brali si všetko, po čom túžili a nechali sa ovládnuť zverskými pudmi. A ich ženské kolegyne, bohyne, svojou krutosťou nezaostávali za ich mužskými partnermi, druhmi a priateľmi (áno, pozerám sa hlavne na teba, Héra). A práve Nina mlčanie týchto žien prerozprávaná svojím jedinečným hlasom.
To, čo predviedla Nina Maclaughin som ešte nezažila. Autorka zmiešala rôzne štýly písania, hrala sa s nekonečnou predstavivosťou a do každého príbehu vniesla niečo originálne. Kľudne ste mohli končiť mailovou formou a začínať básňou. Páčilo sa mi to. Niečo staré bolo obohaté moderným, spolu to tvorilo veľmi zvláštnu, ale pritom jedinečnú kombináciu. Musíte sa pripraviť, že aj hrdinky príbehov rozprávali moderným jazykom, nebáli sa používať vulgarizmy. Zvykať si na “boháča” vo vetách bolo najprv prekvapujúce, potom to prešlo do fázy nepáčisamito, ale nakoniec som si zvykla a pripomenulo mi to, že tie zvery, monštrá ovládané svojimi pudmi - inak nazývaní aj alfasamcami - žijú s nami doteraz a nie vždy sa správajú pekne.
Ale. V knihe nájdete naozaj rôzne príbehy. Niektoré sú aj o láske. Ale väčšina si neberie servítku pred ústa. Možno vám táto forma prerozprávania gréckej mytológie nesadne, možno sa vám zapáči. To je už len na vás. Ja vám to rozhodne odporúčam, je to niečo nové, možno pritiahnuté do extrému, ale ja tento extrém prijímam.
November 6, 2019
This past Spring, I taught a unit on contemporary feminist re-imaginings of the Classics and I sincerely wish I could have included Wake, Siren in my syllabus, as Nina MacLaughlin's retellings of tales from The Metamorphoses were as unflinching, cathartic, and ferociously feminist as I'd hoped they would be.
Fair warning: this is often a difficult read due to its explicit handling of sexual violence (given the source material, however, and the project undertaken by Wake, Siren, that was not a surprise for me) and MacLaughlin's prose is experimental, so if that isn't your bag, you may not enjoy this. That said, I appreciated MacLaughlin's style choices, as her beautiful, haunting prose, for me, comes the closest of any classics reimagining that I have read to truly capturing the primal, dreamlike experience of reading the ancients and Ovid in particular.
Some of the tales are stronger than others, but, on the whole, I found Wake, Siren a powerful collection performing interesting and important cultural work by reorienting the perspectives of many of the ravishings of The Metamorphoses (which several of Wake, Siren's heroines point out have been troublingly romanticized by Western culture for centuries) from the perspective of those brutalized by husbands, fathers, and the ever-capricious gods.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
Fair warning: this is often a difficult read due to its explicit handling of sexual violence (given the source material, however, and the project undertaken by Wake, Siren, that was not a surprise for me) and MacLaughlin's prose is experimental, so if that isn't your bag, you may not enjoy this. That said, I appreciated MacLaughlin's style choices, as her beautiful, haunting prose, for me, comes the closest of any classics reimagining that I have read to truly capturing the primal, dreamlike experience of reading the ancients and Ovid in particular.
Some of the tales are stronger than others, but, on the whole, I found Wake, Siren a powerful collection performing interesting and important cultural work by reorienting the perspectives of many of the ravishings of The Metamorphoses (which several of Wake, Siren's heroines point out have been troublingly romanticized by Western culture for centuries) from the perspective of those brutalized by husbands, fathers, and the ever-capricious gods.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing me with an ARC in exchange for an honest review.
January 11, 2020
4 Stars - Great book
I am loving the trend of myths becoming popular in modern literature. MacLaughlin does a great job of taking stories in which women traditionally had subordinate roles and were constantly demeaned and giving women the power to tell their own stories. The characters have a modern vocabulary. The juxtaposition is interesting and personally I felt that it added to the stories (or most of them) rather than detract from them.
Since this book is a collection of stories, some are stronger than others. But on the whole, it’s a strong read. Personally, my favorite is the story of Medusa - completely misunderstood character. I struggled with the Eurdyice story. I love the story or Orpheus and Eurdyice and I don’t understand why MacLaughlin did what she did to that story. Also, I love Hadestown and MacLaughlin’s version does not jive with Hadestown, so I choose the latter. Now I will say that the story of Eurdyice is focused on Eurdyice and is written well, so it has two things going for it.
It’s also important to note that if you do plan to read this book, there is explicit content that includes abuse and sexual assault. It can be hard to read at times. Though I do think MacLaughlin does her best to give victims and survivors in mythology a voice.
