5 Retellings Of Greek Myths Perfect For Book Club Discussion

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Greek mythology is quite literally comprised of tales as old as time. And whether you're obsessed with them like our writer or remember reading one or a few retellings in school, you'll know that these larger-than-life legends are messy, flawed, and have some of the most questionable moral compasses. They may be gods, goddesses, terrifying monsters, and extraordinary humans, but a lot of their stories are going to feel seriously relatable.

Their stories are packed with drama, a whole lot of revenge, some killer ambition, and chaos. All of that chaos is part of why we continue to obsess over Greek myths and continue to want to retell them over and over again. The heightened emotions, the high stakes, and the devastating consequences are themes that have resonated with readers from every century. Just look at the legendary battle of Troy, which has been told and reimagined in countless ways.

Retellings allow modern authors to return to some of the world's most ancient stories with a fresh narrative, giving today's readers the chance to see familiar myths in a new light. So, if your book club has been guilty of making the mistake you don't want to make when picking a new read and has yet to read a retelling of a classic Greek myth, it's time to change that. It's never too late to start, and that's why we're here to bring you some of the best retellings of Greek myths that are perfect for book club discussion.

As you may have guessed, Madeline Miller's "Circe" is a retelling of the story of Circe, the goddess best known for turning men into animals. Often portrayed through a vilified lens within classical mythology and many retellings, Miller wanted to shed new light on her story. In a 2018 interview with BookPage, the author, who majored in Classics, said, "I wanted to tell the story of such an interesting and complex woman in her own words, rather than filtered through the male protagonist's perspective."

If you grew up reading Greek mythology like our writer, whose favorite book is Homer's "The Odyssey," "Circe" needs to be on your book club's TBR. Miller's reimagining of Circe's story explores more than her short encounter with Odysseus and offers a deeper look into her life, from her troubled childhood to her lonely life spent in exile. An Amazon reviewer gave the book five stars and said, "What a great book! I don't always like alternate tellings but this was lyrical and thoughtful. It left me imagining more about the lives of Telemachus and Telegonus and other figures of mythology. I love how witchy Miller made Circe."

"Circe" is special because Miller does more than just retell a story. She has a way of bringing the characters to life, and it helps add a ton of emotional depth to Circe's story. You won't regret making "Circe" your book club's next read, as your club will be floored with how much a story can change depending on whose point of view it's told in. 

"The Penelopiad" will show readers how "The Handmaid's Tale" author Margaret Atwood pulls Penelope out of the shadows of Odysseus from "The Odyssey." In classic Greek mythology, Penelope is often remembered simply as the loyal wife who turns down countless suitors and patiently awaits her husband's return. But Atwood's story lends a helping hand to Penelope so she can tell her version of how things went down. In a 2005 interview with "The Guardian," Atwood said, "[Penelope] wants to tell 'you' that she's not what people thought, that other people had told stories about her, but now she is down in the underworld she doesn't care about social convention, she's going to tell her own story."

Looking back at her marriage and life, Penelope gives readers her very own account of the tale of "The Odyssey" from beyond the grave. Atwood's retelling is especially refreshing because it also tells the story from another biting perspective that just may be from the most intimate of lenses, but voices history rarely allowed to speak.

Fans of "The Odyssey" often read "Circe" and "The Penelopiad" back to back, as both female figures appear in Homer's epic. So, your book club could follow suit and compare how each author reshapes these female figures. A five-star Amazon reviewer did just that, noting that while she enjoyed both books and Miller's retelling in Circe's perspective, Atwood 'took an entirely different tack and wrote an entirely different book.'

"Medusa: The Girl Behind the Myth" by Jessie Burton is one of the many young adult novels of the 2020s that even adults can enjoy. The author of "Circe," Madeline Miller, described the book as a 'powerfully feminist, elegiac, and original twist' on a myth that many readers think they already know. Everyone remembers and pictures Medusa as the scary lady with snakes as her hair, but Burton's Medusa is so much more than that. Her loneliness may even bring a tear to your eyes.

