Medusa: A beautiful and profound retelling of Medusa’s story

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In her monstrous form, Medusa becomes an outcast, forced to live a life of isolation on an island. Her tragic fate continues when Perseus, a demigod and son of Zeus, is tasked with the quest to behead her.

The art was beautiful, and this book had so much promise for me - but unfortunately fell very flat. Men will tell you that Gorgons are monsters, but men are fools. They cannot comprehend any beauty beyond what they can see. And what they see is a tiny part of what there is.’

This title is mentioned in the same breath as any antecedent in the recent retelling renaissance, most notably Circe. But what Miller achieved was exactly what Haynes failed at: Circe did not fall into the tradition that it was clearly aiming to subvert. What I mean by this is that Miller committed entirely to Circe’s perspective; it was her story, and hers only. Medusa appears in Stone Blind as something as a minor character, and in the brief interludes we are privy to her perspective, she doesn’t have much agency or complexity. I’d go so far as to say that the main character, really, was Athene – who, if you know how the myth goes, isn’t a character you want to spend much time with. Olivia Lomenech Gill's artwork was the perfect match for the subtleness of emotion exhibited throughout the tale and also the melancholy that exuded from it at the end. A muted colour palette consisting of mostly earthy tones was used for each of the gorgeous images and I would happily display every single one of them on my walls. They were harrowing yet alluring, exactly like the story surrounding them. In this meticulously researched and engagingly written book, historian and mythologist Dr. Lila Andrews explores Medusa’s various historical interpretations and portrayals. Dr. Andrews also examines the cultural and historical contexts that gave rise to the myth, unveiling the deeper meanings and symbolism behind Medusa’s story.

The mortal daughter of the sea god Phorcys This book had so many good things covering Medusa’s story. It shows her before Poseidon and Athena: how she was a sailor with her two sisters as divers. This book also shows a strong sisterhood between Stheno, Euyale and Medusa and I absolutely loved the relationship between Stheno and Medusa especially. This book also delved into rape culture, victim blaming and slut shaming- even by other women, acting as an agent for the patriarchy. This book is absolutely stunning. A beautiful modern re-telling of a very old tale. It was refreshing to see the point of view of a young Medusa. Not the scary gorgon that she is most commonly known as. Athena somehow cursed Medusa, changing her head that she was so jealous of into venomous snakes. From that moment forward, anyone who dared to glance at Medusa’s face would be instantly petrified. The head of Medusa helped the hero to accompany several other missions, for instance.In this fascinating reimagining of the myth of Medusa, author Jessie Burton presents us with a novel feminist twist to a character and story that has, for the most part, featured as one of Perseus’s heroic exploits. Simply put, Perseus has always been the hero and Medusa the vanquished. But Jessie Burton’s Medusa is much more than that. Cursed by the Goddess Athena and transformed into a Gorgon with snakes in place of her once beautiful hair, the once beautiful Medusa now lives on a deserted island with her sisters, Stheno and Euryale,and her dog Argentus. Her transgression? Being raped by Poseidon within the premises of the Temple of Athena. Medusa probably was the most famous creation wing mythology. She was a woman who watched snakes instead of hair turn into stone, anyone who dared to gaze at her monstrous face. Countless men were attracted to her, but she remains a saint, impure. In Athena’s temple, she became a priest out of admiration for the goddess is an example of purity.