This book isn’t perfect, but I enjoyed it. I love mythology and ancient cultures. I understand that these stories are based on centuries old classics, but nothing, now matter how classic, is untouchable or too good to be adapted. My opinion is that if you want something to last it’s important to think of new ways to interpret the literature.
Do I recommend this one? I understand it’s not for everyone either because of the subject material or the mix of modern and ancient. You may find a story or two you enjoy though! If you like mythology, I’d say give it a go.
I am loving the trend of myths becoming popular in modern literature. MacLaughlin does a great job of taking stories in which women traditionally had subordinate roles and were constantly demeaned and giving women the power to tell their own stories. The characters have a modern vocabulary. The juxtaposition is interesting and personally I felt that it added to the stories (or most of them) rather than detract from them.
Since this book is a collection of stories, some are stronger than others. But on the whole, it’s a strong read. Personally, my favorite is the story of Medusa - completely misunderstood character. I struggled with the Eurdyice story. I love the story or Orpheus and Eurdyice and I don’t understand why MacLaughlin did what she did to that story. Also, I love Hadestown and MacLaughlin’s version does not jive with Hadestown, so I choose the latter. Now I will say that the story of Eurdyice is focused on Eurdyice and is written well, so it has two things going for it.
It’s also important to note that if you do plan to read this book, there is explicit content that includes abuse and sexual assault. It can be hard to read at times. Though I do think MacLaughlin does her best to give victims and survivors in mythology a voice.
This book isn’t perfect, but I enjoyed it. I love mythology and ancient cultures. I understand that these stories are based on centuries old classics, but nothing, now matter how classic, is untouchable or too good to be adapted. My opinion is that if you want something to last it’s important to think of new ways to interpret the literature.
Do I recommend this one? I understand it’s not for everyone either because of the subject material or the mix of modern and ancient. You may find a story or two you enjoy though! If you like mythology, I’d say give it a go.
August 20, 2019
Tiresias: Was it punishment, being turned into a woman? I don’t know. Is it punishing to be a woman? It is. It will continue to be.
This collection is a slap in the face… followed by a gut-punch. Rinse. Repeat. Seriously. The hits just keep on coming. It isn’t news that Greco-Roman myths are filled with violence, vengeance and misery. But, reading them in this collection crystallizes this in a way that is brutal and heavy and horrible... But, also really awesome.
I know, make up your mind, right? But, I can’t think of a better way to say it. Of the three dozen stories in the collection there are nearly as many rapes, quite a few murders, and only a very rare happy ending (maybe a few more I’d credit as bittersweet). It isn’t a fun read. Instead it is a confrontational read, full of justifiable fury and only occasional moments of anything near hopefulness. That being said, I found much of it beautiful, even when the stories were dark or disgusting and crass, the writing was great. Diverse and compelling. And these stories – be they real or fictional should be read, confronted, honored… They might be about Scylla, Io and a bunch of mythical others, but I’d be surprised if they didn’t ring true for most contemporary readers.
The narrative voices are not interchangeable – which is a real feat considering how briefly we meet and interact with each character and how many of them tell a variation on the same ‘I-tried-to-run-from-my-rapist-but-I-did-not-escape’ story. The stories are set historically, as well as in the present day and the writing style varies by story, as such some are more effective than others – and I’m sure that hugely varies by reader. Personally, I wanted to gouge my own eyes out during the stream of consciousness one (though it might have been the only funny on in the book. Bummer).
The women in these stories, some are only B-characters in mythology and most of us will know little about them beyond maybe their names – so I’m not sure what new ground, if any, is being tread here in that sense. And, I’m sure if I were a student of mythology I’d have been a better educated reader and that would have added depth to the experience – that’s my loss, I suppose. I assume that reading these stories from the viewpoints of these women is the new ground here and this book does that much stunningly… 3 dozen times.
My faves: Daphne, Arachne, Atalanta, Myrrha, Baucis, Medusa, Leucothoe, Eurydice (and After Ovid is an amazing epilogue. A gorgeous ending to the collection).
My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the arc to review.
This collection is a slap in the face… followed by a gut-punch. Rinse. Repeat. Seriously. The hits just keep on coming. It isn’t news that Greco-Roman myths are filled with violence, vengeance and misery. But, reading them in this collection crystallizes this in a way that is brutal and heavy and horrible... But, also really awesome.
I know, make up your mind, right? But, I can’t think of a better way to say it. Of the three dozen stories in the collection there are nearly as many rapes, quite a few murders, and only a very rare happy ending (maybe a few more I’d credit as bittersweet). It isn’t a fun read. Instead it is a confrontational read, full of justifiable fury and only occasional moments of anything near hopefulness. That being said, I found much of it beautiful, even when the stories were dark or disgusting and crass, the writing was great. Diverse and compelling. And these stories – be they real or fictional should be read, confronted, honored… They might be about Scylla, Io and a bunch of mythical others, but I’d be surprised if they didn’t ring true for most contemporary readers.
