New review: Circe by Madeline Miller

The first thing I need to say about this book is that it is a must-read. It is an epic in every sense of the world.

Most of what we know about Circe comes from the story of a man - Odysseus. She is the beautiful, powerful witch who lives alone on an island and has a habit of turning men into swine (Homer clearly was having fun there). However, when Odysseus leaves Circe's island, so does all knowledge of her and what happens next.

Circe is nothing if not an origins story, but it's so much more than that. It's a Greek myth in its own right, and opens up a whole world of possibilities in retelling and recreating Greek myths about the women who feature in them - why not a story on Medea? Medusa? (Margaret Atwood wrote one about Penelope, Odysseus' wife, and the maids who were hanged - I'll review that in the future).

Circe is the daughter of a nymph and Helios, the sun-god. However, she is frequently derided by her own parents and her kin - she's not beautiful, she sounds like a mortal (shock, horror), and seems to be wholly ordinary for a divine being. However, she soon (and kind of accidentally) discovers the power of pharmaka - witchcraft. After committing acts of witchcraft on a rival for her love, who transforms into the monster Scylla, Circe is banished in perpetuity.

She doesn't stay alone for long - for a divine being, anyway. However, she gets raped by a visiting crew of men once they realise she's alone, and this episode starts to turn her into the witch she's known as, transforming men into swine when more show up and reveal their true intentions.

We know what happens when Odysseus shows up, so I'll gloss over that, but what's interesting is what comes after. Odysseus is shown to be more cruel and careless than he appears in The Odyssey. The same goes for Athene (who used to be my favourite goddess, but not so sure if she is anymore, after this novel!) All this is to say that Circe's life does not stop after Odysseus leaves - far from it. There are also many interesting crossovers with other heroes and stories - Circe's sister creates the Minotaur; Jason and Medea take refuge on her island; Hermes and Circe are lovers for a while... the list goes on.

What Madeline Miller has created here is an intensely rich tapestry of stories based around one of the most enigmatic and interesting women of antiquity. This novel is truly a triumph, both in depth and in breadth. I don't say it lightly when I say this is my favourite novel that I have read this year.