The Children of Jocasta
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- Create Date：2021-08-03 09:51:08
- Update Date：2025-09-06
- Status：finish
- Author：Natalie Haynes
- ISBN：1529057132
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Summary
In The Children of Jocasta， Natalie Haynes takes a fresh perspective on an ancient story， reimagining in gripping prose how the Oedipus and Antigone stories would look if the oft-overlooked female characters took centre stage。 Retelling the myth to reveal a new side of an ancient story 。 。 。
My siblings and I have grown up in a cursed house， children of cursed parents 。 。 。
Jocasta is just fifteen when she is told that she must marry the King of Thebes， an old man she has never met。 Her life has never been her own， and nor will it be， unless she outlives her strange， absent husband。
Ismene is the same age when she is attacked in the palace she calls home。 Since the day of her parents' tragic deaths a decade earlier， she has always longed to feel safe with the family she still has。 But with a single act of violence， all that is about to change。
With the turn of these two events， a tragedy is set in motion。 But not as you know it。
My siblings and I have grown up in a cursed house， children of cursed parents 。 。 。
Jocasta is just fifteen when she is told that she must marry the King of Thebes， an old man she has never met。 Her life has never been her own， and nor will it be， unless she outlives her strange， absent husband。
Ismene is the same age when she is attacked in the palace she calls home。 Since the day of her parents' tragic deaths a decade earlier， she has always longed to feel safe with the family she still has。 But with a single act of violence， all that is about to change。
With the turn of these two events， a tragedy is set in motion。 But not as you know it。
Reviews
Nicki Tait
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I loved this so much， until the end。 We are in the mind of both women， seeing their decision making and understanding their thought process until we snapped out of that and we view them from the surrounding men's point of view - Jocasta's suicide for example。 I just wished we remained with Jocasta and Ismene when they made their life changing decisions at the end。I'm still going to make everyone I know read this tho I loved this so much， until the end。 We are in the mind of both women， seeing their decision making and understanding their thought process until we snapped out of that and we view them from the surrounding men's point of view - Jocasta's suicide for example。 I just wished we remained with Jocasta and Ismene when they made their life changing decisions at the end。I'm still going to make everyone I know read this tho 。。。more
Carly Benedict
，
Another great retelling from Natalie Haynes。 As always， the prose was beautiful and lyrical。 I appreciated that Haynes took a different approach to the story rather than having it be a direct retelling of the Sophocles plays。 The divergence humanized the story and left the truth more ambiguous which was interesting。 I enjoyed the alternating timelines/ perspectives of Jocasta and Ismene， although sometimes I was confused at the start of chapters， because I would forget whose chapter I was readin Another great retelling from Natalie Haynes。 As always， the prose was beautiful and lyrical。 I appreciated that Haynes took a different approach to the story rather than having it be a direct retelling of the Sophocles plays。 The divergence humanized the story and left the truth more ambiguous which was interesting。 I enjoyed the alternating timelines/ perspectives of Jocasta and Ismene， although sometimes I was confused at the start of chapters， because I would forget whose chapter I was reading。 Taking off one star， because the middle of the book felt just a tad slow for me， but otherwise it was an excellent read。 。。。more
Leci
，
4。5 stars。 A very good retelling， enjoyed it a lot。
angelie marwaha
，
jocasta is a girlboss no choice but to stan
ren
，
am i petty enough to admit that the absolutely insufferable nicknames influenced this rating？ yes。 yes i am。 they were intolerable。
Jade
，
I thought this had a lot going for it and I really wanted to love it。 And I did really enjoy it， there are just a few things that stop me from professing my complete adoration unfortunately。 The story is definitely 'inspired' by Oedipus rather than actually retelling the myth（s if you're counting the different versions） and I really enjoyed this aspect。 While I was fairly sure on where the cards would land， I genuinely didn't know how they'd get there。 But there was an inconsistency and a seemin I thought this had a lot going for it and I really wanted to love it。 And I did really enjoy it， there are just a few things that stop me from professing my complete adoration unfortunately。 The story is definitely 'inspired' by Oedipus rather than actually retelling the myth（s if you're counting the different versions） and I really enjoyed this aspect。 While I was fairly sure on where the cards would land， I genuinely didn't know how they'd get there。 But there was an inconsistency and a seeming lack of motivation for one character （at least for me） which bothered me， more so than anything because they're integral to the story and I was loving it all so much only for it to feel a little incomplete to me。 And somewhat relatedly， the characters （having finished the story since during this wasn't a problem for me） didn't 'turn into real people in my mind' in the way that characters often do for me。 I think the story was fairly brief， while packing a lot of time and myth in and that this may have hurt their portrayal slightly。 But these are my only complaints and up until the last few chapters， or so， they didn't overly bother me。 。。。more