The narrative voices are not interchangeable – which is a real feat considering how briefly we meet and interact with each character and how many of them tell a variation on the same ‘I-tried-to-run-from-my-rapist-but-I-did-not-escape’ story. The stories are set historically, as well as in the present day and the writing style varies by story, as such some are more effective than others – and I’m sure that hugely varies by reader. Personally, I wanted to gouge my own eyes out during the stream of consciousness one (though it might have been the only funny on in the book. Bummer).
The women in these stories, some are only B-characters in mythology and most of us will know little about them beyond maybe their names – so I’m not sure what new ground, if any, is being tread here in that sense. And, I’m sure if I were a student of mythology I’d have been a better educated reader and that would have added depth to the experience – that’s my loss, I suppose. I assume that reading these stories from the viewpoints of these women is the new ground here and this book does that much stunningly… 3 dozen times.
My faves: Daphne, Arachne, Atalanta, Myrrha, Baucis, Medusa, Leucothoe, Eurydice (and After Ovid is an amazing epilogue. A gorgeous ending to the collection).
My thanks to the author, publisher and NetGalley for the arc to review.
July 5, 2022
What a beautiful ode to Ovid.
MacLaughlin rewrites the famous stories passed down to us from Ovid's Metamophoses, but retells them from the women's point of view. This book is personal, heartbreaking, at times uplifting, and completely spellbinding. The myths are retold in a modern way for today's audience, highlighting the struggles of the ancient women by calling each atrocity exactly what it is (please read between the lines for watch exactly this means so I don't have to write it out!). We are faced with familiar women like Medusa and Thetis, along with the not-so-famous stories of Procne & Philomela and Callisto.
I adored this book. 1000% can not recommend it enough.
MacLaughlin rewrites the famous stories passed down to us from Ovid's Metamophoses, but retells them from the women's point of view. This book is personal, heartbreaking, at times uplifting, and completely spellbinding. The myths are retold in a modern way for today's audience, highlighting the struggles of the ancient women by calling each atrocity exactly what it is (please read between the lines for watch exactly this means so I don't have to write it out!). We are faced with familiar women like Medusa and Thetis, along with the not-so-famous stories of Procne & Philomela and Callisto.
I adored this book. 1000% can not recommend it enough.
December 26, 2019
Disgusting, trashy, vulgar. I had the worst time getting through this book. I can’t believe my local bookstore gave it so much praise. I love Mythology and this was just a horrible modern day take on it. Read Circe.
July 10, 2022
Staré grécke báje poznám ešte od detstva (Eduard Petiška, alebo séria bohato ilustrovaných kníh Mýty a legendy Egypt, Grécko, Galia), samotného Ovídia (teda preklad) som tuším zobrala do rúk až ako dospelá. Prerozprávané príbehy však milujem, nech som v akomkoľvek veku. Veď aj Slovart má edíciu, kde sú rettelingy známych príbehov a mýtov (Penelopiáda, Ťarcha, Staviteľ, Helma hrôzy, atď.), prerobené do modernej podoby.
Bral niekto Metamorfózy, Premeny od Ovídia primárne ako texty s ľúbostnou zápletkou? Je tam toho viac, pohľady na prírodné krásy, náboženské vnímanie, atď.. Práve však túto líniu sleduje aj autorka knihy Prebuď sa, Siréna - a pohľad na obete "lásky" je mimoriadne srdcrvúci. Dala priestor prevažne ženským hrdinkám, ktoré majú spoločnú jednu vec... sú obeťami násilia.
Miestami až priveľmi podrobne opísané scény však vzbudzovali odpor a trieštili mi srdce. Za každou jednou utekajúcou nymfou, dryádou, ženou, dievčaťom i chlapcom bol niekto, kto chcel viac a nebral NIE ako odpoveď. Podvolenie, zmocnenie sa, odovzdanie sa... je to len eufemizmus pre sexuálny akt, pre napadnutie, znásilnenie, áno, došlo aj na stalking, týranie, vraždy, incest, či zohavenie. Žiadostivosť a žiarlivosť je asi večná. A trest nedostali násilníci, ale častokrát obete.
Ich premena je bolestná... Občas je únikom, ale je otázkou, či k lepšiemu? (Napr. Syrinx ako flauta, alebo Ió, ako biela krava, tá ich traumatická pamäť.)
