Galatea: The instant Sunday Times bestseller

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Galatea is this brave, beautiful, intelligent person, surviving Pygmalion's wrath and oppression for so long, and trying to shield her daughter from him. She figured out how to manipulate him, to get him to do what she wanted without him realising, something she applied on others as well. Even though her first attempt at escaping his clutches with her daughter failed, the second time was final. She may have sacrificed herself to punish and end him, but she saved her daughter and the newest statue come alive, that of a disturbingly young girl, also created by Pygmalion for his own pleasure. There was nothing more satisfying than reading about her holding him tightly in place with her marble strength as they both sunk underwater and she watched him drown slowly, imagined him being feasted on by the aquatic life as she was left intact (because she's marble). But, also reading about her slowly feeling the cold creeping up her limbs and losing her senses. I cried, guys. I cried hard. There is also an interesting, albeit brief, element that while the choice over reproductive rights and agency is a hotly debated political topic and women are often shamed and ostracized for making difficult choices, there is no social stigma against men who do not want to have children. Galatea is the sculptured statue of seemingly the most beautiful woman who is brought to life by the man who created and became obsessed with her. However the mortal life sees her virtually imprisoned by a husband who seeks to control her and brands her mad after several attempts to flee.

In short, Galatea was a story that was underwritten and underwhelming. There was no depth to the characters, little substance to the storyline and the underlying themes of objectifying women, domestic abuse and obsession with beauty and perfection, although powerful didn’t really get going.

Customer reviews

While we watch Galatea being denied any agency in her life and accepting a lot of abuse and made to feel it is for her own good (when Pygmalion hurts her and notices the color of the bruises left behind, he tells her ‘ You make the rarest canvas, love’), we also see her fight for the good of her daughter. The ending, which is rather darkly beautiful, is geared to the idea of protection, though retribution also inevitably factors in. In a way it is a call to break the cycles of abuse and ensure the coming generations are raised to know they do not need to accept the toxic behaviors that try to masquerade as love. I’m always impressed by the writing of Madeline Miller. Her first book The Song of Achilles was a powerful and imaginative retelling of The Iliad. Her second novel Circe, however, was at a completely different level: it was simply fantastic in every way. This is a compelling and highly symbolic feminist retelling of an Ancient Greek story that I recommend most highly.

A startlingly original work of art by an incredibly talented novelist … A book I could not put down’ Ann Patchett From the internationally bestselling and prize-winning author of The Song of Achilles and Circe, an enchanting short story that boldly reimagines the myth of Galatea and Pygmalion.You see, what kind of man creates the perfect woman out of marble, obsessed with purity and perfection because real-life women have shunted or betrayed him (according to his statement, we never meet them)?! A deeply affecting version of the Achilles story: a fully three-dimensional man – a son, a father, husband and lover – now exists where a superhero previously stood’ Observer I'd still recommend it, especially to anyone who loves the original story or loves Mythology in general which I do. I would like to read more of this author's work. I have not read anything by her and I wonder if she has written any other reimagined Mythological fables. I'd love to see more so if anyone reading this knows of any, let me know. I'd love to see one about Echo and Narcissus and Atalanta and Meleager. Enough magic, enchantment, voyages and wonders to satisfy the most jaded sword-and-sorcery palate’ Guardian