Portrait of a girl, previously thought to represent Sappho the ancient Greek poetess, with tablets and pen. She is also known as Meditation. Italy. Roman. c 75 AD. Pompeii. (Photo by Werner Forman/Universal Images Group/Getty Images) I'm a book behind already in Nick's Master and Commander four year readalong of the series. I knew it … Continue reading Midnight Poem | Sappho #poem
I have been reading (and loving a lot) Square Haunting: Five Women, Freedom and London Between the War by Francesca Wade. Last week I featured a poem by the first woman, H. D. and I had hoped to do the same for each of the five woman. But Dorothy L. Sayers poetry was way too … Continue reading One Girl | Sappho #Poetry
Independent Scottish publisher Canongate Books brings together some of the world’s finest writers, in the Myth series, each of whom has retold a myth from various cultures in a contemporary and memorable way. The project was conceived in 1999 by Jamie Byng, owner of Canongate, who hopes that 100 titles will eventually be published in the … Continue reading The Penelopiad | Margaret Atwood #CANnovella
I've had a lovely run of Homeric stories retold from a feminist perspective this year - Madeline Miller's Circe and The Song of Achilles, and now Pat Barker's The Silence of the Girls.After Miller's wonderful, rich storytelling, I was looking forward to seeing what Barker would come up. I was thrilled that her story was … Continue reading The Silence of the Girls by Pat Barker
I recently read and loved The Song of Achilles, and couldn't really understand why I had waited so long to read a book that was so obviously designed to appeal to my reading temperament. Ancient Greek mythology, historical fiction, women's issues and award winning book all packed into one delightful package. I was determined not … Continue reading Circe by Madeline Miller
I'm not sure why it has taken me so long to get my thoughts together about The Song of Achilles, but sitting down to write about my response to this amazing story is probably a story in itself!It was during my early high school days that my love of history developed. My first history class … Continue reading The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
I'm currently reading and loving The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller and wanted to honour the story somehow. A Poem for Thursday seemed like the perfect way, especially when I discovered The Song of Achilles fanpage on Tumblr. Hannah has encapsulated the tone and feeling of Miller's story just so with this tender little … Continue reading The Song of Achilles – a poem
Home Fire was longlisted for this year's Man Booker and I so wish it had got the nod for the shortlist. It was a stronger, more consistently interesting story than 4 3 2 1, but perhaps the judging committee felt they had ticked the refugee/migrant experience by including Exit West?Either way it's a shame, because … Continue reading Home Fire by Kamila Shamsie
The plan was to reread Herodotus' The Histories in January/February along with Ruth @A Great Book Study.The reality however, turned out to be a little different.I knew I was going to be away for most of January, and as much as I wanted to take The Histories with me, I knew I wouldn't be able to … Continue reading Travels With Herodotus by Ryszard Kapuscinski
I first read The Histories at school.I was studying Ancient History and we were meant to read a handful of chapters in Herodotus that related to the topic we were focused on.But I fell in love. I couldn't get enough of this world and these people that I knew nothing about. I wanted to know … Continue reading The Histories by Herodotus – Readalong
Finishing The Odyssey has been...well, an odyssey!I started (re)reading it July last year (see previous posts here), which is the middle of our winter months. I enjoyed dipping into it a chapter at a time as our dark wintry evenings drew in. I reveled in the poetry - often reading sections out loud to savour … Continue reading The Odyssey – Finale
I had been rereading The Odyssey for the latest Classics Club spin, when I came across the article below by Mary Beard (thanks to Lee Anne at Lily Oak Books).I had had no idea who she was, but by coincidence, the night before I had been reading my copy of The Quarterly Essay #50 from June … Continue reading The Odyssey and the Female Voice
The best thing about The Classics Club blog being based in the USA, is that it is still the 10th of February there.Which means that it is still my birthday!Happy Birthday Me!!I've believed for sometime now that my birthday should not be constrained to just one day.I've been claiming the closest weekend to my birthday … Continue reading Classic Spin #5
I have a confession.I'm stuck.I was thoroughly enjoying my first ever reading of The Odyssey in verse thanks to Robert Fagles translation. I had even tempted Mr BB to try a little of it and he was impressed with the language and rhythm.But then I hit Book 11.OMG!The long, tedious roll call of the dead … Continue reading The Odyssey #3
I first read The Odyssey when I was in my final year of school.I was studying Ancient History and I had the (bad) habit of not only reading my required texts but also all the optional extra texts from start to finish...just for fun! My Ancient History teacher was delighted, but the rest of my … Continue reading The Odyssey by Homer #2
bronasbooks.com 