Title: Great Goddesses: Life Lessons from Myths and Monsters

Author: Nikita Gill

Publisher: Ebury Press 2019

Genre: Poetry

Pages: 248

Rating: 4/5 stars

Reading Challenges: 

With lyrical prose and striking verse, beloved poet Nikita Gill (Fierce Fairytales, Wild Embers) uses the history of Ancient Greece and beyond to explore and share the stories of the mothers, warriors, creators, survivors, and destroyers who shook the world. In pieces that burn with empathy and admiration for these women, Gill unearths the power and glory of the very foundations of mythology and culture that have been too-often ignored or pushed aside. 

Complete with beautiful hand-drawn illustrations, Gill's poetry and stories weave old and forgotten tales of might and love into an empowering collection for the modern woman.

I had been slowly reading this collection o poetry and stories over the first couple of weeks of June. I absolutely adored Gill’s Fierce Fairytales collection from a few years back and hoped this one would be just as good. While it’s not quite my favorite, I did enjoy this collection. We get an exploration of (mostly) Greek mythology. At times, Gill’s writing and subjects are very clear while at others she delves into the esoteric and mysterious. I prefer the slightly more straight forward pieces. I like to really grasp onto a meaning while reading poetry. As many of her collections, there is a through line of empowering female figures. My favorite parts of this collection focused on Athena, Artemis, and Persephone. I find a lot of strength from these three figures. As with any poetry collection, this one should be read slowly over the course of weeks. Binging just won’t do.

Next up on the TBR pile: