Natalie Haynes

"With her trademark passion, wit, and fierce feminism, Natalie Haynes gives much-needed voice to the silenced women of the Trojan War."--Madeline Miller, author of Circe Shortlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction, a gorgeous retelling of the Trojan War from the perspectives of the many women involved in its causes and consequences--for fans of Madeline Miller. This is the women's war, just as much as it is the men's. They have waited long enough for their turn . . . This was never the story of one woman, or two. It was the story of them all . . . In the middle of the night, a woman wakes to find her beloved city engulfed in flames. Ten seemingly endless years of conflict between the Greeks and the Trojans are over. Troy has fallen. From the Trojan women whose fates now lie in the hands of the Greeks, to the Amazon princess who fought Achilles on their behalf, to Penelope awaiting the return of Odysseus, to the three goddesses whose feud started it all, these are the stories of the women whose lives, loves, and rivalries were forever altered by this long and tragic war. A woman's epic, powerfully imbued with new life, A Thousand Ships puts the women, girls and goddesses at the center of the Western world's great tale ever told. --Madeline Miller, author of Circe

A Novel

A Thousand Ships

'Natalie Haynes is the nation's muse' Adam Rutherford The Greek myths are one of the most important cultural foundation-stones of the modern world. Stories of gods and monsters are the mainstay of epic poetry and Greek tragedy, from Homer to Virgil to from Aeschylus to Sophocles and Euripides. And still, today, a wealth of novels, plays and films draw their inspiration from stories first told almost three thousand years ago. But modern tellers of Greek myth have usually been men, and have routinely shown little interest in telling women's stories. Now, in Pandora's Jar, Natalie Haynes - broadcaster, writer and passionate classicist - redresses this imbalance. Taking Greek creation myths as her starting point and then retelling the four great mythic sagas: the Trojan War, the Royal House of Thebes, Jason and the Argonauts, Heracles, she puts the female characters on equal footing with their menfolk. The result is a vivid and powerful account of the deeds - and misdeeds - of Hera, Aphrodite, Athene and Circe. And away from the goddesses of Mount Olympus it is Helen, Clytemnestra, Jocasta, Antigone and Medea who sing from these pages, not Paris, Agamemnon, Orestes or Jason.

Women in the Greek Myths

Pandora's Jar

When you have grown up as I have, there is no security in not knowing things, in avoiding the ugliest truths because they can't be faced . . . Because that is what happened the last time, and that is why my siblings and I have grown up in a cursed house, children of cursed parents . . . Jocasta is just fifteen when she is told that she must marry the King of Thebes, an old man she has never met. Her life has never been her own, and nor will it be, unless she outlives her strange, absent husband. Ismene is the same age when she is attacked in the palace she calls home. Since the day of her parents' tragic deaths a decade earlier, she has always longed to feel safe with the family she still has. But with a single act of violence, all that is about to change. With the turn of these two events, a tragedy is set in motion. But not as you know it. In Children of Jocasta, Natalie Haynes reimagines the Oedipus and Antigone stories from the perspectives of two of the women who have often been overlooked; retelling the myth to reveal a new side of an ancient story.

The Children of Jocasta

“So to mortal men, we are monsters. Because of our flight, our strength. They fear us, so they call us monsters.”

Medusa is the sole mortal in a family of gods. Growing up with her Gorgon sisters, she begins to realize that she is the only one who experiences change, the only one who can be hurt. And her mortal lifespan gives her an urgency that her family will never know.

When the sea god Poseidon commits an unforgivable act in the temple of Athene, the goddess takes her revenge where she can – and Medusa is changed forever. Writhing snakes replace her hair, and her gaze now turns any living creature to stone. The power cannot be controlled: Medusa can look at nothing without destroying it. She is condemned to a life of shadows and darkness.

Until Perseus embarks upon a quest to fetch the head of a Gorgon . . .

In “Stone Blind”, Natalie Haynes – the Women’s Prize-shortlisted author of A Thousand Ships – brings the infamous Medusa to life as you have never seen her before . . .