Cathy
，
I had little knowledge of the Oedipus myth， beyond the standard awareness of the bare bones of it， before starting this book。 This potentially made it even more enjoyable， as I didn’t know where all the twists and turns might come in， nor could I be upset by any potential changes to the original。The interweaving of the stories of Jocasta and Ismene was brilliantly done and provided an interesting way to simultaneously tell the story from two different time periods。 The slow reveal of the relatio I had little knowledge of the Oedipus myth， beyond the standard awareness of the bare bones of it， before starting this book。 This potentially made it even more enjoyable， as I didn’t know where all the twists and turns might come in， nor could I be upset by any potential changes to the original。The interweaving of the stories of Jocasta and Ismene was brilliantly done and provided an interesting way to simultaneously tell the story from two different time periods。 The slow reveal of the relationships between the various characters and motives behind their actions made the book flow really well and hold my interest。 Each chapter linked cleverly with the next， even while changing time and perspective。There were moments that had me staring at the book in shock， a testament to Haynes’ ability to draw you into the story （and also how crazy Greek mythology can be）。 。。。more
Celia Pundel
，
3。9 ⭐️
Meghan
，
I really would say this is a 3。5 but I liked the ending so much I rounded up。 Stays pretty close to the storyline but from a different perspective and goes a little left toward the end。 It reminded me of The Heretic Queen。
Ellen Grindley
，
A stunning rewrite of one of the best tragedies。 A gorgeously intertwined narrative of Jocasta and Ismene's lives， with superb additions and alterations of the well known story。 Read it right now。 A stunning rewrite of one of the best tragedies。 A gorgeously intertwined narrative of Jocasta and Ismene's lives， with superb additions and alterations of the well known story。 Read it right now。 。。。more
Leanne Mullaney
，
“there is no security in not knowing things， in avoiding the ugliest truths because they can’t be faced。 There is only an oppressive， creeping dread that the thing no one has told you is too terrible to imagine， and that it will haunt the rest of your life when you find out。”I really enjoyed this one！ I love Natalie Haynes work and this one did not disappoint。The Children of Jocasta is a 'loose' retelling of the myths of Oedipus and Antigone and is told from the POVs of Jocasta， Oedipus' wife an “there is no security in not knowing things， in avoiding the ugliest truths because they can’t be faced。 There is only an oppressive， creeping dread that the thing no one has told you is too terrible to imagine， and that it will haunt the rest of your life when you find out。”I really enjoyed this one！ I love Natalie Haynes work and this one did not disappoint。The Children of Jocasta is a 'loose' retelling of the myths of Oedipus and Antigone and is told from the POVs of Jocasta， Oedipus' wife and Ismene， their youngest daughter。 Haynes has done a brilliant job of giving both women their own voices with such a unique perspective 。 At first I did struggle a little due to the differences from what I knew of the myth but in the end I found I really enjoyed Haynes spin on it - it definitely added to the story for me and is what kept me reading。 Although I didn't love this one as much as I did A thousand ships or Pandora's Jar I did still really enjoy it， Haynes is an exceptional writer and I will officially read anything she writes！ Not quite a 4 star read but Im rounding it up！ 。。。more
Jo
，
why must natalie haynes always hurt me this way
Chrissie
，
Terrific retelling。
Sara
，
dnf @ 55% porque las patadas que le está dando al mito de edipo me parecen exageradas （y no hay cosa que me dé más cringe que los pet names que la autora le ha puesto a los cuatro hijos， sospecho que porque le daba pereza teclear cuatro letras más en cada uno de ellos）。
Barbara
，
I vaguely remember reading the story of Oedipus Rex in high school， but not much of the details beyond the well known， killed his father and married his mother。 I loved this retelling。 Ms。 Haynes is such a good writer。 I would probably enjoy a cereal box if she wrote the copy。 Highly recommend to Greek mythology fans。
Emily Burgess
，
