Circe by Madeline Miller

4.5/5

From the enchanting tale of Odysseus and his encounter with the "witch of Aiaia," comes the story of the goddess of magic Circe and her view of the meeting with Odysseus. When a daughter is born to the God of the sun, Helios, it is immediately apparent that she is different. She is not as strong or powerful as her father, or overwhelmingly beautiful like her mother. Circe spends the first half of her life trying desperately to fit in, only to find herself further distanced. The second half is spent turning to mortals for companionship. She first discovers her powers, when she transforms a mortal into a God, with the hopes of him marrying her. Intimidated by her abilities, Zeus banishes her to an island forbidding her ever to leave. This island is where she tames wild animals, perfects her craft and encounters many of the most famous mythological beings. With power comes danger and Circe feels the wrath of both God and man. To protect what she loves, she must face one of the most vengeful of all the Olympians and ultimately decide whether she belongs to the God's that created her or the mortals that she so loves.

Madeline Miller's second novel as well as second New York Times Bestseller, Circe was published on April 10th of 2018 by Little, Brown and Company. Madeline Miller grew up in New York City and Philadelphia. She attended Brown University, where she earned her BA and MA in Classics. She has taught and tutored Latin, Greek and Shakespeare to high school students for the past twenty years. She has also studied at the University of Chicago’s Committee on Social Thought, and in the Dramaturgy department at Yale School of Drama, where she focused on the adaptation of classical texts to modern forms. The Song of Achilles, her first novel, was awarded the 2012 Orange Prize for Fiction and was a New York Times Bestseller. Madeline was also shortlisted for the 2012 Stonewall Writer of the Year. Her second novel, Circe, was an instant number 1 New York Times bestseller, and won the 2018 Elle Big Book Award. Madeline's essays have appeared in a number of publications including the Guardian, Wall Street Journal, Washington Post, Telegraph, Lapham's Quarterly and National Public Radio. She currently lives outside Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.