Myth retellings books
Myth retellings books to start from. Open one to see books like it, or tell BookSense what you loved for four picks made for you.
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New to the genre? These 5 are the books to read first.
Circe
Madeline MillerExpands the brief Odyssey episode into an episodic life history centered on female autonomy and exile.
The silence of the girls
Pat BarkerRecounts the fall of Troy through Briseis and the enslaved women of the Greek camp, stripping away romanticized heroic violence.
The Penelopiad
Margaret AtwoodA short, satirical revision of the Odyssey narrated from Hades by Penelope and a chorus of her hanged maids.
The Palace of Illusions
Chitra Banerjee DivakaruniRetells the Sanskrit epic Mahabharata from the viewpoint of Panchaali (Draupadi).
Till We Have Faces
C. S. LewisA theological and philosophical reinterpretation of the Cupid and Psyche myth narrated by Psyche's embittered sister Orual.
Chosen and described with AI from our notes on the genre.
Reading lists
More myth retellings books
- The King Must Die
The King Must DieMary Renault - Grendel
GrendelJohn Gardner - Cassandra
CassandraChrista Wolf - Lavinia
LaviniaUrsula K. Le Guin - The Once and Future King
The Once and Future KingT. H. White - A Thousand Ships
A Thousand ShipsNatalie Haynes - Kaikeyi
KaikeyiVaishnavi Patel - Norse Mythology
Norse MythologyNeil Gaiman - The Battle of the Labyrinth
The Battle of the LabyrinthRick Riordan2005 - The Sea of Monsters
The Sea of MonstersRick Riordan2005 - The Titan's Curse
The Titan's CurseRick Riordan2007 - The Lightning Thief
The Lightning ThiefRick Riordan2005