⚔️ The Children of Jocasta ⚔️ ‘She was a dutiful daughter， careful at weaving and other household skills her parents encouraged her to acquire。 She would make a good wife。 But surely not yet。’ Inspired by Greek tragedies around Oedipus， Antigone， Creon & Jocasta， Natalie Haynes has woven a heart wrenching story together。 The story follows Jocasta and her daughter， Ismene， years apart from one another， the innocent that’s conveyed from both side of the story is what got me， especially with the ho ⚔️ The Children of Jocasta ⚔️ ‘She was a dutiful daughter， careful at weaving and other household skills her parents encouraged her to acquire。 She would make a good wife。 But surely not yet。’ Inspired by Greek tragedies around Oedipus， Antigone， Creon & Jocasta， Natalie Haynes has woven a heart wrenching story together。 The story follows Jocasta and her daughter， Ismene， years apart from one another， the innocent that’s conveyed from both side of the story is what got me， especially with the horrors which followed in both time lines。 *still sobbing* It’s one tragedy after another， and you know what？ It was incredible。 I didn’t really know much about these， supposedly， mythological characters before hand， which did make the story hard to grasp at first， but now I feel like I know them like they’re an old friend。 I’m cautious about spoilers on here， so I won’t delve into much detail about the plot， but this book expels the journey of love and loss within a very turbulent family。 And it’s honestly stunning！ I’m a sucker for books which are written around Greek Myth & Legend， so I think I’m bias when I’m going to give this book 5 stars！ ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️ 。。。more
Suzanne
，
Wonderful！It you have ever taught the Oedipus or Antigone plays， you will enjoy this retelling。 Knowing the myth or the plot of the plays helps make the novel， told from the alternating third-person Jocasta and jumping in time to the the first-person Ismene， more suspenseful because you know what is coming but you also anticipate how Haynes will adapt it and give events a logical， if no less horrible， explanation。 It is obvious that Natalie Haynes has had a long love affair with these stories。 I Wonderful！It you have ever taught the Oedipus or Antigone plays， you will enjoy this retelling。 Knowing the myth or the plot of the plays helps make the novel， told from the alternating third-person Jocasta and jumping in time to the the first-person Ismene， more suspenseful because you know what is coming but you also anticipate how Haynes will adapt it and give events a logical， if no less horrible， explanation。 It is obvious that Natalie Haynes has had a long love affair with these stories。 If you love them too， read this book。 。。。more
Herbi （Heather） Williams
，
Historical drama
Gracie Birr
，
Honestly， i hit the 100 page mark and hated it because of the differences from sophocles trilogy but i am so glad i continued reading。I loved the different take， the way natalie told the story as if they were all rumours and not how thing first appeared。 It was very clever as a lighter read to the tragedy sophocles depicted， however it hasnt quite replaced it。 I wasnt a massive fan of the nicknames but i got over that but other than that natalies writing is incredibly clever！ So much so that i h Honestly， i hit the 100 page mark and hated it because of the differences from sophocles trilogy but i am so glad i continued reading。I loved the different take， the way natalie told the story as if they were all rumours and not how thing first appeared。 It was very clever as a lighter read to the tragedy sophocles depicted， however it hasnt quite replaced it。 I wasnt a massive fan of the nicknames but i got over that but other than that natalies writing is incredibly clever！ So much so that i had to carry on reading ever when i initially wasnt enjoying it。 。。。more
ReadWithMims
，
I absolutely loved， loved this book！ Natalie Haynes is simply a genius 👏✨📚
Engi
，
Atrocious and pointless。 How can you write a retelling of Oedipus and Jocasta’s story without incest？！ And their children’s nicknames repeated every two line？ Like， Ani for Antigone？ Poly for Polynicies？ Seriously？！ But generally the writing style is too modern and inelegant。 Failed not recommended if you want a good Greek tragedy reimagining。
Mrs B
，
Oddly， although this book attempts to give a voice and authority to two powerful females from Greek myth， Jocasta and her daughter Ismene， those females actually come across as somehow diminished in this re-telling of the Oedipus myth。Ismene tells her story through girlish eyes， and in doing so is portrayed as baffled， impotent， and sidelined， seemingly spending a lot of the narrative trapped in an inner palace courtyard while much of the action takes places elsewhere。 Meanwhile Jocasta， whose w Oddly， although this book attempts to give a voice and authority to two powerful females from Greek myth， Jocasta and her daughter Ismene， those females actually come across as somehow diminished in this re-telling of the Oedipus myth。Ismene tells her story through girlish eyes， and in doing so is portrayed as baffled， impotent， and sidelined， seemingly spending a lot of the narrative trapped in an inner palace courtyard while much of the action takes places elsewhere。 Meanwhile Jocasta， whose whole life is cruelly and tragically demolished by the tragic manipulation of men/prophecy avoiders， seems uncannily calm when the twists of fate surrounding her relationship with Oedipus are revealed。The writing is enjoyable， but for such a powerful and wretched story it’s oddly mild。 。。。more
