Medusa by Jessie Burton

Author: Jessie Burton

Title: Medusa 

Publisher: Bloomsbury 

Published: 2021

Pages: 224

Genre Myths / Historical Fiction 

     Exiled to a far-flung island by the whims of the gods, Medusa has little company except the snakes that adorn her head instead of hair. But when a charmed, beautiful boy called Perseus arrives on the island, her lonely existence is disrupted with the force of a supernova, unleashing desire, love, betrayal. and destiny itself.

     I can remember as a kid being stuck in front of the tv on a Sunday afternoon watching old reruns of those epic Hollywood retelling of the Greek myths. Complete with slightly wonky animated skeletons. To my childish mind, they were amazing and I lapped them up each time they were on. It was only as I got older that I started to realize that in its way Hollywood had changed these tales to make them much more one side. The hero, more obvious, and the whole tale, a little more Judeo Christian than that which was really necessary. When you read the originals as best you can you start to realize just how messy these ancient gods and goddesses really were to them. Mortal to often being there at the expense of the god's things to be played with for their satisfaction and entertainment. Let's be honest to say they were problematic is putting in mildly. So when I came across Medusa at the book store I was curious to see how a modern author would tackle the subject. After all whilst Medusa in our modern minds is painted as this horrible monster to be slain. From the perspective of the past she was most definitely the victim of a deranged god who couldn't understand the word no. 

 

     There is something to be said for the way Burton has tackled this legend and her hero. Instead of bringing us the head of a monster, we are introduced to a girl traumatised and scared living on an island far from her home. Medusa is a girl torn apart by the fickle whims of gods and thrown aside due to lust and jealousy. The author showed me a girl just wanting to understand how she came to be who she was and yurning to be who she was before all this happened. She has done an astounding job in such a short text of showing the aftermath of sexual assault told through the guise of the legends of old. This questioning of what you did wrong and waves of self-loathing and hatred. It is a powerful thing to witness as we see her open up to us about what took place. This is amplified all the more as Medusa is talking directly to us the read the whole way through. She wants us to understand everything that has taken part in her life. Maybe in part, this is to help her come to terms with what took place, to understand that which is an act of pure violence against aginst her. And to try and find her way back to even a fraction of regaining herself.

     And then we have Perseus The man of the hour the defending champion and the slayer of beasts. But then again maybe not because here to Burton has woven a new stand into the story. Gone is the cocky strutting hero of old replaced with a boy too young to be out fighting the battles of others. Scared and alone sent on a mission to fight another man's war. It's interesting to see how the author has changed these twos narrative to make them better reflect each other. Caught at the whims of others and bound together in ways they could not have imagined. It's an amazing work of fiction and you find yourself all too easily caught up in their tragic love affair all be it one of words and unfulfilled heartache. It's a curious thing to see how Medusa's ability to turn those who look upon her face in stone works as a metaphor for how our past traumas go on to hurt and destroy future relationships be it romantic or otherwise. And whilst you may find yourself wanting more for these to we must always remember that greek myths aren't really in the business of complete happy ending even in more modern versions.

     Whilst I have talked a great deal about the words Burton has brought to this book it would be to go amiss on my part not to talk about Olivia Lomenech Gill's beautiful illustrations. Her works act like frescoes bring the story that little bit more to life as we weave our way through this tale. Each one capture not only and images from the text but brings the feel and mood of it into color. For me, it is hard to imagine one without the other and these two have worked so well together in bringing the whole thing to life. This is a book that you could if you wished get through quite quickly, but for me, that would be ashamed, there is a lot to take in here and the topics that Burton brings to the forefront of this legend are hefty and take a lot to deal with. In telling the tale of Medusa she brings a no holds barred take on what these legends mean to a modern audience using a language both so very old and ideas that have echoes reaching right up to the present day.