This was so funny and witty! I found the author’s voice to have such a sharp wit and specific tone, I really enjoyed it. This is different from what I would usually pick out but that ended up being a good thing.

A critical reexamination of the women of Greek myth though a 21st century feminist lens - by going back to the earliest sources of the myths. Haynes shows that over time, the women of Greek myth have been mostly silenced and simplified, and incredibly complex and powerful women in the hands of ancient Greek theater writers have been reduced to walk on roles as 'the girlfriend' in the hands of 19th century novelists and 20th century filmmakers.

A fascinating new look at the characters you thought you knew!

Deeply fascinating and sparklingly funny! Perfect for anyone with an interest in the Greek myths, the recent novelized retellings (Circle, Ariadne, A Thousand Ships), or the application of feminine perspectives to scholarship of any kind.

Natalie Haynes (A Thousand Ships) brings her background in Classics and stand-up to deliver a refreshing and scholarly look at the women of the Greek myths. She goes from Pandora to the Amazons to Medea and back again — with several others and the perfect amount of Beyonce, Buffy, Wonder Woman, and Clash of the Titans in the mix.

Well informed and full of wit, this exploration of the women of Greek myth looks at how stories can change and evolve depending on who is telling the story. It questions our understanding of the role of these women, and if our assumptions of them, their lives and motivations are fair, or even true. Essential and entertaining reading for anyone interested in the Greek myths.

This was my first book of Greek mythology. It was interesting and a rather feminist approach to it, which I enjoyed. I loved learning of the different women throughout.

Smart, feminist, funny and accessible….I loved this exploration of the Women of the Greek myths. Each chapter focuses on a key female character from mythology (eg. Helen, Medusa, Jocasta), and discusses her portrayal through the ages, misrepresentation and misogyny, referencing not only the classic Greek texts, but modern interpretations, fine art and pop culture. So informative and fascinating, I couldn’t put this down.

a great feminist look at several important and colourful women throughout the Greek myths. This is such a fascinating explanation and retelling and with the mix of humor that Natalie Haynes adds this is a wonderful story! The time I spent with my nose in these pages passed so fast! It was nice and refreshing to see history with women in a different light. It sure added new meaning to a lot of the myths we all know so well!

Pandora’s Jar by Natalie Haynes is a fascinating challenge to the status quo in Greek mythology. Thank you @harperperennial for the gifted copy!

Before going in, know that your enjoyment will depend on what you’re looking for. If you only want to escape into mythological storytelling, this isn’t the right fit. If you would like to learn about the roots of Greek myths and examine how women are portrayed in them, this is perfect!

Often the women in Greek mythology are under-developed or vilified. We learn about them through lens of other characters, typically men. In Pandora’s Jar, Natalie Haynes challenges that pattern by giving the spotlight to women, like Pandora, Medusa, and Penelope, and showing how their stories warped from the original texts to modern depictions.

You don’t need a deep understanding of mythology to read this. Natalie Haynes reminds you of all the stories and sprinkles in a bit of humor and sarcasm. I appreciated how the witty moments broke up the denser analysis.

I rarely read literary criticism, but I’m glad I tried this! It taught me a lot. And with the popularity of retellings right now, this is an important reminder to think critically about what we read and whose voices are heard.

This book is apparently nonfiction, which I somehow didn't realize until reading it and this fact alone kind of made it a disappointment. The stories about different women in Greek myths are written as essays exploring how they have been written and portrayed throughout history are interesting. Each chapter emphasizes that these women have been mostly treated unfairly, not fully realized characters with their emotions understood. Mostly because these stories they're usually side characters in a man's quest for glory and favor. Also, we can't ignore that Greek myths were written by white, rich and powerful men.

These men didn't really see a reason to focus their energy on female characters or to really make them make sense. Yes, they make mistakes, but often their actions are labeled as crazy or lovesick when really these women have their own motivations. Mostly mistreated or ignored by the men in their lives, they're sold like cattle, stollen as brides, assaulted, etc so of course they're going to make some choices that a male author of the time would disagree with.

I do think this book would have been better if it was presented from a point of fiction, each woman getting a story where she is finally fully realized and a central character. This would have been unique and interesting and more fun to read.

Thank you Netgalley for the arc of this book!

I'd like to thank NetGalley, Harper Perennial, and Natalie Haynes for a copy of this book in exchange for an honest review! Haynes is one of my favorite authors and this book did not disappoint. It included a lot of fascinating information, but was told in an easy-to-read and funny format. I was never bored but was instead interested in learning more about these women and their myths. I also liked the pictures included and the women chosen were great picks! Overall, this is a smart, yet modern, book that describes some well-known myths, but from the women's perspective. I highly recommend it!

Thank you so much to NetGalley for sending me a copy of this book! It was really interesting and filled with good information! I would love to learn more from this author in other mythos.

Thank you, Harper Perennial, for the gifted e-book!