Stone Blind

"Funny, sharp explications of what these sometimes not-very-nice women were up to, and how they sometimes made idiots of . . . but read on!"--Margaret Atwood, author of The Handmaid's Tale The national bestselling author of A Thousand Ships returns with a fascinating, eye-opening take on the remarkable women at the heart of classical stories Greek mythology from Helen of Troy to Pandora and the Amazons to Medea. The tellers of Greek myths--historically men--have routinely sidelined the female characters. When they do take a larger role, women are often portrayed as monstrous, vengeful or just plain evil--like Pandora, the woman of eternal scorn and damnation whose curiosity is tasked with causing all the world's suffering and wickedness when she opened that forbidden box. But, as Natalie Hayes reveals, in early Greek myths there was no box. It was a jar . . . which is far more likely to tip over. In Pandora's Jar, the broadcaster, writer, stand-up comedian, and passionate classicist turns the tables, putting the women of the Greek myths on an equal footing with the men. With wit, humor, and savvy, Haynes revolutionizes our understanding of epic poems, stories, and plays, resurrecting them from a woman's perspective and tracing the origins of their mythic female characters. She looks at women such as Jocasta, Oedipus' mother-turned-lover (turned Freudian sticking point), who gouged out her eyes upon discovering the truth about her new relationship, and was less helpless than we have been led to believe. She considers Helen of Troy--whose face famously "launch'd a thousand ships," but was decidedly more child than woman when she was accused of "causing" the Trojan war. She demonstrates how the vilified Medea was like an ancient Beyonce--getting her revenge on the men who hurt and betrayed her, perhaps justifiably so. And she turns her eye to Medusa--the serpent-like seductress whose stare turned men to stone--who wasn't always a monster, and was far more victim than perpetrator. Pandora's Jar brings nuance and care to the centuries-old myths and legends and asks the question: Why we were so quick to villainize these women in the first place--and so eager to accept the stories we've been told?

Analyzes the influence of Greek and Roman history on modern society, revealing how the Greeks and Romans built formidable empires, had successful political models, and created cultural establishments that continue to influence everyday aspects of contemporary life.

The Ancient Guide to Modern Life

Moving from London to Edinburgh after tragically losing her fiancé, former actress Alex Morris accepts a drama-therapy teaching job for troubled teens and bonds with them over the Greek tragedies in ways that help her heal but inspire the teens in disturbing ways. By the award-winning author of The Ancient Guide to Modern Life.

The Furies

New York Times bestselling author Natalie Haynes returns to the world of ancient Greek myth in this scintillating follow-up to Pandora's Jar. Few writers today have reshaped our view of the ancient Greek myths more than revered bestselling author Natalie Haynes. Divine Might is a female-centered look at Olympus and the Furies, focusing on the goddesses whose prowess, passions, jealousies, and desires rival those of their male kin, including: Athene, who sprang fully formed from her father's brow (giving Zeus a killer headache in the process), the goddess of war and provider of wise counsel. Aphrodite, born of the foam (and sperm released from a Titan's castrated testicles), the most beautiful of all the Olympian goddesses, the epitome of love who dispenses desire and inspires longing--yet harbors a fearsome vengeful side, doling out brutal punishments to those who displease her. Hera, Zeus's long-suffering wife, whose jealousy born of his repeated dalliances with mortals, nymphs, and other goddesses, leads her to wreak elaborate and often painful revenge on those she believes have wronged her. (Well, wouldn't you?) Demeter, goddess of the harvest and mother of Persephone; Artemis, the hunter and goddess of wild spaces; the Muses, the nine daughters of Zeus and Mnemosyne, the goddess of memory; and Hestia, goddess of domesticity and sacrificial fire. Infused with Haynes's engaging charm and irrepressible wit, Divine Might is a refreshing take on the legends and stories we thought we knew.

Goddesses in Greek Myth

Divine Might

The scintillating follow-up to Pandora's Jar from bestselling author Natalie Haynes.

