The Silence of the Girls

By: Pat Barker

Narrated by: Kristin Atherton, Michael Fox

Length: 10 hrs and 44 mins

Publisher's summary

A Washington Post Notable Book

One of the Best Books of the Year: NPR, The Economist, Financial Times

Shortlisted for the Costa Novel Award

Finalist for the Women’s Prize for Fiction

Here is the story of the Iliad as we’ve never heard it before: in the words of Briseis, Trojan queen and captive of Achilles. Given only a few words in Homer’s epic and largely erased by history, she is nonetheless a pivotal figure in the Trojan War.

In this audiobook she comes fully to life: wry, watchful, forging connections among her fellow female prisoners even as she is caught between Greece’s two most powerful warriors.

Her story pulls back the veil on the thousands of women who lived behind the scenes of the Greek army camp - concubines, nurses, prostitutes, the women who lay out the dead - as gods and mortals spar, and as a legendary war hurtles toward its inevitable conclusion.

Brilliantly written, filled with moments of terror and beauty, The Silence of the Girls gives voice to an extraordinary woman - and makes an ancient story new again.

©2018 Pat Barker (P)2018 Random House Audio

Critic reviews

“Beautiful…It is as if Barker had found an artifact with an as yet undeciphered alphabet among the glittering grave treasures of Homer’s epic."—The New York Review of Books

"Almost Homeric in its brilliance... Refreshingly modern... Ms Barker [switches] nimbly between the daily drudgery of the camp and the horrors of conflict... Venerable scenes and mythic names magically become new... Domestic details are piercingly described, bringing the squalor of the camp to life... A masterful and moving novel."—The Economist

"Beautifully done."—Annalissa Quinn, NPR

Good story

Entertaining
My only complaint was the accents used. I just cant imagine Greek and Trojans sounding just like the guy who sells me a bacon sandwich down the street

So powerful, so beautiful

After reading and enjoying Madeline Miller’s Song of Achilles and loving her sophomore effort Circe more than I can possibly say I was desperate for anything remotely like them. It would be dishonest to say there aren’t similarities between Miller’s works and Barker’s but all three books aim to do something novel and original and all three utterly succeed.
Where Song Of Achilles was a war story with LGBTQ themes and protagonists, and Circe was a feminist retelling of the myth and story of the witch Circe, The Silence Of The Girls is the story of the Trojan War told from the perspective of its most famous captive: Briseis. Through her we see what the sack of a city is really like. We see how the fall of a country effects those who aren’t on the battlefield. Most painfully, we see the fate of the women left behind. There’s no glory here. No beautiful and romantic depictions of war and battle. It’s brutal, cruel, dehumanizing, and visceral. The true and horrible fate of those women and children taken captive is described in honest and unflinching detail. The rape, abuse, and dehumanization these characters endure is equal parts honest and agonizing to listen to. If you’re someone who has a difficult time with stories involving rape and abuse then you might want to give The Silence Of The Girls a pass. That being said I don’t think those subjects are written exploitatively or cheaply, quite the reverse in fact. It’s honest and difficult to listen to at times but it can also be inspiring as we hear the characters find the strength to not just endure but even rise above.
While I don’t find The Silence Of The Girls as beautiful as Song Of Achilles or as profound as Circe there is a powerful, well-written, and superbly narrated story here. Painful and exhausting, beautiful and empowering, Pat Barker has done something really special here and I can honestly say I look forward to more from Barker in the future.

A little repetitive but excellent

Kristen Atherton is so expressive and spot on with her portrayal of Briseis. The story itself definitely gets repetitive as far as reiterating Briseis’ grievances over and over again, but still a captivating story.

Fabulous

The consequences of the Trojan War on the noble women of the cities of Troy are amazingly vivid. The characters of the Iliad are brought to life. I loved this book.

Good not fabulous

Thoroughly enjoyed this book however the end was so abrupt that I was taken aback. Historical fiction is a wonderful way to learn a little bit about the way things were and a lot about what maybe we wish things were.

The pain of being a woman

The trouble with these kind of books is it doesn’t matter which stands point is from. A Queen,a princess,the daughter in law of a prince or a slave girl. It is all draining with lost hopes and pointless of what war brings. The females are the one that always suffered a hard blows of before,during and way after. Also children are the eminent as a casualty of wars. Every bit of this book drenched in that from page one to the last page. The suffering of what seem like eternity of dread and lost hopes. Pride seem to be the only thing in the story that kings gets to keep. While others have to swallowed theirs with no honor to go with their bloodline. With every now and then a bit of a glimpse of kindness and poof…gone as fast as it appeared. The author did a great job of reminding you of that. The narrator does it even better by making the dread and the silence of these girls more realistic. Too much of it makes me thankful that I probably will never know those kind of pain in this lifetime. Great read might suggest it to ppl but depends on how much I like these ppl.

Stirring and Startlingly Good

I consider myself a Greek myth purist, so at first, choosing this seemed unnecessary. After all, isn’t everything about Greek myth already out there for our consumption? But, I’m glad I did, because that long last Briseis— long talked about as an accessory to the mens’ stories of the Trojan War, is given a voice— and the effect is at once startling and powerful. As someone who wrongly took for granted that the women didn’t have exciting arcs in the Trojan War, listening to this made me realize they had tough ones nonetheless: survival.

I loved the story, and I really liked the narrator’s performance. Kristin Atherton’s voice brought Briseis to life— she sounded weary, serious, yet watching her step. Her voice made Briseis relatable and accessible, and even in the tougher turns of the story, I wanted to keep listening to her.

Great retelling, and a wonderful addition to Greek myth “canon.” Who says the guys told the right story in the first place?

wonderful book

It was a wonderful story with beautiful narration. I highly recommend reading and/ or listening to it.

HIS-STORY now her's

If you're a Madeline Miller fan you'll love this book. I listened to this one after devouring her books "Circe" and "The Song of Achilles". To compare I'd say Miller's best at imagery, but Barker's book evokes more emotion and the storyline is less contrived. You won't be disappointed if you enjoy this genre of literature.

Mythic History with Depth

I've avoided the Odyssey, Iliad and their ilk my whole life and now I know why. Those are simplified stories of heroic male exploits. This book tells the story from a multi-dimensional human point of view. It's good to see a dose of reality. Not that it was easy to listen to - painful in many places - but it's overcoming, rather than masking, pain that makes art valuable.