Je jedno, či sa premena odohráva v modernom svete, na pohovke terapeuta, v dobe emailov a rockových koncertov a klubov, alebo bosých nôh a žijúcich bohov. Je nesmrteľná, je večná. "Nesmrteľnosť je smrťou krásy." A preto ani premeny nemajú byť krásnymi.
Sú úprimné, neromantizujúce, miestami brutálne a temné, najmä však presvedčivé žaloby a skúsenosti.
Autorka mi ulahodila, prerozprávané mýty sú experiment, ktorý vyšiel. Každý hlas je iný, ale zapadá do štýlu knihy. A sirény nech sa prebudia, nech nemlčia!
Mojím najobľúbenejším príbeho bol a zostáva Baukis, nasleduje Arachné, ale aj Echo a Eurydika.
Bral niekto Metamorfózy, Premeny od Ovídia primárne ako texty s ľúbostnou zápletkou? Je tam toho viac, pohľady na prírodné krásy, náboženské vnímanie, atď.. Práve však túto líniu sleduje aj autorka knihy Prebuď sa, Siréna - a pohľad na obete "lásky" je mimoriadne srdcrvúci. Dala priestor prevažne ženským hrdinkám, ktoré majú spoločnú jednu vec... sú obeťami násilia.
Miestami až priveľmi podrobne opísané scény však vzbudzovali odpor a trieštili mi srdce. Za každou jednou utekajúcou nymfou, dryádou, ženou, dievčaťom i chlapcom bol niekto, kto chcel viac a nebral NIE ako odpoveď. Podvolenie, zmocnenie sa, odovzdanie sa... je to len eufemizmus pre sexuálny akt, pre napadnutie, znásilnenie, áno, došlo aj na stalking, týranie, vraždy, incest, či zohavenie. Žiadostivosť a žiarlivosť je asi večná. A trest nedostali násilníci, ale častokrát obete.
Ich premena je bolestná... Občas je únikom, ale je otázkou, či k lepšiemu? (Napr. Syrinx ako flauta, alebo Ió, ako biela krava, tá ich traumatická pamäť.)
Je jedno, či sa premena odohráva v modernom svete, na pohovke terapeuta, v dobe emailov a rockových koncertov a klubov, alebo bosých nôh a žijúcich bohov. Je nesmrteľná, je večná. "Nesmrteľnosť je smrťou krásy." A preto ani premeny nemajú byť krásnymi.
Sú úprimné, neromantizujúce, miestami brutálne a temné, najmä však presvedčivé žaloby a skúsenosti.
Autorka mi ulahodila, prerozprávané mýty sú experiment, ktorý vyšiel. Každý hlas je iný, ale zapadá do štýlu knihy. A sirény nech sa prebudia, nech nemlčia!
Mojím najobľúbenejším príbeho bol a zostáva Baukis, nasleduje Arachné, ale aj Echo a Eurydika.
July 1, 2019
I liked the concept, but with some stories I couldn't get into the writing style at all. Sometimes it reads like poetry and other times modern day slang, which was the one which threw me off the most.
I like the variety and the darkness. There's lots to discuss and this would be ideal for a book club.
Again realizing how gruesome and sexist most of the Greek mythology is.
I always wonder why I'm still fascinated by it?
Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an eARC.
I like the variety and the darkness. There's lots to discuss and this would be ideal for a book club.
Again realizing how gruesome and sexist most of the Greek mythology is.
I always wonder why I'm still fascinated by it?
Thank you Netgalley for providing me with an eARC.
September 19, 2024
absolute killer audiobook
November 19, 2019
For anyone that enjoys mythology or the novels of Madeline Miller, WAKE, SIREN: OVID RESUNG is perfect for you! It provides a bold, new twist on the classics! The book is a retelling of the famous myths of Ovid's Metamorphoses from the perspectives of the nymphs, demi-goddesses, seductresses, and she-monsters! Whereas Ovid's women are passive objects, in WAKE, SIREN the women are the narrators of their own experiences: the story of the chase comes from the woman fleeing not the God pursuing her and the tale of a transformation into a tree or constellation comes directly from the transformed. Such a simple twist breaths new life into classic myths such as Medusa, Scylla, Callisto, Daphne, Echo and many more.
Like a compilation of short stories, each chapter is a separate myth focusing on a different female character. The writing is poetic but often uniquely modern which I really enjoyed. Like any collection of stories, some were stronger than others but overall I was entertained throughout! Though I read Ovid in undergrad and have some familiarity with the stories, you definitely don't need any background to enjoy the book.
WAKE, SIREN shows the inherent male chauvinism of Greek mythology (honestly the God's are often just horny, vengeful, conceited creeps!) and the sexist tradition of oral histories. Theses stories have been told and retold by countless men throughout history and it's amazing to finally have a female author take control and give the female characters an actual voice!
