The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller – Book review

If you know your history, then we’re sure you’ve heard of the Trojan War at least once. Many are the tales told around this particular event in Greek mythology, but most notably, perhaps, is Homer’s Iliad. A Greek epic poem that recounts the battles and events during the final weeks of the Trojan War and the siege of the city of Troy. Madeline Miller’s The Song of Achilles (2011) is a retelling of Homer’s work, just romanticized (quite literally) and told from the perspective of one forgotten character: Patroclus.

In Greek mythology, Patroclus is a minor character who’s hardly ever mentioned as anything other than Achilles’ sidekick – the man behind the great warrior. But in Miller’s novel, Patroclus takes center stage. It’s through his eyes that we get to learn what happened during that time, the ups and downs of the war, the intricacies of their political system, and most importantly perhaps, the many facets of the greatest of all Greek warriors: Achilles.

It’s not easy to take a well-known story and make it your own, but Miller does it masterfully and gives the story her own unique stamp. The Song of Achilles has everything you would expect from a story based on Greek mythology and a coming-of-age romance: war, glory, sacrifice, tragedy, and a love story for the ages. Because yes, this retelling is mainly focused on Patroclus and Achilles’ romantic relationship, and although there’s only pain at the end of the journey for these two (history is, after all, unforgiving), the book is definitely worth all the tears.

But allow us to tell you why…

The Song of Achilles, the humanization of a hero

Many are the songs that have been sung about Achilles, in some the bards call him a hero, in others a ruthless killer. It’s always said that in combat the Trojans fled at the sight of his golden armor and that no one was able to face him in a fight between equals. And all that was true, he was, after all, Aristos Achaion, the best of the Greeks, the greatest warrior of his generation. 

But there’s a ballad, a sweet song that tells a different story, the story of the honorable son, the loyal friend, the mighty warrior, and the tender lover. How is it then that bards don’t sing this song too? Well, that’s because the notes of this song are known to one man only. And that man’s name is Patroclus – Achilles’ companion, friend, and lover.

The Song of Achilles begins with Patroclous’ childhood, as Miller quickly takes us through the boy’s early years. From his life as a prince in the kingdom of his father, Menoetius, to his exile to the court of Peleus, where he formally meets Achilles at the age of ten. It is through Miller’s superb prose that Patroclus becomes the vessel to humanize the hero and ultimately tell the love story of two young boys who, despite having starkly different characters and personalities, are drawn together by something stronger than fate.

This feeling was different. I found myself grinning until my cheeks hurt, my scalp prickling till I thought it might lift off my head. My tongue ran away from me, giddy with freedom. This and this and this, I said to him. I did not have to fear that I spoke too much. I did not have to worry that I was too slender or too slow. This and this and this! I taught him how to skip stones, and he taught me how to carve wood. I could feel every nerve in my body, every brush of air against my skin.”

(Patroclus, The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller 2011)

Patroclus and Achilles’ relationship unfolds in the most sincere, realistic, and natural way. It’s through small glimpses throughout their lifetime together that Miller shows us the unbreakable bond that forms between them. As one yearns for peace and the other quests for greatness, Patroclus and Achilles find in each other not only a companion and a lover but a balance; a glimmer of hope for a future where happiness is attainable for both of them despite what the gods have predicted about them.

Phthia, Mount Pelion, and a blooming romance

Despite narrating nearly three decades of time, The Song of Achilles has no sections. It’s a story told progressively in thirty-three chapters, however, it can easily be divided into three parts: before, during, and although briefly, after Troy. 

Before Troy, Patroclus and Achilles’ life seems rather simple – they are just two boys growing up and learning about life and themselves together. In their years in Phthia, their routine consists merely of lyre lessons and drills, games, and afternoons together swimming, climbing trees, talking, and sometimes even spending time with Achilles’ father, who enjoys telling them stories about past heroes and wars. 

For Patroclus, life is easy; wherever Achilles goes, he follows. Well almost.

Achilles is the son of Thetis, a nymph and goddess of the sea, and as such he has to visit her periodically. Patroclus is never allowed to go with him. Thetis is known to hate mortals and has disapproved of Patroclus from the moment Achilles chose him as his therapon (his companion, a brother-in-arms sworn to a prince by blood oaths and love). Not only because she knows that Patroclus is too low in rank to be Achilles’ closest advisor, but because she is aware of what Patroclus really represents: Achilles’ weakness, his human side.

You will be dead soon enough. She had said it coldly, as a fact. She did not wish me for his companion, but I was not worth killing. To a goddess, the few decades of human life were barely even an inconvenience.” 

