Review of Medusa by Rosie Hewlett

 

Medusa by Rosie Hewlett 

"History is written by the winners. Or, more simply, history is written by men." p7 

This book made me so happy for so many reasons! A book about the fierce Gorgon Medusa? I picked this book up so quickly! This was such a delight and so easy to read honestly! From that first page, I was tied in. If you think you know the story of the famous monster with snakes as hair then Hewlett is here to tell you, you are so very wrong! The magic of this book is the voice that Hewlett creates. Medusa's innocent and naive voice. Medusa's sarcastic and bitter voice. It was powerful and nuanced and whimsical. Hewlett offered so much in the small book and I'm so happy I stumbled upon it at the bookstore! This is the story of survival, disappointment, family, trust, revenge, acceptance, and so much more. I promise you, you will consume this book so quickly, you'll almost want to read it again! 

So for those that don't know Medusa is a mythological monster who had snakes as hair and quite literally a deadly stare. Look her in the eyes and be turned to stone. But the amazing thing that Hewlett does here is giving her story so much more depth and humanizes her in such a beautiful way. The number one thing I loved about Medusa's voice was how it spoke indirectly about the world for women today. The MeToo movement, rape culture, and victim-blaming. Although this was through an ancient lens it speaks volumes for today. This book is told very much in the first person, Medusa tells her story from her lips. At some points, it's all factual myth retelling and at some points, Hewlett takes lovely control of the narrative. Honestly, I can't recommend this enough. 

Stand out Quote: 

"The most powerful revelations are the ones we discover for ourselves." pg. 84

Some questions to ponder: 

1. How do you feel this novel covers the MeToo Movement, rape culture, and victim-blaming? 
2. In the Chapter Beauty Medusa discusses the curse of beauty and the fears of a beautiful woman around men, do you agree with her statements? 
3. At what points do the character arches of Medusa shift? 
4. Perseus and Medusa make an unexpected friendship, why do you believe this works for them? 

Thanks for stopping by! 

-MDB