*** FSG Originals provided the book for honest review
Like a compilation of short stories, each chapter is a separate myth focusing on a different female character. The writing is poetic but often uniquely modern which I really enjoyed. Like any collection of stories, some were stronger than others but overall I was entertained throughout! Though I read Ovid in undergrad and have some familiarity with the stories, you definitely don't need any background to enjoy the book.
WAKE, SIREN shows the inherent male chauvinism of Greek mythology (honestly the God's are often just horny, vengeful, conceited creeps!) and the sexist tradition of oral histories. Theses stories have been told and retold by countless men throughout history and it's amazing to finally have a female author take control and give the female characters an actual voice!
*** FSG Originals provided the book for honest review
August 30, 2019
Well written but should probably come with a trigger warning stamped across the cover. It was difficult to get through some of the stories, including the first one. You'll never see the myths that inspired this book the same way again. Of course, the original tales were always filled with sexual assault, rage, and the.degradation of most women. Seeing them in this context made it so much worse, though.
The voices within the book change from story to story, ranging from those that are rooted in the speech of their time period to some filled with modern-day slang. This is an interesting juxtaposition that doesn't always work but still provides an entertaining mixture of styles.
Overall, 'Wake, Siren' is an interesting addition to feminist fiction, but don't expect it to be a fun read.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.
The voices within the book change from story to story, ranging from those that are rooted in the speech of their time period to some filled with modern-day slang. This is an interesting juxtaposition that doesn't always work but still provides an entertaining mixture of styles.
Overall, 'Wake, Siren' is an interesting addition to feminist fiction, but don't expect it to be a fun read.
Thank you to the publisher and NetGalley for providing an ARC. This review contains my honest, unbiased opinion.
January 19, 2022
Veľmi váham nad hodnotením. Zhodujem sa s 1* názormi, ale tiež s 5*, pretože chápem obe strany, čo na tom vidia. Bez debaty ide o originálne spracovanie a veľmi svojské - čo sa odzrkadľuje na štýle autorky, ktorý nikdy nie je rovnaký. Je to prerozprávanie mýtov, ktoré sú stovky rokov staré a sú zaobalené do súčasného jazyka alebo sveta. Využíva poetickosť, slang i nadávky. A to je môj najväčší problém. Ak sú v texte nadávky a majú svoju funkciu, nemám s tým problém a chápem, prečo ich autor/ka rozhodli použiť. Ale nadávky, ktoré v texte nemajú žiadnu funkciu a sú tam doslova na šokovanie sú zbytočné. V tomto prípade:
- V texte nemajú žiadnu významnú funkciu.
- Zbytočne narúšajú atmosféru.
- Miestami sú absolútne nevhodné.
To, že autorka dokázala využívať rôzne štýly a podania je obdivuhodné, ale obsahovo sa to dosť opakuje (neberiem to ako nedostatok, uvedomujem si, ako sa určité motívy v mýtoch opakujú) a pri dlhších poviedkach nedokázala udržať moju pozornosť. Gradovanie, ak sa o nejaké pokúšala, som tam takmer nezachytila. Možno moja nepozornosť. Z nejakého dôvodu mám pocit, že tie silnejšie poviedky boli hlavne ku koncu a prvá polovica bola pre mňa dosť nezáživná a zbytočne vulgárna. Skrátka, aká je tá kniha originálna/svojská, taká istá je miestami nezáživná. Neviem ako inak ju zhodnotiť. GR hviezdičky vravia, že 2 hviezdičky znamenajú "it was ok" a hej, bolo to ok.
- V texte nemajú žiadnu významnú funkciu.
- Zbytočne narúšajú atmosféru.
- Miestami sú absolútne nevhodné.
To, že autorka dokázala využívať rôzne štýly a podania je obdivuhodné, ale obsahovo sa to dosť opakuje (neberiem to ako nedostatok, uvedomujem si, ako sa určité motívy v mýtoch opakujú) a pri dlhších poviedkach nedokázala udržať moju pozornosť. Gradovanie, ak sa o nejaké pokúšala, som tam takmer nezachytila. Možno moja nepozornosť. Z nejakého dôvodu mám pocit, že tie silnejšie poviedky boli hlavne ku koncu a prvá polovica bola pre mňa dosť nezáživná a zbytočne vulgárna. Skrátka, aká je tá kniha originálna/svojská, taká istá je miestami nezáživná. Neviem ako inak ju zhodnotiť. GR hviezdičky vravia, že 2 hviezdičky znamenajú "it was ok" a hej, bolo to ok.
January 14, 2023
this is an undoubtedly beautiful well crafted collection of different stories, adapted from mythology.