(Patroclus, The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller 2011)

For Thetis, Patroclus is Achilles’ biggest mistake and the reason he might not achieve the great things he was born into achieving. But Achilles doesn’t care, and neither does Patroclus. And it is precisely in the years they spend together on Mount Pelion (where they go to train with the legendary centaur Chiron), that Patroclus and Achilles finally allow themselves to explore their feelings for one another.

Our mouths opened under each other, and the warmth of his sweetened throat poured into mine. I could not think, could not do anything but drink him in, each breath as it came, the soft movements of his lips. It was a miracle.”

(Patroclus, The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller 2011)

It is in the solitude of the cave in those mountains that these two begin a journey of rediscovery full of tenderness and young love. It is through soft whispers, playful explorations of their ever-changing bodies, and the knowledge that no one can see them, that Patroclus and Achilles become men in each other’s arms.

However, as in any good romance, it’s not long after they give in to their feelings, that the harsh reality of the events taking place outside their little safe haven in the mountains catches up with them and they find themselves pulled right into the middle of one of the most famous events ever recorded in Greek mythology: The Trojan War.

The Trojan War as never told before

If you’re familiar with Greek mythology then you know that the Trojan War was a conflict between the Greeks and the people of Troy. The strife began after the Trojan prince Paris abducted the fabled Helen, wife of Menelaus of Sparta. When Menelaus demanded her return, the Trojans refused. Menelaus then persuaded his brother Agamemnon to lead an army against Troy and thus the war began.

At first, neither Patroclus nor Achilles want to join the fight and go to Troy, and both have different reasons for not doing so. But a blood oath, a prophecy, and the promise of fame and immortality (for Achilles, of course) compel them to join the battle, putting everything they believe into the test, including their relationship.

I do not think I could bear it,” he said, at last. His eyes were closed, as if against horrors. I knew he spoke not of his death, but of the nightmare Odysseus had spun, the loss of his brilliance, the withering of his grace. I had seen the joy he took in his own skill, the roaring vitality that was always just beneath the surface. Who was he if not miraculous and radiant? Who was he if not destined for fame?”

(Achilles and Patroclus, The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller 2011)

The Song of Achilles doesn’t shy away from the cruelty of the conflict and delves into the implications war has for both Patroclus and Achilles, and also for the people who eventually come to depend on them. They learn through loss, pain, and heartbreak how dangerous and deadly the politics of the war camps can be. And how there’s nothing they can do to change a future that’s already been written for them. 

It’s probably a bit masochistic of us to say this, but the ten years they spend together in Troy before reaching their impending doom, are as beautiful as they are heartbreaking. Miller does a fantastic job at weaving all these complicated and painful emotions into the story and showing them to us through Patroclus’ position at the sidelines of the conflict. Readers know that he and Achilles are living on borrowed time, so those years they spend together making a life in Troy feel almost like a gift from the gods.

And we say almost because we know better. We know that the gods don’t go around giving away time and happiness to mortals, so sooner rather than later their time runs out, and with it all our hopes of a happy ending.

The greater the love, the greater the loss

From the moment we picked up this book we knew what was going to happen. Having read snippets of the Iliad, we knew there was only pain and more pain at the end of the road for these two. We were aware that no matter how much we wanted a different outcome, Patroclus and Achilles wouldn’t have the long-awaited “and they lived happily ever after” that we all love and cherish. And yet, all that foreknowledge didn’t prepare us for what The Song of Achilles was going to throw at us in its final chapters.

When tensions escalate and Achilles, infuriated by an insult to his honor, triggers his and Patroclus’ downfall, our hearts still broke into teeny-tiny pieces and our eyes welled up with tears. The pain, the despair, the loss, the anger – it all hit us like a bulldozer. 

…it is the greater grief, after all, to be left on earth when another is gone.”

(Chiron, The Song of Achilles, Madeline Miller 2011)

We don’t want to say much about the final chapters of this book because they deserve to be read unspoiled in all their beautiful and painful glory. But Miller really goes above and beyond and completely puts to shame all the stories and adaptations that have been made about Troy; stripping the war of a glory that it doesn’t deserve in the first place and dragging through the mud the names of well-known men in history such as Agamemnon, Odysseus, or Menelaus with the firm intention of transmitting a single message: in the end, only love matters.

The Song of Achilles is an astounding, emotional, poetic, and simply heartbreaking read that is sure to leave you crying and cursing the gods for all the pain inflicted. But it will also have you smiling through your tears because, in the end, the love that Patroclus and Achilles have for each other is so great and pure that it transcends life and even death.

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