Burton gives Medusa her moment to be more than just the monster everyone has come to fear, and instead, presents a young woman who is misunderstood, outcast, and just wants to belong and connect with others. With a figure deemed a villain for so long, Burton's lyrical writing will make you see Medusa in a new way. And, we promise your book club will have so much to unpack after finishing "Medusa: The Girl Behind the Myth." 

Readers were particularly satisfied with the unexpected ending and how Burton humanized Medusa's character in this retelling. An Amazon reviewer gave the book five stars and wrote, "I've read a number of retellings of Medusa and I would rank this as the best one so far ... No spoilers, but the ending actually left me feeling satisfied which is really hard to do with the Medusa story." Another reviewer gave the book a 4.5-star rating and commented, "I love how this made Medusa into a real person. I really enjoyed this one. If you find Greek mythology a little intimidating like I do, I think this is a great one to read."

"The Song of Achilles" is another Madeline Miller work to make this list, but we can't help it. Miller seriously has a knack for retelling Greek myths. Although our writer's favorite work from Miller is "Circe," many readers will beg to differ, as "The Song of Achilles" is a #BookTok favorite that fans have long been awaiting a movie adaptation for. Just an FYI, if you do end up choosing this book as your next book club read, make sure your readers have their tissue boxes ready, as this story is quietly devastating.

What makes "The Song of Achilles" worth a book club read and discussion is that it takes a character who has long been sidelined and gives readers the chance to know him in a more intimate manner. From his childhood, in which he rarely ever felt accepted, to his days spent with Achilles, the secret love of his life, readers get to experience the Trojan War and Achilles from Patroclus' point of view. The perfect topic to start your book club's discussion would be just how much Achilles will feel familiar yet so different at the same time in comparison to his character's portrayal in Homer's "The Iliad." 

More than a million Goodreads reviewers gave the book five stars. A five-star reviewer shared how much they appreciated getting to see Achilles in a different light, sharing, "I always found Achilles to be an unsympathetic character [...] Miller shows his unattractive qualities, but she also shows that Achilles is human. He's capable of love. He's deeply conflicted." 

You can't have a list of Greek myth retellings without including a work from Natalie Haynes. The author and comedian is known for her fictional retellings of Greek myths, such as "Stone Blind," "A Thousand Ships," and "The Children of Jocasta," but she loves Greek myths so much that she's also written some nonfiction retellings. "Pandora's Jar," which was published in 2022, is one of them. In this nonfiction work, Haynes explores ten of the most misinterpreted female figures from Greek myths, which include Medusa, Pandora, Helen, and Phaedra.  

In a 2022 interview with Writers & Company, Haynes explained that after writing fictional retellings for some years, she needed a break as they were becoming 'increasingly traumatic to write.' So, she opted for nonfiction as she enjoyed researching Greek myths and figures, but felt it was better to opt out of 'the quite stressful bit of imagining [these stories] from the inside out' and instead share her findings with readers. 

If this list has intrigued you into selecting a Greek myth retelling for your next book club pick, then "Pandora's Jar" would make a great introduction book. The stories about these women will challenge the most familiar myths and ignite insightful discussions about the extent to which female figures have been overlooked for centuries.

With Greek myths being retold for thousands of years, there are so many different retellings that it's honestly impossible to keep count. That said, when preparing this list we knew we didn't want to pick from a limitless selection. Keeping in mind that this list is dedicated to introducing book club worthy selections, we knew we'd have to narrow it down to modern retellings. Many readers often have a difficult time finishing or even starting older Greek myth retellings because the language can feel too dense and outdated. Modern retellings are like a refresher and are much easier to follow for any kind of reader.

That said, since we are a publication dedicated to Women, we thought this would also be the perfect opportunity to introduce our readers to some of the best feminist modern retellings of Greek myths that have been published. As with any of our lists, once we had a shortlist of selections, we did a thorough review of overall reader reception based on reviews on Amazon and Goodreads and discussions on subreddits. In the end, what we were left with was the perfect variety of feminist retellings of a mix of Greek myths that even include a queer retelling of Achilles and Patroclus' close relationship and a nonfiction pick that contests the stereotypical portrayal of female figures in these legendary stories.