This book is a fascinating look at popularly known women in Greek mythology and their victimization, villainization, or both, presenting the reader with evidence to the contrary and reflecting on the effects of male gaze on Greek mythology. Each essay feels like a feminist classics lecture, and I found myself wanting to engage in discussion with Haynes. Some essays were a bit long-winded, but I enjoyed her wide use of many sources as well as pop culture references, though I admit I did not know mamy of them. I love the way that Haynes reminds us that these women are characters, but regards them as human beings because of how centuries of storytelling have brought them to life and shaped them. This book is accessible and nuanced as Haynes brings scorned and (some( forgotten women from Greek mythology front and center. My personal favorite chapters were those about Helen of Troy and Medusa.

I really enjoyed learning more about the women in Greek mythology from a different perspective. Natalie Haynes does such a great job weaving to story of each woman without making it feel dry.

This took a bit to get into but ultimately a great read. All about women role in ancient myths. This was fun fem8 it’s and has serious scholarship behind it. Very much enjoyed.

Reading Greek myths is one of my favorite memories as a child and like man people, it didn't dawn on me until much, much later in my adulthood how many of the stories were from the point of view of men, even when the heroes of the stories were female. And most men can't do an adequate job writing women, nor do they give them any real dimension or substance. So reading a nonfiction book that essentially reclaims these women, whether they are major supporting characters or even heroes /anti heroes of the myths, felt like the right book that finally came about. Whether you as a reader are fascinated by Helen of Sparta/Troy or appalled by Medea, this book will try to put that threads of all of the stories about them to form a more realistic, deep and sometimes sympathetic figure than the ones we've been fed over the thousands of years of male storytelling,

I received this book for free from Netgalley. That did not influence this review.

I loved Natalie Haynes’ novel of the women (and goddesses) of the Trojan War, A Thousand Ships. So when I saw she’d written a nonfiction exploration of a similar topic, Pandora’s Jar: Women in the Greek Myths, I wanted to read it as well.

Haynes is an authority on Greek myths, particularly the women in the tales. This new work looks at Pandora, Jocasta, Helen, Medusa, the Amazons, Clytemnestra, Eurydice, Phaedra, Medea, and Penelope and how they have been viewed through the ages. The earliest appearances of these women (whether human, goddess, monster, or some combination) are often quite different from the versions we have come to know through later--even modern--representations. I was a bit surprised to learn that the early Greek renderings were often less misogynistic than more recent versions. The variations in the stories are fascinating and the reasoning behind the changes are complex. Haynes traces the evolution of the various tales and offers insight into how we’ve come to settle on particular versions, as well as why the stories are destined to continually change.

Haynes has a great deal of empathy for the characters. She writes clearly, with great understanding and with wit. I have always enjoyed retellings of the old myths and I equally enjoyed this analysis.

I recommend reading Pandora’s Jar and A Thousand Ships in tandem.

pandora’s jar is a compassionate, thorough examination of the remarkable women in greek mythology. haynes draws on both classical and contemporary tellings of these myths to explore why and how these fascinating, nuanced women have often been reduced to stereotypes—“villains, victims, wives and monsters”—while still remaining entertaining and accessible to readers.

This is an excellent book for anyone who enjoys literary criticism or essays on fiction. This also has the feeling of historical text critique, which makes this title hard to place in any specific category. Haynes writes her interpretations based on text and also shares the general facts of the text in such a way that it almost feels like you are following a historical fiction novel, even though it’s nonfiction. Haynes creates a unique style, comparable to authors like Erik Larson or Heather Morris who blur the lines of fiction and nonfiction.

I definitely do not recommend this as a beach read. This is more of a “grab a coffee and be prepared to use your noggin” type of read.

I read, enjoyed and recommended Ms. Haynes’s earlier book, A Thousand Ships. The novel told the story of the Trojan War from the women’s perspective. The author’s new book is a retelling of the stories of many women of Greek myth and legend. Included are Pandora, Jocasta, Helen, Medusa, The Amazons, Clytemnestra, Eurydice, Phaedra, Medea and Penelope. The end of the book includes a section of further reading and resources.

This book may be read straight through or readers may want to dip into sections of particular interest. Each woman receives a generous chapter with an illustration.Having read the Metamorphoses for a class this term, I went first to the section on Eurydice. I learned so much that I had not known, as for example more on the antecedents of the story. Ms. Haynes includes the tale, resources, commentary and all in a very readable, and at times humorous, fashion.

I recommend this book to teens and adults who are interested in ancient Greece. I am sure that it is a title to which I will return many times.

Many thanks to NetGalley and Harper Perennial and Paperbacks for this title. All opinions are my own.

Mixed bag. Parts of this were really interesting/good analysis, and then other parts felt very opinionated in a bad way. Sometimes it seemed like Haynes was simply inserting her personal views regardless of whether she could back it up or not. This is literature analysis, so you can get away with some of that, but she pushed it a little.

Recommended for those interested in the subject, but ultimately nothing really groundbreaking for me.

***Arc from Netgalley. Thank you!***