The Song of Achilles (2011)

The Song of Achilles (2011), the first novel by classics scholar Madeline Miller, retells Homer's ''The Iliad'' from boyhood to Achilles' death on the battlefield of Troy. Homeric events after that are skimmed over at the end. The first-person straight-narrative viewpoint is that of Patroclus, Achilles' best friend and lover. Being a minor character in ''The Iliad'' lets the Patroclus character be more accessible, with a more modern viewpoint than other more-familiar names in the story. At the same time, the unenlightened historical setting means the two boys have to begin from cluelessness to work out what it means to have and respond to homosexual feelings.

Starting so young makes this a coming-of-age story, as the two boys grow up and have to face the greed and power-lust of the adult world, while dealing with its opposition to their feelings for each other. Complicating matters are Achilles' half-divine nature, his sea-nymph mother, the always-feuding Greek gods, and the war against Troy instigated by the gods' constant meddling in mortal affairs (if only we could still blame "the gods" for our screwups!).

Miller obviously knows her Homer, so the persons and events in The Song of Achilles are faithful to The Iliad and selected supporting mythology. Miller also chooses to ignore some familiar Achilles lore, notably the story of his famous heel. The Iliad certainly can't be read as straight history, so this is not exactly a historical novel, but it reads like one and Miller earns high marks for faithfulness to her sources.