Glad that I found this thread about books because I want to share my opinions of the books that I bought with my own money
:
The Song of Achilles by Madeline Miller and The Midnight Library by Matt Haig
The Song of Achilles: I got the book thanks to fanart that I saw on Pinterest, and it was a good read. It was a good retelling of the Illaid but this time, it mostly focuses on the two characters in it, Patroclus and Achilles. As I was about to read it, I thought Achilles would be the one narrating his perpective throughout the book but making it Patroclus instead was fine by me since I now know the he was just a minor character in the Illiad. From what I’ve heard, Patroclus wasn’t a major character in the story until the part where he died during the battle impersonating as Achilles since he refused to go after an argument with Agamemnon. Having him as the lead for this book made me appreciate the decision of him being the narrator because it can flesh out what his life was before meeting Achilles and the great battle. The relationship between the two was so intmate and engaging because it was such an emotional rollercoaster, from happy moments to sad moments and so on and so forth. The other side characters were fine, didn’t care much about them aside from Thesis, Chiron, Deidamia, and Briseis. The first act and the third act of the story were really good, but I didn’t pay much attention to the second half of the story when the war happens. Patroclus, Achilles and Briseis were the only ones that made me engaged through it. I thought it would end with a sad ending because Patroclus cannot go to the underworld and stays near Achilles’ grave but when Thesis (Achilles’ mother) listens to his experiences and lets him go, it became very bttersweet since the two leads reunite in the end.
The Midnight Library: I think this is the first book I bought without anyone recommending it to me and bought it because it’s premise just interested me. It was written by the same person who did “A Boy Named Christmas” which I didn’t read but it is an adaption on Netflix so maybe I can watch it soon. I kinda didn’t like the protagonist, Nora since starts off cynical, mostly because her life sucks and hates it, even when she dies and finds herself in the Midnight Library, where she can pick a life through books and live it. But as I read more and more, she became a bit relatable since she feels like she had missed opportunties and felt like she was useless in her root life. The lives she chooses to live and her experiences in it are very interesting. I think my favorite life she choose to experience was the one that tugged my heartstrings where she chooses a life where she had a date with a surgeon she had a crush on. I’m not gonna say too much about it but it made me cry a little and made my heart sank when she left it since she felt it was her perfect life. I think the only complaint I have with the book is it’s ending which made the lesson Nora was learning while she was at the library so straightforward and kinda made it rushed, but that’s just very minor. Overall, it’s main theme about living our lives was good and I did enjoy it.
tldr; they are very good books
I looked up its Wikipedia page tonight kind of hoping there might have been a sequel at some point. I think there is something, but it doesn't involve Fone, Phoney, and Smiley, which means I don't have much interest in getting it. Too bad, I think there could've been another story there with them visiting the valley again several years later, although of course no plot could be as epic in scale.
