Song of Achilles

When I was a freshman in high school, my friends and I made a video adaptation of The Odyssey with what was probably a 20-pound video camera. It involved a toilet, my family's swimming pool and my friend Donna doing a hilarious imitation of the gender-ambiguous character "Pat" from Saturday Night Live.

What does that have to do with anything? Well, that's my last touch with Greek mythology. For that reason, Song of Achilles wasn't on my radar and isn't a book I would naturally pick up off the shelf. In recent months, though, it kept coming up in random articles I read. Then, my insanely smart and well-read co-worker offered to loan it to me. I decided the Fates must be speaking to me and I gave it a shot.

Song of Achilles is a unique take on the Greek figure most of us only know about because of that tendon that bears his name. I remembered a bit about his story, but not a lot. For that reason, I was enthralled from the beginning and wasn't entirely aware that I was being taken on a unique journey.

This book is told not by Achilles, but by Patroclus. Patroclus is exiled as a child and ends up in the care of Achilles' father. The boys become friends in childhood, then become much more than that. Song of Achilles is about the Trojan war, but more than that, it's a love story between these two men. You follow their journey across the seas, all the while knowing, as they do, that a prophecy predicts Achilles' demise.

I predicted this book would be heavy-handed. I thought the mythology would put me off and that I'd never keep the characters straight. Instead, I fell in love with the love story between these two men and followed with them as their hearts grew heavy, knowing that death would end it all. And, I learned that it's possible to have a story with a surprise twist, even when the ending is foretold.

I've read some reviews from very smart New York Times people who hated this book and the romance with which it's told. I'm good with that. Sometimes, it's okay to love the love story and to get lost in it. But, Greek mythology purists whose experience with the genre go beyond high school class projects may not be able to suspend the weight of the original tales to really enjoy it.

As for me, I'm sticking to the genre and tonight will crack Circe - the new book by the same author. I'm about to find out if it's overkill.