I love everything related to Greek mythology, so immediately jumped on this latest book by @nataliehaynesauthor. This tells the story (nonfiction) of the Greek goddesses -- some well known (Aphrodite or Athena) some lesser known (Hestia) sandwiched by the Muses and the Furies.
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Typical of everything she's done before, this is packed with information about these goddesses--even when she says up front that there's just about nothing in existence, she still manages to pull together a really engaging story. It provides context of how these goddesses showed up in art and culture throughout time, including modern pop culture references. And all the while, it's infused with her typical dry humor that makes all these characters accessible if not relatable.
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My only real critique is that there seemed to be a lot of information that was only somewhat tangential to the goddess in question (as much as I love reading about The Hunger Games in a book on Greek goddesses, I'm not sure we needed *quite* that much of a plot recap), that felt like it could have been edited down some.
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But like always, I definitely learned something, and really enjoyed reading this!

“Divine Might” is written very much in the same vein as Haynes’ previous publication, Pandora’s Jar,” wherein prominent women from Greek mythology are given a thorough reexamination. This time around, it’s the Greek goddesses who take center stage. The end result is a read that I found to be just as much a delight as its predecessor!

I’ve read about the figures covered within this book through countless tellings and retellings of their tales since my childhood, and as a result I thought that I knew them to some sizable degree. That however has changed quite a bit. With every chapter, Haynes took a battering ram to the lens through which I viewed a particular goddess with eye-opening new takes. And now that my perspective on a large chunk of Greek pantheon has been partially demolished and rebuilt, I honestly want to revisit the classic myths in the near future, for it feels like the old stories will now come across so differently that for some it may feel like I'm reading them for the very first time.

To say the least, Haynes has once again successfully given another burst of fresh life to Greek mythology, at least for this particular reader. I hope to see yet another nonfiction work of this type from her in the near future. However, I won’t be picky - with her track record, I’m sure that no matter how she revisits Greek mythology, I’m sure to be as entertained as I was with her latest publication.

Pobody’s Nerfect…expect Natalie Haynes. Who else can write such witty, intelligent books? Who else continually educates the masses on feminism and Greek goddesses and quotes the terminator and talks about Lizzo and everything in between?

Am I gushing? I’m gushing. Divine Might, a non-fiction book, examines the Muses, Hera, Aphrodite, Artemis, Demeter, Hestia, Athene, and the Furies. While I love mythology, I’ll be the first to admit it often seems inaccessible. Haynes removes that barrier.

Thanks NetGalley for sharing the goodness that is Natalie Haynes with me.

This is an interesting (although a little dry) analysis of Greek myths and the roles the goddesses play. I was hoping for a bit more of Haynes' humor (which I love so much from her podcast - she's laugh out loud funny!) but she always has interesting things to say about mythology.

Thank you to NetGalley and Harper Collins publishers for the ARC!

I have been interested in Greek/Roman mythology since I was a little girl reading Percy Jackson for the first time.

Divine Might by Natalie Haynes is very informative in the ways of various goddesses while still being particularly witty. This is not your stereotypical, dry recounting of the same old stories you’ve heard a million times.

For example, when discussing how the goddess Hera became associated with the peacock that’s she’s so often depicted with, Haynes details how Zeus had turned a young nymph (that he’d assaulted) into a cow so that his wife wouldn’t know what he had done. Hera asked for this cow as a gift because she was suspicious and set the monster Argus, a hundred eyed creature to watch over the cow.

“She sets the monster Argus to watch over Io; he had a hundred eyes in his head, Ovid explains, which rest two at a time. If this seems like overkill - a ninety-eight eyed panopticon to check that one cow doesn’t get up to too much - then Hera’s escalating responses to Zeus’s infidelities are going to perplex you even further. Argus does indeed watch Io like fourty-nine hawks.”

I very much enjoyed Divine Might - it was an interesting break from fiction where I spend most of my time.

I screamed when I got the approval for this. I would read ANYTHING Natalie puts out in the world. Her reinterpretation of the Greek myths are always enjoyable and her knowledge knows no bounds. As someone who’s been obsessed with Greek mythology for as long as I can remember, I know in my heart Natalie will do them justice no matter what.