Lets talk about Mythica by Emily Hauser

   *I was gifted an advanced reading copy from Doubleday in exchange for an honest review*

Hi readers welcome back!

A slightly different review today as this is my first non-fiction book review! I set myself a goal this year to read one non-fiction book each month, and kicking us off first is Mythica by Emily Hauser. This is possibly my favourite book this year (a strong claim considering we're five months in, but I loved it that much). 

Award-winning classicist and historian Emily Hauser takes readers on an epic journey to uncover the astonishing true story of the real women behind ancient Greece’s greatest legends, and the real heroes of those ancient epics, Homer's Iliad and Odyssey . . .

Contrary to perceptions built up over three millennia, ancient history is not all about men – and it's not only men's stories that deserve to be told.

In Mythica Emily Hauser tells, for the first time, the extraordinary stories of the real women behind some of the western world’s greatest legends. Following in their footsteps, digging into the history behind Homer’s epic poems, piecing together evidence from the original texts, recent astonishing archaeological finds and the latest DNA studies, she reveals who these women – queens, mothers, warriors, slaves – were, how they lived, and how history has (or has not – until now) remembered them.

A riveting new history of the Bronze Age Aegean and a journey through Homer’s epics charted entirely by women – from Helen of Troy, Briseis, Cassandra and Aphrodite to Circe, Athena, Hera, Calypso and Penelope – Mythica is a ground-breaking reassessment of the reality behind the often-mythologized women of Greece’s greatest epics, and of the ancient world itself as we learn ever more about it.

The subject of this book is similar to my dissertation topic, I could have done with this book 3 years ago, and is a captivating exploration of Homer's women through archaeological discoveries and the Bronze Age women that history has forgotten.

The book is divided into two parts, focusing on each of Homer's epics; The Iliad and The Odyssey, with each chapter dedicated to the overlooked women, from Helen, Penelope, and Circe to Eurycleia, Thetis, and Arete giving it full scope. My favourite chapter has to be Calypso's and I found the research into classical dyes and weaving technique fascinating! Hauser uses this to provide a different perception of these women we think we know so well. In Calypso's case, Hauser explains how it would have taken one women, working seven-hour days, around four years to spin and weave enough fabric for a single ancient Greek sail and so, perhaps the reason it took Calypso seven years to weave Odysseus a new sail isn't because she was holding him captive, but because the demands of her labour were impossibly large and lonely... Utterly fascinating!

Hauser's language is erudite yet concise, making it accessible whether you're a novice to Greek mythology discourse, or well-versed.

The perfect companion guide to the feminist retellings that dominate the market, Mythica by Emily Hauser is detailed, insightful, thought-provoking, and a treasure in classical history.

Until next time, readers!