A Thousand Ships

by Natalie Haynes

Overview

Notes From Your Bookseller

In A Thousand Ships, Calliope, goddess of poetry, takes us through the Trojan War — where women become the deserving center of the most epic story ever told. A fresh entry into a burgeoning category of modern retellings, this story collection is a beautiful doorway to the inimitable ancient works.

NATIONAL BESTSELLER

An NPR Best Book of the Year

“Gorgeous.... With her trademark passion, wit, and fierce feminism, Natalie Haynes gives much-needed voice to the silenced women of the Trojan War.”—Madeline Miller, author of Circe

Shortlisted for the Women’s Prize for Fiction, a gorgeous retelling of the Trojan War from the perspectives of the many women involved in its causes and consequences—for fans of Madeline Miller.

This is the women’s war, just as much as it is the men’s. They have waited long enough for their turn . . .

This was never the story of one woman, or two. It was the story of them all . . .

In the middle of the night, a woman wakes to find her beloved city engulfed in flames. Ten seemingly endless years of conflict between the Greeks and the Trojans are over. Troy has fallen.

From the Trojan women whose fates now lie in the hands of the Greeks, to the Amazon princess who fought Achilles on their behalf, to Penelope awaiting the return of Odysseus, to the three goddesses whose feud started it all, these are the stories of the women whose lives, loves, and rivalries were forever altered by this long and tragic war. 

A woman’s epic, powerfully imbued with new life, A Thousand Ships puts the women, girls and goddesses at the center of the Western world’s great tale ever told.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780063065390
Publisher:	HarperCollins Publishers
Publication date:	01/26/2021
Pages:	368
Sales rank:	50,545
Product dimensions:	6.20(w) x 9.10(h) x 1.50(d)

About the Author

Natalie Haynes is the author of six books, including A Thousand Ships, which was a national bestseller and was shortlisted for the 2020 Women’s Prize for Fiction. She has written and recorded seven series of Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics for the BBC. Haynes has written for the Times, the Independent, the Guardian and the Observer. She lives in London.

Editorial Reviews

11/16/2020

The women of the Trojan War take center stage in this excellent take on the Greek classics from Haynes (The Ancient Guide to Modern Life). Hopping through nearly a dozen perspectives, Haynes provides an enthralling reimagining of the lives of women from both Troy and Greek culture. There is Calliope, the muse who resents the poets demanding she supply them with inspiration; Andromache, who goes from princess to spoil of war when her husband, Hector, is killed by Achilles; and Penelope, who writes biting letters to Odysseus, asking him why it is that he doesn’t feel any urge to come home to her and their son. There are also the royal heroines, such as Clytemnestra, who seeks revenge against Agamemnon for sacrificing their daughter; and Helen, who is weary of being constantly blamed for her role in beginning the war and for plots and prophecies she has no power to stop. Cassandra, cursed with prophesies no one will ever believe, struggles to function when she knows exactly what will become of her and her family after the war. Haynes shines by twisting common perceptions of the Trojan War and its aftermath in order to capture the women’s experiences. Readers who enjoyed Madeline Miller’s Circe will want to take a look. (Jan.)

Publishers Weekly

A Thousand Ships does more than acknowledge the suffering of women. It tells in lively fashion gripping tales of bravery, treachery and revenge. . . . It’s a timely notion as the modern world reckons with who gets to tell the stories of its diverse populations."

Washington Post

Clever and entertaining.”

 UK Times

"With her trademark passion, wit, and fierce feminism, Haynes gives much-needed voice to the silenced women of the Trojan War. Her thoughtful portraits will linger with you long after the book is finished."

Madeline Miller

"Savvy and well plotted.… Haynes’s inventiveness in conjuring the lives of Greek and Trojan women through… evocative details keeps the novel humming."

New York Times Book Review

A witty, unapologetically feminist story of women’s suffering, courage, and endurance… Haynes' freshly modern version of an ancient tale is perfect for our times.

Booklist

In Natalie Haynes’ own brilliant construction, the 10-year tale of the Trojan War is retold by the many women ignored, widowed, enslaved, heartbroken and snuffed out by the pride and stupidity of warring men…. A fresh and utterly satisfying feminist take on one of the oldest stories in Western literature.

Melissa Gray

Haynes is master of her trade . . . She succeeds in breathing warm life into some of our oldest stories.

UK Telegraph

Absorbing and fiercely feminist . . . this subversive re-seeing of the classics is a many-layered delight.

Guardian

A witty, unapologetically feminist story of women’s suffering, courage, and endurance… Haynes' freshly modern version of an ancient tale is perfect for our times.

Booklist

A Thousand Ships does more than acknowledge the suffering of women. It tells in lively fashion gripping tales of bravery, treachery and revenge. . . . It’s a timely notion as the modern world reckons with who gets to tell the stories of its diverse populations."

Washington Post

"With her trademark passion, wit, and fierce feminism, Haynes gives much-needed voice to the silenced women of the Trojan War. Her thoughtful portraits will linger with you long after the book is finished." %COMM_CONTRIB%Madeline Miller

01/01/2021

The story of the Trojan War is an old and familiar one. Here again are the Greek aggressors, the besieged Trojans, and the sneaky wooden horse. This time around, Haynes (The Children of Jocasta) focuses on the women—those left behind to await their husbands and sons and those who become enslaved after their men have been defeated. Prominent among them are Hecabe, the once proud queen of Troy, brought low by the loss of her husband and sons; her daughter Cassandra, cursed to foresee the future but thought too unstable to be believed; and Penelope, whose aggrieved letters to Odysseus, her long-lost husband, punctuate the drama. The long war is set in motion by one more woman, the earth goddess Gaia, whose arms can no longer bear the weight of the world and who decides that war is the best way to reduce the population. VERDICT If there is any need for one more trip down this well-traveled road after Madeline Miller's Circe and Pat Barker's The Silence of the Girls, this lively reinvention is worth the journey.—Barbara Love, formerly with Kingston Frontenac P.L., Ont.

Library Journal

Haynes is master of her trade . . . She succeeds in breathing warm life into some of our oldest stories.

 UK Telegraph

Breathtaking . . . Her writing isn’t merely clever, or elegant, or (at times) extremely funny—though it is all of those things. It’s also viscerally vivid.

Catherine Nixey

Here, in this treat of a book, the women take centre stage—and how brilliantly . . . Natalie Haynes brings them to witty, lyrical, scintillating life . . . A book to both savour and devour.

Suzannah Lipscomb

A joy to read: fast paced, cracking with emotion and tension.

Michael Scott