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The Penelopeia
Imagine that you have gone back in time 3,000 years to the city of Ithaka to greet Odysseus, the sole survivor of a decade of adventures, shipwreck, and mayhem, on his long-awaited return home. Recognized only by his loyal dog, he is really a stranger to his son, Telemachos, and even to Penelope, the wife who, flicking off suitors like flies, has managed to keep his household intact. Imagine his shock when she informs him she has another surprise in store; when he left for Troy some twenty years before, he fathered twin daughters. These daughters, now mature and preternaturally gifted, are determined to travel with their mother to the Pythian oracle, there to learn what the gods have decreed as their fates and do the goddess' bidding.
Imagine, in other words, the next episodes of The Odyssey told in the voice of a woman, in this case a woman who has faithfully waited for her husband to return, who has diligently performed all her duties as wife and mother, and who now desparately wants to experience the same adventure and freedom as her heroic spouse.
- GenresPoetry
243 pages, Hardcover
First published October 1, 2003
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
December 30, 2008
Odd, interesting, worth reading but it must have been a lot of work for such a mild result.
May 19, 2018
What a gem of a find! If anyone is curious about Penelope's side of the story...read on!
February 2, 2011
When Odyseus returns home from his long journeys, he finds that his wife Penelope has not only been steadfast in her defense of her home, but that she has managed to keep secret the birth of Odyseus' twin daughters -- a secret kept to spare them from the suitors ravaging their home.
But the gods are not done with this noble family yet, as it has been decried that Penelope and her two lovely daughters must travel to Pythia to visit the oracle and on from there to visit Helen so that her daughters may learn her secrets of healing.
Rawlings writes this continuation of The Odessy in the epic poetic style of Homer, mimicking the tone and voice of her favorite translation of the work. She accomplishes this quite well, for except for the fact that her poem is in first person, it sounds almost exactly like the Odessy as I remember reading it years ago.
I was slightly bored by it at time, though, because much of the epic poem is spent in convincing Odyseus to allow them to leave and in the sharing of only mildly interesting tales. It takes quite a while for Penelope to even get on the ship, let alone begin her adventures. Further, her adventures, being those of a woman are much tamer than her husbands. There is very little reason for her to use her cunning, which she clearly has as seen in the Odessy. The most exciting moments are those that came more than half way through the book, when she is taken up by the great Amazon warrior women who wish her to join their ranks. My interest was only roused then, and was diminished when she left their ranks.
In some ways Rawlings had to cheat to make this story happen, had to invent and secret in aspects of the story that were not in the Odessy in order to make it work. And even, the restrictions of women according to the time and culture in her characters lived meant that she could have gone further with this story, to delve deeply into strength and potential of women as I had hoped. Any attempt to have women go off on adventures on their own in ancient Greece, unless their were Amazons or in some other way free from men and the burdens of reputation, ultimately results in a story that sounds forced. Or perhaps it can be done, but it came out sounding forced here, despite Rawlings best efforts. In the end I was a bit disappointed with this tale.
But the gods are not done with this noble family yet, as it has been decried that Penelope and her two lovely daughters must travel to Pythia to visit the oracle and on from there to visit Helen so that her daughters may learn her secrets of healing.
Rawlings writes this continuation of The Odessy in the epic poetic style of Homer, mimicking the tone and voice of her favorite translation of the work. She accomplishes this quite well, for except for the fact that her poem is in first person, it sounds almost exactly like the Odessy as I remember reading it years ago.
I was slightly bored by it at time, though, because much of the epic poem is spent in convincing Odyseus to allow them to leave and in the sharing of only mildly interesting tales. It takes quite a while for Penelope to even get on the ship, let alone begin her adventures. Further, her adventures, being those of a woman are much tamer than her husbands. There is very little reason for her to use her cunning, which she clearly has as seen in the Odessy. The most exciting moments are those that came more than half way through the book, when she is taken up by the great Amazon warrior women who wish her to join their ranks. My interest was only roused then, and was diminished when she left their ranks.
In some ways Rawlings had to cheat to make this story happen, had to invent and secret in aspects of the story that were not in the Odessy in order to make it work. And even, the restrictions of women according to the time and culture in her characters lived meant that she could have gone further with this story, to delve deeply into strength and potential of women as I had hoped. Any attempt to have women go off on adventures on their own in ancient Greece, unless their were Amazons or in some other way free from men and the burdens of reputation, ultimately results in a story that sounds forced. Or perhaps it can be done, but it came out sounding forced here, despite Rawlings best efforts. In the end I was a bit disappointed with this tale.
December 28, 2008
What if Odysseus' wife decided on her own "Odyssey" upon his return? That is the intriguing premise of this work. Jane Rawlings is not Homer, but she is not bad, either. This is an interesting work and will satisfy those who are curious about what happens to Penelope after the return of his husband from his long journey after Troy's fall.
Odysseus (and Telemachos) find to their surprise that Penelope had twin daughters after Odysseus left to join the Greek forces at Troy. They don't, at the outset, handle this and its implications well. Then, after a terrible wound suffered by Telemachos, Penelope and her daughters make their journey, in part to find a cure for the wound suffered.
Familiar figures are encountered (Helen [of Troy], the Amazon Queen, and so on). The poetry is sufficient for this work. The narrative catches one's attention. I am not captivated by the writer's treatment of the characters of Odysseus and Telemachos at the outset, but, overall, this is a worthwhile read for those interested in such a work.
Odysseus (and Telemachos) find to their surprise that Penelope had twin daughters after Odysseus left to join the Greek forces at Troy. They don't, at the outset, handle this and its implications well. Then, after a terrible wound suffered by Telemachos, Penelope and her daughters make their journey, in part to find a cure for the wound suffered.
Familiar figures are encountered (Helen [of Troy], the Amazon Queen, and so on). The poetry is sufficient for this work. The narrative catches one's attention. I am not captivated by the writer's treatment of the characters of Odysseus and Telemachos at the outset, but, overall, this is a worthwhile read for those interested in such a work.
August 13, 2009
I am really enjoying this book so far, but I am sucker for just about anything having to do with Penelope. She is by far my favorite character in Homer.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews