Natalie Haynes
Stone Blind by Natalie Haynes retells the story of Medusa and how the youngest of the Gorgon sisters became an ostensible monster.
Lovingly raised by her two sisters who find her on the shore outside their cave, Medusa is happy until she attracts the attention of Poseidon who assaults her in Athena’s temple. Athena vents her anger on the violation that occurred in the sanctity of her temple by transforming Medusa’s hair into writhing snakes and cursing her with the power to turn all living creatures into stone. Meanwhile, Perseus, the son of Zeus and Danaë, is on a quest to bring back the head of a Gorgon to save his mother from an unhappy marriage. With the help of Hermes and Athena, he succeeds in his quest. He cuts off Medusa’s head, carts it around with him in a bag, and brings it out when he wants to exploit her power by turning his perceived enemies into stone.
Haynes retells the myth with compassion for Medusa and contempt and derision for Perseus. But her primary focus is not on Medusa. Instead, it is on the Greek pantheon with their petty squabbles, their bickering, their jealousies, their petulance, and their prolific use of humans as pawns in their vengeful schemes. In fact, more time is spent on Athena than Medusa. Included is the birth of Athena and the war between the Titans and the Olympians. Medusa’s head, snakes, an olive grove in Athens, and a crow are given speaking parts in addition to nymphs, gods, goddesses, and mortals. The narrative is interrupted several times by Medusa’s head (“the Gorgoneion”) chatting directly with the reader and commenting on the characters and events.
The novel suffers from a lack of focus. The scope is too vast with so many characters and so much happening that Medusa is relegated to the status of a minor player, bereft of agency. The dialogue is dull, stilted, and vacuous; the characters one-dimensional and lack depth. Hanes’s attempts to inject humor fall flat.
All in all, a disappointing read from the author of A Thousand Ships, a better novel by far.