Goatsong: A Novel of Ancient Athens [Hardcover]

Tom Holt (Author)

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Holt, whose fantasy, Expecting Someone Taller , earned fine reviews, now offers an impeccable historical novel about classical Athens as seen through the eyes of a comic playwright--Eupolis of Pallene. Born 38 years after the battle of Salamis established Athens as the preeminent Greek power, Eupolis spends his youth mainly in the company of his father's goats. From age nine onward, he warbles childish poems to these animals, and even writes a play called The Goats in honor of its chorus and first audience. When war breaks out between Sparta and Athens, however, the mood darkens; the great plague decimates Athens and orphans Eupolis. Yet in due course he develops a brilliant career as a comic poet, and gets to know luminaries of the era, including Aristophanes, Cleon and Socrates. Holt's view of one of Western history's greatest periods is hard-edged and debunking, although leavened with irony and a love story--that of Eupolis and his bad-tempered wife Phaedra. This engaging work is the first book in a series to be called The Walled Orchard.
Copyright 1989 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

From Library Journal

Eupolis of Pallene, Athenian comic dramatist and rival of Aristophanes, reminiscences in this first volume of a trilogy. In his youth he often cared for his grandfather's goats and to amuse himself composed dramatic verse with the goats as protagonists. Eupolis's first efforts at staging a play are as disappointing as his often tumultuous marriage to Phaedra. Interspersed are stints with the military and improving his land. These frequent digressions tend to justify the narrator's expressed concern about holding the reader's interest. The style is chatty but engaging. Descriptions of the drama contests, contemporary figures, and customs are well drawn and informative. Consider where there is interest or where Holt's earlier novels ( Expecting Someone Taller) have been well received.
- Ellen Kaye Stoppel, Drake Univ. Law Lib., Des Moines
Copyright 1990 Reed Business Information, Inc. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

Product Details

• Hardcover
• Publisher: Random House Value Publishing (October 1, 1991)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 051707804X
• ISBN-13: 978-0517078044
• Product Dimensions: 8.3 x 5.8 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #3,915,506 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

16 of 16 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Goatsong: a shrewd historical primer on Athens' foibles, May 4, 1997

By A Customer

This review is from: Goatsong: A Novel of Ancient Athens (Walled Orchard Series, Vol 1) (Hardcover)

Well researched and screamingly funny, Goatsong parades a century of literary, political, and philosophical heroes before the unsympathetic gaze of a goatherd and finds them wanting. Eupolis of Pallene, an up and coming playwright, usually finds them wanting in courtesy, dignity, and heroics, but he manages to sketch such legends as Aristophanes, pericles, and Alcibiades so perversely that the reader transforms fundamental assumptions before realizing that the book in fiction, and comic fiction at that.

Eupolis descrbes and lampoons the institutions of chorus selection, legislative debate, and marriage with little historical and cultural relics which further deter one from suspending disbelief, but even he dows nto escape his own boil-lancing mirth. If one hasn't a sense of the absurdity of the Peloponnesian War-era Athens by the end of this book, at least a few thousand laughs will have elapsed in the process

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Not typical Tom Holt, but a must read commentary on democracy in action, September 4, 2005

By 

CeciM "voracious reader" (California) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Goatsong: A Novel of Ancient Athens (Hardcover)

The only reason I give 4 stars is that Goatsong has a slower pace and is slightly more cynical (if that's possible) than other Holt titles I've read, but it was definitely worth the time. Be aware it's not a rollicking good time like Who's Afraid of Beowulf or Expecting Someone Taller. But I fully intend to make my children read this book during the next Presidential campaign and then discuss it with them every time a political diatribe from one party or the other (further) pollutes the media.

If you're a classical scholar, you will need a sense of humor and self-deprecation to enjoy this book. If you've been forced to study or actually enjoyed studying the classics in high school or college, you should still remember enough to get at least some of the jokes. I'm pretty sure I missed a lot of them, but I loved Eupolis' interpretations of classics like the Odyssey--from a child's perspective. I also enjoyed Eupolis' apologetic explanations about actually liking or admiring people it was politically necessary to villify.

There is a definitely eerie resonance with the current political situation, and the rabid anti-war camp would probably love this book and only retain what seems to support their beliefs. This book has a lot more to say than that, and the speech by Cleon about killing all the males in Lesbos is a masterpiece--how many people will really get it, I wonder? Did I? There are so many layers of brilliance here that I can't possibly list them all. Since I'm not a classical scholar, I probably missed some of the major points. But really, this book is so good it will always be relevant about democracy and western politics.

Tom Holt is a master of satire and parody. You may not always agree with him, but I hope everyone who reads Holt's work ends up a little wiser, more open-minded, and self-honest than when he or she started.

6 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book is great fun!, June 14, 1999

By 

[e-mail] (Malaysia) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Goatsong: A Novel of Ancient Athens (Walled Orchard Series, Vol 1) (Hardcover)

Wow! I just finished reading The Walled Orchard series, and it was incredible! I don't think any other book has made me laugh this much before. Yet, this book is not all about jokes. Behind the jokes, I felt that there was a pretty strong message. Tom Holt is a genius of a writer. I can't wait to get more of his books. I think that anyone and everyone would love this book.