Well, after reading The Grandson of Perseus and A Hero Must Be Alone, it was finally time to reread the third book in Henry Lion Oldie‘s Achaean cycle, Odysseus, Son of Laertes. This book chronologically concludes the story of the Heroes, descendants of the Olympian gods, although it was written second, long before The Grandson of Perseus. And in my opinion, it differs significantly from the other two books in how the authors approached the narrative.
As much as I enjoy A Hero Must Be Alone, this book, both the first time I read it many years ago and now, turned out to be challenging to get through. Especially in the beginning, I found myself frequently pausing and then forcing myself to continue. For me, there were too many metaphors, too much emphasis on beautifully crafted language and unspoken meanings, to the point where I started losing track of the main plot. And the plot itself is quite fragmented here, constantly interspersed with flashbacks and memories from other times.
To understand certain things, you need to have a solid knowledge of both mythology and the story of Odysseus (outside of this book). Only then can you compare and grasp some of the nuances in the narrative. Otherwise, you’re left with even more questions. Some parts are direct references to A Hero Must Be Alone, not just to the myths about Heracles but specifically to their interpretation in the previous book of the cycle. Of course, as the book says, “answers are the killers of questions.” But it feels unsettling when you have more questions than understanding. I know many people love Oldie for these hidden meanings, but for me, this was more of a drawback.
Odysseus is primarily known for his role in the Trojan War and the long story of his return home from that war (ten years is no joke). However, we see almost nothing of that famous journey here. Instead, we are shown how the war began in the first place, why everyone became so fixated on Helen of Troy, and why the gods needed the war in the first place.
The first part of the book covers Odysseus’s coming of age (although, by the standards of that time, it was just a little over twenty years). The second part focuses on the Trojan War, which the gods needed, not humans. The gods don’t care about Helen or Troy. What they want is for there to be no heroes left—not just one hero, but for them to disappear entirely.
In fact, it feels like this book is less about Odysseus himself and more about the Trojan War, where Odysseus is portrayed as one of the central figures, almost like the gray cardinal of the war, doing the gods’ bidding.
The concept is quite interesting: the gods are solving their problem (breaking ties with humans, getting rid of their offspring with silver ichor in their veins), but they do so through human hands, putting them in situations where they have no choice (and indeed, there is no choice—heroes must die). There are clear parallels to the ideas in A Hero Must Be Alone. Even Achilles, in a way, repeats Heracles’ story from the previous book in the cycle.
At the same time, the authors cleverly play with different versions of the myths. The inconsistencies between them become a feature, as Oldie skillfully weaves them into the narrative. The book also makes Odysseus’s well-known story a bit more logical, even with the involvement of gods and miracles.
Unfortunately, it often felt like the form of the narrative was more important to the authors than the meaning. The storytelling is so uneven that at some point you start thinking that Odysseus might actually be mad, schizophrenic even, considering how he tells his story. And whenever his self-punishing monologues—”I am Odysseus, I will return”—faded into the background, the book became much more enjoyable. Suddenly, the glimpses of the “Heraclean” Oldie, whom I love so much, would shine through, making it impossible to put the book down.
That’s why it took me so long to gather my thoughts and write something. The first book of the cycle is a masterpiece, the third is very good, and the second is good but very strange for me.
Ma rating: 3.5/5
[…] does connect it, though, is the parallels with H. L. Oldie’s Odysseus, Son of Laertes. Both books were written at the same time, with the authors collaborating during the writing […]