However I found it really hard to truly connect with anything I was reading, a lot of the protagonists have the same voice though they are supposed to be powerful and distinct deities. The writing sometimes meanders from beautiful to cheesy to abstract and I often found I was zoning out of a story and couldn’t picture what was going on at all.
It was not helpful that in the “reinterpretation” of these mythological stories, the brutality against the protagonists was still prominent, leaving almost all of the stories about rape and abuse. It was an effort to finish.
However I found it really hard to truly connect with anything I was reading, a lot of the protagonists have the same voice though they are supposed to be powerful and distinct deities. The writing sometimes meanders from beautiful to cheesy to abstract and I often found I was zoning out of a story and couldn’t picture what was going on at all.
It was not helpful that in the “reinterpretation” of these mythological stories, the brutality against the protagonists was still prominent, leaving almost all of the stories about rape and abuse. It was an effort to finish.
January 6, 2020
Forget your zodiac sign, which mythology were you obsessed with as a child?
For me, it was Greek mythology. I'm not sure what it was-- maybe it was the fact that the gods themselves tended to be directly responsible for all of their own problems. Maybe it was the amount of talking animals. Maybe I just thought the names sounded pretty. But regardless, I loved Greek mythology more than breath. I had that big yellow book of myths, I read children's literature starring the gods (somehow never read the Percy Jackson series, a mistake I will one day rectify), I did a report on my "favorite" Greek goddess, Artemis, in the third grade.
But even as a child, I couldn't help but notice the voicelessness of the women. The reason I was drawn to Artemis more than any other figure was likely the fact that she was one of the few women with a "speaking" role in her stories. Nobody ever seemed to ask Persephone how she felt about the arrangement with Hades. Nobody asked Atalanta how she felt about losing the race and gaining a husband. Nobody asked Daphne, or Callisto, or Medusa, or countless others how they felt about the fact that they were punished while the men who hurt them got to go on without suffering any consequence.
This book gives voice to the voiceless, and the voiceless are furious. And that is important.
A warning to readers, this book is a LOT. It's angry and raw and pulls no punches. Unlike so many myth retellings, which use flowery language ("obtained her love" comes to mind) or take modern sensibilities into account to retcon in consent (yes, I love Lore Olympus too, but the critiques are valid ones), Ovid Resung points at every atrocity committed in each respective myth and goes "yeah, that? We all know what that is. We're going to call it what it is. We're going to talk about it." I cried while reading this book. I had to put this book down a few times after certain stories (Procne and Philomela is the roughest imo, but Callisto's brought me to angry tears). And that's important. It's important when discussing the text, and it's important in today's social climate. It's been literal centuries since the story of Medusa was told and people went "yup that sure sounds like a monster we have no sympathy for," but so many things are exactly the same. "But what was Daphne wearing?" "But Zeus just couldn't HELP himself!" "Are we sure Persephone didn't WANT to be kidnapped?"
It's not all horrific, of course. Atalanta's story is quietly triumphant as she chooses what's worth winning and what's worth losing. Tiresias gets a wonderful, thought-provoking examination of male and female sexuality. Iphis brought me to happy tears.
This book is catharsis of all kinds, please read it.
For me, it was Greek mythology. I'm not sure what it was-- maybe it was the fact that the gods themselves tended to be directly responsible for all of their own problems. Maybe it was the amount of talking animals. Maybe I just thought the names sounded pretty. But regardless, I loved Greek mythology more than breath. I had that big yellow book of myths, I read children's literature starring the gods (somehow never read the Percy Jackson series, a mistake I will one day rectify), I did a report on my "favorite" Greek goddess, Artemis, in the third grade.
But even as a child, I couldn't help but notice the voicelessness of the women. The reason I was drawn to Artemis more than any other figure was likely the fact that she was one of the few women with a "speaking" role in her stories. Nobody ever seemed to ask Persephone how she felt about the arrangement with Hades. Nobody asked Atalanta how she felt about losing the race and gaining a husband. Nobody asked Daphne, or Callisto, or Medusa, or countless others how they felt about the fact that they were punished while the men who hurt them got to go on without suffering any consequence.
This book gives voice to the voiceless, and the voiceless are furious. And that is important.
A warning to readers, this book is a LOT. It's angry and raw and pulls no punches. Unlike so many myth retellings, which use flowery language ("obtained her love" comes to mind) or take modern sensibilities into account to retcon in consent (yes, I love Lore Olympus too, but the critiques are valid ones), Ovid Resung points at every atrocity committed in each respective myth and goes "yeah, that? We all know what that is. We're going to call it what it is. We're going to talk about it." I cried while reading this book. I had to put this book down a few times after certain stories (Procne and Philomela is the roughest imo, but Callisto's brought me to angry tears). And that's important. It's important when discussing the text, and it's important in today's social climate. It's been literal centuries since the story of Medusa was told and people went "yup that sure sounds like a monster we have no sympathy for," but so many things are exactly the same. "But what was Daphne wearing?" "But Zeus just couldn't HELP himself!" "Are we sure Persephone didn't WANT to be kidnapped?"