Sophia Steiner
，
is this allowed？！ is that allowed？！
Kate Kirk
，
In the early stages of this book， if you don’t know Greek mythology， the flipping backwards and forwards between time doesn’t make sense。 The two separate strands are interesting in themselves， with two young women at their centre and the fascinating details about their lives and world。 There are a number of themes power， passion， betrayal and plague。 Slowly the strands of the stories become interwoven and it all makes a sense that is amazing and grim。 If you know the myth of Oedipus and Jocasta In the early stages of this book， if you don’t know Greek mythology， the flipping backwards and forwards between time doesn’t make sense。 The two separate strands are interesting in themselves， with two young women at their centre and the fascinating details about their lives and world。 There are a number of themes power， passion， betrayal and plague。 Slowly the strands of the stories become interwoven and it all makes a sense that is amazing and grim。 If you know the myth of Oedipus and Jocasta you will understand the flow of the story。 I found the characters beautifully drawn and got a real sense of how the world， of the rich and powerful， might be。 Given I’ve read this in the times of Covid， reading about the impact of the plague， its management and the fear induced in the population， was an uncomfortable reflection of our times。 。。。more
Lisa
，
I thought this novel was very okay — I love that it’s a retelling of a classic myth but it felt a little long and slow for no good reason。 I loved the creativity of this book & the complexity added to characters that are normally in the background， but it could’ve been a lot shorter with the same impact
Boo
，
3。5⭐️
Imi
，
I thoroughly enjoyed this book， having finally found the time to read it after two months of exams。 It was wonderful to dive back into a classical retelling that was so well-written and containing such a unique perspective。 Haynes excelled at giving both Jocasta and Ismene their own unique voices so it was easy to tell which character's story you were witnessings。 Haynes whether accidentally or intentionally as a beautiful way to mirror and contrast the lives of Jocasta and Issy， to imitate the I thoroughly enjoyed this book， having finally found the time to read it after two months of exams。 It was wonderful to dive back into a classical retelling that was so well-written and containing such a unique perspective。 Haynes excelled at giving both Jocasta and Ismene their own unique voices so it was easy to tell which character's story you were witnessings。 Haynes whether accidentally or intentionally as a beautiful way to mirror and contrast the lives of Jocasta and Issy， to imitate the parallels that extend from the original myth。It was also thoroughly refreshing to have a new perspective written on the myth， such as the fact that instead of Orpheus tearing his own eyes out， he is instead blinded by a lemon。 Or the fact that the characters believe that Jocasta hung herself due to plague not out of shame that she married her son。 It was a wonderful way of keeping to the original myth but also describing how real people may have reacted and then over dramatised the story to match the mythical story。Another aspect of this book that I really enjoyed was the fact that each character was so well written from Oedipus to Creon to Antigone to the guards in the palace every character no matter how big or small their role was so well thought out and written in a believable nad realistic manner。 Something that is difficult to achieve， especially in a classical retelling。Overall would highly recommend this book to anyone interested in classical retellings。 Although I would suggest that a reader have knowledge of the original myth before starting as I can see the beginning of this book is a tad confusing for someone that doesn't know the story。 Knowledge would not need to be in-depth， a simple Wikipedia search would do， but this story benefits from having some knowledge of the original plot points and important factors bubbling beneath the surface that run as undertones。 。。。more
Callie
，
Interesting retelling of the myths of Oedipus and Antigone。 I liked the different points of view used and the insight into characters motivations。
Cassie
，
A beautiful and thoughtful retelling of Oedipus and Jocasta's story。 I wish I'd known that part of the story deals with an airborne plague spread by physical contact requiring people to quarantine， but still loved it。 A beautiful and thoughtful retelling of Oedipus and Jocasta's story。 I wish I'd known that part of the story deals with an airborne plague spread by physical contact requiring people to quarantine， but still loved it。 。。。more
Pip Jennings
，
Great retelling of Greek Myths。 Beautifully written， I was hooked from the first paragraph。
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=The Children of Jocasta
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=The Children of Jocasta&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft