Waiting for Odysseus - Softcover

McLaren, Clemence

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0689867050 ISBN 13: 9780689867057

Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers, 2004

Synopsis

Four women.
Four stories.
One man's journey.
Odysseus. His epic tale has been told countless times, but rarely is it heard through the voices of the women who loved and served him. Penelope, Circe, Athena, Eurycleia: Theirs are the silent voices, the voices of longing, waiting, strength. They are the women who moved him and motivated him. And now they shed new light on his age-old journey.

About this title

Review:

Odysseus took the long way home from the Trojan War--20 years of wandering and adventuring through the islands of the Aegean Sea. The story of his voyage is one of the great tales of Western civilization--but meanwhile, what about the women who loved and yearned for this handsome, crafty hero? Homer has very little to say about how these women felt about being at the mercy of Odysseus's wanderlust. To even the score, Clemence McClaren follows her award-winning Inside the Walls of Troy with a novel that offers a backstage perspective of Odysseus's life and adventures from the voices of the four women who cared most.

First, of course, is the spectacularly faithful Penelope, who was struck with love for Odysseus at first sight, and plotted to win him from her cousin, the beautiful Helen. And then there is the sensuous witch Circe, who turns men into swine and lures Odysseus to stay, only to be caught in the trap of love herself. The virgin goddess Pallas Athene watches over her favorite with fond amusement, and his ancient nurse Eurycleia grumbles and hopes through the long years, raising Odysseus's son Telemachus and helping Penelope fend off a bevy of suitors. As any woman might expect, when the hero finally does return there is emotional baggage to be cleared away before the longed-for happy ending. An extra treat for mythology buffs, especially girls, to accompany a first reading of The Odyssey, or simply to be enjoyed as an exotic love story. (Ages 12 and older) --Patty Campbell

About the Author:

Clemence McLaren writes:

"When I was a sixth grader, I used to read The Odyssey with a flashlight after I'd been sent to bed. I was both fascinated and frustrated when the women characters left their endless weaving to make brief, intriguing appearances in the men's hall. I always wanted to know how they felt about what was happening, but that was almost never revealed. Did Helen enjoy having the world's most beautiful face? Did Penelope blame her for launching the great war? And why did Circe keep changing men into pigs? I suppose I began retelling these stories to answer my own questions. When I became a teacher, I told my stories to my students, always embroidering on the characters' personalities.

"My fascination for Greece began with that early reading, and I grew up to live out my dreams for six years (on and off) in a tiny Greek village named Mylos, where we had a cottage between the one-room schoolhouse and the bakery.

"I now live in Hawaii, where I'm again studying the language and the legends, amazed at the parallels with Greek mythology. There's a Hawaiian Helen of Troy (named Hina), and a Polynesian equivalent to the Trojan horse (a wooden shark god, engineered to conceal enemy warriors). I'm still telling stories to my students, sharing my own passion for the classics and also teaching them to look more deeply for the silenced voices."

Clemence McLaren has also written Inside the Walls of Troy and Dance for the Land.

About this edition

• Publisher: Atheneum Books for Young Readers
• Publication date: 2004
• ISBN 10: 0689867050
• ISBN 13: 9780689867057
• Binding: Mass Market Paperback
• Number of pages: 160