It's not all horrific, of course. Atalanta's story is quietly triumphant as she chooses what's worth winning and what's worth losing. Tiresias gets a wonderful, thought-provoking examination of male and female sexuality. Iphis brought me to happy tears.
This book is catharsis of all kinds, please read it.
January 1, 2020
This was absolutely fantastic. A retelling of many of the tales from Ovid’s Metamorphoses in a very original and powerful way. I love how some of the stories have a contemporary setting. Not for the squeamish, these tales are brutal in their honesty and I was moved to tears by how beautifully they are told. Highly recommend!
July 26, 2021
3.5/5 stars
TW for pretty much anything and everything. This was a brutal retelling of Ovid's Metamorphoses. It was raw and honest and at times hard to read. Which honestly, I thought was fitting.
TW for pretty much anything and everything. This was a brutal retelling of Ovid's Metamorphoses. It was raw and honest and at times hard to read. Which honestly, I thought was fitting.
October 31, 2023
Nous connaissons tous plus ou moins la mythologie gréco-romaine mais nous oublions souvent à quel point les histoires qu’elle raconte peuvent être cruelles, d’autant plus vis-à-vis des femmes. Dans cette réécriture des Métamorphoses d’Ovide, l’autrice a choisi de remettre les femmes au cœur du récit, et de mettre en évidence les abus des dieux et des hommes, souvent de manière assez crue.
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Évidemment, si l’autrice passe par le spectre de la mythologie, elle dénonce surtout des situations et des comportements qui, pour la plupart, se produisent malheureusement souvent dans notre société.
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Il va s’en dire que ce livre n’est pas à mettre entre toutes les mains étant donné la quantité astronomique de trigger warnings qu’on y retrouve : viol, inceste, torture, mutilation, tout ou presque y passe dans ce recueil. La façon dont l’autrice aborde tout ces sujets sans détour est vraiment efficace mais ça reste évidemment assez dur à lire, surtout si l’on est plus ou moins sensibles à ces thématiques.
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Je pense que la meilleure façon de lire ce recueil est de le picorer et de ne lire qu’une ou deux nouvelles par-ci, par-là. Pour ma part, j’ai plutôt enchainé le livre (sur 3-4 jours), et c’est vrai que ça peut vite devenir plombant tant les thématiques abordées sont lourdes et difficiles.
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Malgré tout, j’ai beaucoup aimé cet ouvrage. Au-delà des thématiques, j’ai beaucoup aimé la façon dont l’autrice a revisité la mythologie, en mêlant vraiment les histoires originales à notre société actuelle. Elle utilise aussi diverses formes pour raconter ses histoires. Parmi ces formats qui sortent de l’ordinaire, on a par exemple des échanges de mails ou une séance de psychanalyse. Tout cela donne un texte extrêmement moderne, vraiment appréciable.
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Concernant les textes qui m’ont le plus marqué, je citerais l’histoire de Myrrhas, extrêmement dérangeante, celle de Procne et Philomèle qui est franchement trash par moments, celle d’Iphis qui aborde le genre, l’homosexualité et la transidentité d’une manière très intéressante, et celle d’Eurydice qui parle de relations toxiques et de violences conjugales. Enfin, on peut aussi citer l’histoire de Baucis qui se démarque par le fait qu’il s’agisse de la seule histoire positive, et même assez douce, du recueil.
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En tout cas, je ne peux que conseiller ce livre, mais gardez en mémoire que sa lecture n’est pas de tout repos, et qu’il faut être quand même assez armé pour le lire.
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Évidemment, si l’autrice passe par le spectre de la mythologie, elle dénonce surtout des situations et des comportements qui, pour la plupart, se produisent malheureusement souvent dans notre société.
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Il va s’en dire que ce livre n’est pas à mettre entre toutes les mains étant donné la quantité astronomique de trigger warnings qu’on y retrouve : viol, inceste, torture, mutilation, tout ou presque y passe dans ce recueil. La façon dont l’autrice aborde tout ces sujets sans détour est vraiment efficace mais ça reste évidemment assez dur à lire, surtout si l’on est plus ou moins sensibles à ces thématiques.
⠀
Je pense que la meilleure façon de lire ce recueil est de le picorer et de ne lire qu’une ou deux nouvelles par-ci, par-là. Pour ma part, j’ai plutôt enchainé le livre (sur 3-4 jours), et c’est vrai que ça peut vite devenir plombant tant les thématiques abordées sont lourdes et difficiles.
