The Persian Boy by Mary Renault Summary and Reviews
|
List Price: Our Price: $8.20 You Save: $7.75 (49%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $0.17 (click here) Category: Book See more book details and other editions |
|---|
Book Reviews of The Persian Boy
Book Review: Alexander's Kept Feminine Boy
Summary: 3 Stars
Well, I liked "Last of the Wine" a whole lot more than "Persian Boy" because, for one thing, the gay characters in it were masculine and manly. Here, the principal gay character, Bagoas, is a young, feminine eunuch, gelded as a boy, and seems to represents some of the worst of gay stereotypes, present during Renault's lifetime and still existing today. True or not, this "pretty boy" does today's gay men no favors, and no one claims he should. How much of his characterization is merely a reflection of people Renault knew or of her reading of history no one also knows.
However, and nonetheless, "Persian Boy" offers an intimate view into Alexander's quite public private life, and we can all be grateful to Renault for her carrying the correct banner about the truth of Alexander's persona: he was obviously homosexual. No, not bi-sexual --- homosexual.
The entire book is first person, narrated by Bagoas, Alexander's personal Persian attendant and sex partner, perhaps his preferred partner, maybe even his beloved, the one who helped him most deal with his internal battles, apart from the wars of conquest. Hephaestion, of course, holds down the #1 "lover position" over the entire span of Alexander's lifetime, but Bagoas was a clear and present rival. Bagoas' jealousy and hatred of Hephaestion gives us a few genuine laughs in this story (kind of like an intemperate teenager, despairing over his prize man's other and true love interest). His despising of Hephaestion is mollified only when Hephaestion is either away on a war campaign or dead.
I grew tired of the boy's conceit, his insecurities, his narrow Persian ethnocentricity, and his illiteracy. He is/was the classic "kept boy," not really earning or deserving of his "keep," except perhaps for his beauty and his skills as a sexual outlet for Alexander.
What's good, though, in all this much too-long narrative are the following 2 points. 1) Bagoas is unabashed in his pointed defense of Alexander's drinking, carousing, temper, daemon-driven, uncompromising, charismatic persona. Bagoas forgives and admires Alexander, warts and all. 2) The novel provides some nice insights into the then-Persian ethos/character/customs, complete with misunderstandings that persist today.
Since Bagoas never witnessed battles in this fictionalized history lesson, we are spared most of the descriptions of Alexander's conquering of Asia and India. So there isn't much blood, guts and gore in this book. Other writers muck around in the battles sufficiently. See Steven Pressfield's work.
All-in-all, the book reads a bit slowly, and in the end I admit to not liking Bagoas, in contrast to my liking very much the main characters in "Last of the Wine," which Renault apparently published at least 10 years earlier.
The maps are helpful, portions of the story are very good, and all of it is well-written. But in the end, it is a so-so read. Read my review of "Last of the Wine," and remember that this author is a woman writing in the 1960's about gay love in approximately 300 B.C. As to ratings, it's a 3.
Book Review: Alexander, Master of the World
Summary: 5 Stars
Alexander the Great, one of the world's most admired and respected military men and Great King of Persia, died at age 33. In the prime of youth, he conquered much of the then-known world, receiving homage and love from his subjects from India to Greece because of his justice and mercy, and respect and admiration from his men because of his military genius and remarkable ability to lead men of all nations and tribes. The Persian Boy tells his story, and that of the ancient world through the eyes of Bagoas, a boy captured and made a slave and eunuch at age 10. Bagoas's legendary beauty set him apart for advancement, and his intelligence and integrity made him a fitting partner for such a man as Alexander. Male relationships were accepted as natural in Alexander's times and his long connection with Bagoas is historical. Through Bagoas's eyes, we come to know Alexander and his world, to appreciate the sensual nature of one of history's greatest warriers. That man could be at once loving and ferocious, gentle and vengeful and be loved and admired by thousands hints at a crack in modern sensibilities that smacks of prejudice and fear. This is an interesting story both in the historical and narrative sense, It conjures images of opulence and glory unknown in modern times and modern warfare. Jewels and gold, spices and incense were prized gifts and treasures both for mortals and the Immortals. In a time when Greek gods, Mithra, and the Hindu trinity ruled the earth, religion was moral and ethical and structured by rules of omens and ritual sacrifice. The ancient world offers much to modern society in terms of moral and ethical thought and behavior. Perhaps it is time to look back instead of forward to learn the meaning of existence.Book Review: Among the best books by Renault...
Summary: 5 Stars
...and that, my friend, is saying something, because Mary Renault happens to be among the top writers of the 20th century, though her praises remain unsung in the Ivory Halls precisely because of her literary virtues. I love her prose for being crisp, concise, and clear; qualities which deny her laurels in academia because professors need cryptic symbolism to build thesises upon... a la James Joyce, ad nauseum.
Yet for all her readability, Mary Renault is not without elegance or depth; subtle in turns, and with an often ironic sense of humor. She is no prude and does not blush at human sexuality and homosexuality, but neither does she dwell in these areas. She is a fully integrated human being, something rare for a 20th century writer. So many of our writers have been mad, hung up, obsessed, in the closet, or prudish, and frankly most of their output can be submitted to the flames with no net loss for world literature. Not so with Mary Renault: she is timeless.
Her trilogy on Alexander the Great remains to be improved upon. So far she has no competitors, which is a taunting irony, considering she is a woman who wrote about a great military conqueror, ordinarily a masculine ideal. Alfredo Manfredi's feeble trilogy proved woefully inadequate to the task.
"The Persian Boy" is about the best you can hope for in regards to ancient historical novels. Our hero/anti-hero Gore Vidal gave it a good review too when it came out decades ago.
Alfredo Manfredi owes me $40 for ripping me off with his sorry, $45, half-buttock attempt at novel writing. I got a laughable $5 for his pathetic three book series on E-bay.
Today's authors need to sit in a classroom for several months and study Mary Renault's prose, paragraph by paragraph. I have yet to find any that can match her.
Book Review: An extraordinary journey of the heart.
Summary: 5 Stars
Breathtaking portrayal of two human souls.Book Review: Best book I've ever read
Summary: 5 Stars
Mary Renault's The Persian Boy is my favorite novel, and the best book I have ever read. It left an imprint in my mind, of the nature of love, heroism, honor, history, devotion, affection, and above all, talent. By talent, I refer to the author's: Renault has a gift for words that rivals Alexander's gift for war. Many writers are capable of telling interesting, engaging stories, and just as many are able to write lyrically and memorably. However, in my opinion, few writers are able to achieve both, and Renault belongs among this elite company. Her language resonates with beauty, grace, and vision. If The Persian Boy is hero worship, then so what. Whoever he was, Alexander is someone to be remembered, and Renault's novels are a lasting monument. If it is true that he possessed beauty, grace, and vision, then he deserves Renault's words.