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

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Onto this island sails a young lad, Perseus, who is on a quest, also at the behest of his fickle elders. Retellings of classical myths may be all the rage in publishing but, as Charlotte Higgins notes in the introduction to Greek Myths, her own erudite and exhilarating collection, it’s a trend as old as the stories themselves. It has the overhanging sense of dread throughout when you know it’s not going to go as hoped, the foreboding really shone through.

as a medusa lover, i really wished there were some more twists from the myth but for people who don’t know a lot about this story, i can recommend it!The writing is stunning, as one might expect with Jessie Burton, and the story feels searingly, heartbreakingly relevant for the world we live in .

Or rather, it’s woven by female characters, because to give voice to this very 21st-century impulse, she uses a classical literary convention known as ekphrasis, or the telling of tales through descriptions of striking works of art – in this case, tapestries. When Athena finds out what has happened, she blames Medusa for desecrating her temple and sanctuary.This book is a beautiful excavation, uncovering the girl beneath the gorgon, the power within the punished. Perhaps she has overimagined or misunderstood Athena’s curse – “Woe betide any man fool enough to look upon you now! Destined to become as much an artefact of our own age as it is an illumination of the ancient past [.

It was a lot of really flowery, really beautiful “Tumblr-esque” language - both in conversations and in Medusa’s internal dialogue - and it felt so forced and unrealistic. She has written two children's books, The Restless Girls - a reimagining of The Twelve Dancing Princesses fairytale - and Medusa , the latter being shortlisted for the Carnegie Medal. Jessie Burton studied at Oxford University and the Central School of Speech and Drama, where she appeared in productions of The House of Bernarda Alba, Othello, Play and Macbeth. But when the charmed and beautiful Perseus arrives on the island, her lonely existence is blown apart, unleashing desire, love… and betrayal. Most importantly this book looks at self acceptance, accepting and owning who you are despite very dark periods and your mistakes.

Both young and older readers will find this a captivating read, not overly long but deeply thought-provoking. i've always been fascinated with medusa and how she's seen as a villain despite her backstory and this book added a lot to that. She first fell under the spell of the myths when an older brother bought her a copy of Kenneth McLeish’s Children of the Gods. this book was literally two characters reading the wikipedia articles of their respective greek myths with the other occasionally going “oh no! I was at my last school for 4 years and we had ********* book fairs every term – and every term, I was disappointed by the narrow range of books.

siss-iling stars for the retelling and the reimagining of one of Greek Mythology’s greatest stories. Publication dates are subject to change (although this is an extremely uncommon occurrence overall). She was, instead, viewed here an ordinary girl wishing to live a quiet and solitary existence and with no desires for the power from or notice of the gods.Your selection was perfect for our children and what really made the difference was your ability to engage with each child, discuss their interests and help them to choose a suitable book based on your extensive knowledge of the books you were selling. She is much more than a monster whose head is a coveted prize for Perseus and the King who sent him on his quest. Her second book, The Muse, set in a dual time-frame, during the Spanish Civil War and 30 years later in 1960s London, was published in 2016. Haunted by the memories of a life before everything was stolen from her, she has no choice but to make peace with her present: Medusa the Monster. A dazzling, feminist retelling of Greek myth from the internationally bestselling author of The Miniaturist, stunningly illustrated by Olivia Lomenech Gill.

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