⠀
Malgré tout, j’ai beaucoup aimé cet ouvrage. Au-delà des thématiques, j’ai beaucoup aimé la façon dont l’autrice a revisité la mythologie, en mêlant vraiment les histoires originales à notre société actuelle. Elle utilise aussi diverses formes pour raconter ses histoires. Parmi ces formats qui sortent de l’ordinaire, on a par exemple des échanges de mails ou une séance de psychanalyse. Tout cela donne un texte extrêmement moderne, vraiment appréciable.
⠀
Concernant les textes qui m’ont le plus marqué, je citerais l’histoire de Myrrhas, extrêmement dérangeante, celle de Procne et Philomèle qui est franchement trash par moments, celle d’Iphis qui aborde le genre, l’homosexualité et la transidentité d’une manière très intéressante, et celle d’Eurydice qui parle de relations toxiques et de violences conjugales. Enfin, on peut aussi citer l’histoire de Baucis qui se démarque par le fait qu’il s’agisse de la seule histoire positive, et même assez douce, du recueil.
⠀
En tout cas, je ne peux que conseiller ce livre, mais gardez en mémoire que sa lecture n’est pas de tout repos, et qu’il faut être quand même assez armé pour le lire.
June 10, 2020
Ok so generally speaking...I don’t love this. It’s reimaginings of the stories of 30 or so of the mythological women from Ovid’s Metamorphoses, some of which have been reimagined in a modern context - fun! A lot of them highlight how integral sexual violence, almost exclusively against women, is to the Greco-Roman mythological canon - absolutely!
Most of the mappings of the stories though feel really literal and ham-fisted (Orpheus and Eurydice as rockstars with Hades as a nightclub owner named “HayDaze” stands out as maybe the most egregious?), and a lot of the stories felt really gimmicky without doing anything to add depth to the (often) historically 2D characters of these myths.
There is some powerful commentary on abuse and violence and trauma throughout that’s a lot of times really moving, but there’s also some social commentary that seemed misguided and insensitive (I’m hoping I’m misreading this one but there’s a Skittles reference where it seems like Daphne’s comparing her plight to the murder of Trayvon Martin?)
So I mostly disliked this BUT!!! there were things I liked, and some of the stories were really thought-provoking, and the Baucis story is one of the most beautiful passages I’ve read all year - it’s completey gorgeous and also shockingly joyful compared to the rest of the collection; it is to Wake, Siren what San Junipero was to Black Mirror.
Most of the mappings of the stories though feel really literal and ham-fisted (Orpheus and Eurydice as rockstars with Hades as a nightclub owner named “HayDaze” stands out as maybe the most egregious?), and a lot of the stories felt really gimmicky without doing anything to add depth to the (often) historically 2D characters of these myths.
There is some powerful commentary on abuse and violence and trauma throughout that’s a lot of times really moving, but there’s also some social commentary that seemed misguided and insensitive (I’m hoping I’m misreading this one but there’s a Skittles reference where it seems like Daphne’s comparing her plight to the murder of Trayvon Martin?)
So I mostly disliked this BUT!!! there were things I liked, and some of the stories were really thought-provoking, and the Baucis story is one of the most beautiful passages I’ve read all year - it’s completey gorgeous and also shockingly joyful compared to the rest of the collection; it is to Wake, Siren what San Junipero was to Black Mirror.
January 19, 2020
McLaughlin powerfully imagines Ovid's metamorphoses from the perspective of the (mostly) women at the heart of each tale. By turns lyrical, erotic, funny, these portraits are an exercise in voice, and they attest to the centrality of rape culture to Western literature. It transforms these well-known stories (speaking of metamorphoses!) to give the women subjectivity--to give them desires that deviate from Jupiter's, fear and dread, and traumatic memory that endures even beyond their transformation into cow or tree or reed. The fear about a collection like this is that it would become monotonous, even numbing. Almost all of Ovid's tales, after all, are about a god chasing or tricking a woman who ultimately transforms either to escape or to mourn or because a goddess is angry with her. Yet MacLaughlin takes a different tack with each story, giving some of them a contemporary twist (see Orpheus and Eurydice and domestic violence within the rock community) and always changing her voice to draw out something beautiful, something harrowing, or something bizarre about the stories. She is a writer to watch.
May 5, 2024
4.5 stars. I loved this; I loved recognizing each story and then seeing how it was spun differently; I loved how the style changed between each story, I really loved Procne and Philomela's chapter. "Do you want to live deliciously I do I do I do" cherry on top was this The VVitch reference. Loved this book. Thank you Nicole
July 3, 2019
Nina!!! You goddamn genius!!!
March 19, 2024
read : 2nd of jan. 2023 - 5th of jan. 2023
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