Tharindu Dissanayake's Reviews > The Song of Achilles

"The never-ending ache of love and sorrow."

There are a few books I come across everyday while going through my GR feed, and The Song of Achilles is at top of that list. Rightly so, I have to agree, the heart-wrenching ending notwithstanding. Spoiling this book for future readers would be a crime, so while I'm sharing my thoughts, I'll do my best not to overshare.

"We obey our kings, but only within reason."

Patroclus - the lesser known hero - being the protagonist helps narrate the story of Achilles from a very unique standpoint. While the sequence of events does follow the Trojan war, war part only feels like a sub-plot which complements the main plot beautifully. The reader would rarely await the outcomes of war, for, the amazing and somewhat poetic narrative keeps one deeply immersed in the feelings of the main character. Still, you'll come across the brutalities of war as well, and how they change the characters and their personalities as the story progresses.

"I find the folly of men amusing."

As I was finishing the first half of the book, it didn't feel that eventful or impressive in itself. Sure, it was interesting and had a nice flow to it, with some intricate details about both Achilles and Patroclus, but it didn't feel like anything new: a regular romance novel. But as you finish through the last chapters, those seemingly uneventful - though quite emotional - first half will deepen the reader's emotions profoundly. I think a re-read of this might prove very difficult, especially with the first half, with being familiar with the ending. Still, you'll definitely re-read this.

"No man is worth more than another, wherever he is from."

It might be easy to hate Achilles during the latter half of the story, based on some of his decisions, and rightly so. But, I think it's a good thing that the author did not alter his character to fix those flows. The objective of the story was never to portrait the greatness of Achilles. And as for the ending: it was as emotional and beautiful as it could be. Madeline Miller had done justice to Patroclus with The Song of Achilles perfectly.

" 'Go,' she says. 'He waits for you.' "