Una donna sola corre nella notte, intorno a lei la sua città che brucia. Fuori dalle mura, la regina e altre sventurate attendono un destino che verrà deciso dai vincitori. È la caduta di Troia. Dieci interminabili anni di guerra sono giunti alla tragica conclusione, mentre le avventure dei protagonisti andranno a ispirare, nei secoli a venire, le opere di artisti e scrittori. «Cantami o Musa» invoca il sommo poeta Omero, che ha raccontato le gesta degli eroi. Ma Calliope, musa della poesia epica, questa volta è meno accomodante: è convinta che non tutto sia stato narrato, che qualcosa di fondamentale, legato alle figure femminili, manchi ancora per completare l’affresco. Se il bardo vuole che lei canti, allora lei canterà insieme a tutte le donne coinvolte nella grande tragedia. Dando voce a ciascuna di loro, Calliope prende in mano la storia e ce la racconta da una nuova prospettiva. Ecco Andromaca, Cassandra, Pentesilea, Clitennestra, che vengono alla ribalta, con i loro pensieri, con i complicati risvolti psicologici delle loro scelte, con la sete di vendetta, la solitudine, la dignità di fronte alla morte. E poi tutte le altre, da Penelope a Briseide, da Creusa a Ifigenia, dalle troiane che, vinte, saranno rese schiave, alle greche che attendono il rientro dei loro uomini, senza dimenticare le capricciose divinità che governano le sorti dei mortali. Attingendo alle fonti antiche, anche le meno note, Natalie Haynes rivisita una delle più grandi narrazioni di tutti i tempi, facendoci palpitare di commozione accanto alle leggendarie eroine, e trasmettendoci il sentimento vivo di come la guerra di Troia e la sua epopea appartengano alle donne non meno che agli uomini.

Il canto di Calliope

The Breathtaking Sunday Times Bestseller

Longlisted for the Women's Prize for Fiction 2023 "Haynes is master of her trade . . . She succeeds in breathing warm life into some of our oldest stories."--Telegraph (UK) The national bestselling author of A Thousand Ships and Pandora's Jar returns with a fresh and stunningly perceptive take on the story of Medusa, the original monstered woman. They will fear you and flee you and call you a monster. The only mortal in a family of gods, Medusa is the youngest of the Gorgon sisters. Unlike her siblings, Medusa grows older, experiences change, feels weakness. Her mortal lifespan gives her an urgency that her family will never know. When the sea god Poseidon assaults Medusa in Athene's temple, the goddess is enraged. Furious by the violation of her sacred space, Athene takes revenge--on the young woman. Punished for Poseidon's actions, Medusa is forever transformed. Writhing snakes replace her hair and her gaze will turn any living creature to stone. Cursed with the power to destroy all she loves with one look, Medusa condemns herself to a life of solitude. Until Perseus embarks upon a fateful quest to fetch the head of a Gorgon . . . In Stone Blind, classicist and comedian Natalie Haynes turns our understanding of this legendary myth on its head, bringing empathy and nuance to one of the earliest stories in which a woman--injured by a powerful man--is blamed, punished, and monstered for the assault. Delving into the origins of this mythic tale, Haynes revitalizes and reconstructs Medusa's story with her passion and fierce wit, offering a timely retelling of this classic myth that speaks to us today.

Natalie Haynes, author of the bestselling Pandora’s Jar, returns to the world of Greek myth and this time she examines the role of the goddesses. We meet Athene, who sprang fully formed from her father’s head: goddess of war and wisdom, guardian of Athens. We run with Artemis, goddess of hunting and protector of young girls (apart from those she decides she wants as a sacrifice). Here is Aphrodite, goddess of sex and desire – there is no deity more determined and able to make you miserable if you annoy her. And then there’s the queen of all the Olympian gods: Hera, Zeus’s long-suffering wife, whose jealousy of his dalliances with mortals, nymphs and goddesses lead her to wreak elaborate, vicious revenge on those who have wronged her. We also meet Demeter, goddess of agriculture and mother of the kidnapped Persephone, we sing the immortal song of the Muses and we warm ourselves with Hestia, goddess of the hearth and sacrificial fire. The Furies carry flames of another kind – black fires of vengeance for those who incur their wrath. These goddesses are as mighty, revered and destructive as their male counterparts. Isn’t it time we looked beyond the columns of a ruined temple to the awesome power within?

Val McDermid

Alyssa Cole

Lucy Foley

Ruth Ware

Leigh Bardugo

Jean Kwok

Kate Mosse

Karen M. McManus

Naomi Alderman

Elly Griffiths

Dreda Say Mitchell

Agatha Christie

Marple: Twelve New Stories

A dark psychological page-turner about an inexperienced teacher who builds a powerful - and ultimately dangerous - connection with her students.

