The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller
My rating: 3 of 5 stars
The myth of Achilles is a story that has fascinated me ever since I was younger, so it was time for a deep-dive. Without spoiling too much of the story, I was a bit disappointed that the expectation with regards to his heel were not met. I have come to learn that this was added to the story at a later moment in time and hence might be imagined, but so were many other parts of the story. Apparently, hearsay is difficult to correct, once it has spread among the populous, almost like a (corona)virus of the mind. Honestly, I liked the well-known ending better, but I appreciate this more realistic version of the death of a half-god. For me there was definitely a part in the middle of the book with which I struggled and luckily the pace picked up later on. The fact that the protagonist was such a wuss from the start out might be the cause. All in all, after this, I am looking forward to read more stories of mythology, both Greek and Norse.