Pandora's Jar: Women in the Greek Myths by Natalie Haynes Review

 Title: Pandora’s Jar: Women in the Greek Myths

Author: Natalie Haynes

Age Group: Adult

Genre: Nonfiction/Literary Criticism

Series: Standalone

Star Rating: 5 out of 5 Stars

I borrowed this book from my local library and reviewed it.

As soon as I finished This Woven Kingdom, I dove into this collection; this is the second work I’ve read by Haynes, as the first was A Thousand Ships. This sharp, funny, and smart collection takes the reader on a deep dive through Greek myths and the women who populate them. She chooses ten different women: Pandora, Jocasta, Helen, Medusa, The Amazons, Clymenestra, Eurydice, Phaedra, Madea, and Penelope, and leads the reader through each in a way that is informative, decidedly feminist, and bitingly funny. This book, though short, was not a quick read; there was a lot of information to absorb. Nonetheless, I enjoyed it very much. Most of these women I knew, but none so intimately as Haynes describes them. As a scholar, classicist, and comedian, she gives these women a contemporary spin that makes them stand out all the more. Honestly, this book might tie for A Thousand Ships as my favorite work of Haynes’s.

I really liked this book! Even though it was rather heavy in some spots, this book cast an entirely different light on myths I thought I knew. I was familiar with almost every woman mentioned in this book, with the exception of Phaedra, but I never imagined Greek myths with women at their centers. I loved how Haynes explained the origins of each woman and how she drew contemporary examples. Medusa has always been one of my favorites, turned into a monster after being preyed upon by a god, and I loved how Haynes flipped the script and raised the question: Is being made into a monster after such a violation a bad thing? I was familiar with many of these myths, but I loved the way that Haynes led me through a deep dive of Greek myth, mining the culture at the time and how the myths reflected them. I loved seeing all of these women given their own agency, albeit many, many years later. Sometimes, the subject matter was really heavy, so I had to put it down, but overall, I very much enjoyed it! Highly recommended to people wanting a new and feminist view into the Greek classics that helped shape civilization. The bottom line; Biting, funny, and rich with detail, I loved Pandora’s Jar!