The Amber Fury

When Alex Morris loses her fiance in dreadful circumstances, she moves from London to Edinburgh to make a break from the past. Alex takes a job at a Pupil Referral Unit, which accepts the students excluded from other schools in the city. These are troubled, difficult kids and Alex is terrified of what she's taken on. There is one class - a group of five teenagers - who intimidate Alex and every other teacher on The Unit. But with the help of the Greek tragedies she teaches, Alex gradually develops a rapport with them. Finding them enthralled by tales of cruel fate and bloody revenge, she even begins to worry that they are taking her lessons to heart, and that a whole new tragedy is being performed, right in front of her."

Amber Fury

A Best Book of the Year from The Observer No Friend to This House is an extraordinary reimagining of the myth of Medea from the New York Times bestselling author of Stone Blind, Natalie Haynes. This is what no one tells you, in the songs sung about Jason and the Argo. This part of his quest has been forgotten, by everyone but me . . . Jason and his Argonauts set sail to find the Golden Fleece. The journey is filled with danger, for him and everyone he meets. But if he ever reaches the distant land he seeks, he faces almost certain death. Medea—priestess, witch, and daughter of a brutal king—has the power to save the life of a stranger. Will she betray her family and her home, and what will she demand in return? Medea and Jason seize their one chance of a life together, as the gods intend. But their love is steeped in vengeance from the beginning, and no one—not even those closest to them—will be safe. Based on the classic tragedy by Euripides, this is Medea as you've never seen her before . . .

No Friend to This House

Jokaste & Ödipus – durch Blut verbunden, in Liebe vereint, vom Schicksal verdammt

Eine spannende Nacherzählung des Mythos um Ödipus und Antigone aus der Perspektive zweier Frauenfiguren, die bisher oft übersehen wurden: Jocaste und Ismene enthüllen die antike Geschichte neu.

 

Keiner kann dem Fluch entkommen, der auf dem König von Theben ruht: Er soll durch die Hand seines eigenen Sohnes sterben. Und so fordert er von seiner frischvermählten Ehefrau nur eines: eine Tochter. Doch die fünfzehnjährige Jokaste gebärt einen Sohn, ohne den Fluch zu kennen. Alle im Königspalast lassen sie glauben, ihr Baby wäre tot geboren, denn alle wollen dem Schicksal entgehen.
Als der König stirbt, übernimmt Jokaste dessen Amt. An ihrer Seite der junge Ödipus, der Bote, der ihr vom Tod des Königs und seiner tragischen Rolle darin berichtet hat. Die beiden kommen sich näher und wissen nicht, dass sie mehr verbindet, als ihnen lieb ist – ein Fluch, der auch die nächste Generation nicht loslassen wird.

Die Kinder der Jokaste

Myślisz, że słyszałeś już wszystko o wojnie trojańskiej? Ta powieść to epopeja, w której kobiety, dziewczęta i boginie znalazły się w centrum największej opowieści świata zachodniego. To była wojna kobiet, tak samo jak mężczyzn. One już wystarczająco długo czekały na swoją kolej. W środku nocy budzą się i widzą, że ich ukochane miasto stoi w płomieniach. Dziesięć pozornie niekończących się lat konfliktu między Grekami a Trojanami dobiegło końca – Troja upadła. Poczynając od trojańskich kobiet, których los leży teraz w rękach Greków, przez amazońską księżniczkę, która w ich imieniu walczyła z Achillesem, Penelopę oczekującą powrotu Odyseusza, aż po trzy boginie, od których waśni wszystko się zaczęło – oto historie kobiet, których życie na zawsze zmieniło się w wyniku długiej i tragicznej wojny. W tej powieści poznasz matki, córki, siostry, żony i boginie, które wychowywały, kochały, niszczyły i opłakiwały sławnych bohaterów. Dowiesz się, czy Penelopa była faktycznie tak delikatna, jak ją sobie wyobrażamy, czy uroda Heleny stanowiła prawdziwy powód wojny oraz czy miłość macierzyńska to zawsze najszczersza siła na świecie…

Natalie Haynes

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