228:. It is unclear how much of the mythological Geryon's connection to the story's Geryon is literal, and how much is metaphorical. Sexually abused by his older brother, his affectionate mother too weak-willed to protect him, the monstrous young boy finds solace in photography and in a romance with a young man named Herakles. Herakles leaves his young lover at the peak of Geryon's infatuation; when Geryon comes across Herakles several years later on a trip to
446:
277:
362:, among others. The book also sold unusually well for literary poetry, with at least 25,000 copies sold by the year 2000, two years after its publication. It was described as "one of the crossover classics of contemporary poetry: poetry that can seduce even people who don't like poetry" and Carson herself as "that rarest of rare things, a bestselling poet."
331:
mythology, Geryon, a winged red monster who lives on a red island herding red cattle. Geryon is most famous as a footnote in the life of
Herakles, whose 10th labor was to sail to that island and steal those cattle—in the process of which, almost as an afterthought, he killed Geryon by shooting him in the head with an arrow.
337:
purports to be Geryon's autobiography. Carson transposes Geryon's story, however, into the modern world, so that he is suddenly not just a monster but a moody, artsy, gay teenage boy navigating the difficulties of sex and love and identity. His chief tormentor is
Herakles, a charismatic ne'er-do-well
27:
330:
The book is subtitled "A Novel in Verse," but—as usual with Carson—neither "novel" nor "verse" quite seems to apply. It begins as if it were a critical study of the ancient Greek poet
Stesichoros, with special emphasis on a few surviving fragments he wrote about a minor character from Greek
338:
who ends up breaking Geryon's heart. The book is strange and sweet and funny, and the remoteness of the ancient myth crossed with the familiarity of the modern setting (hockey practice, buses, baby sitters) creates a particularly
Carsonian effect: the paradox of distant closeness.
259:
and taking many liberties, and some discussion of both
Stesichorus and the Geryon myth, including a fictional interview with "Stesichoros", a veiled reference to
509:
456:
514:
450:
539:
554:
119:
549:
499:
484:
494:
287:
504:
519:
474:
479:
141:
544:
524:
244:. The novel ends, ambiguously, with Geryon, Ancash, and Herakles stopping outside a bakery near a
534:
294:
489:
323:
529:
367:
237:
8:
126:
114:
355:
152:
47:
224:
is the story of a boy named Geryon who, at least in a metaphorical sense, is the
67:
260:
350:
was warmly received by authors and critics, with highly positive reviews from
468:
241:
196:
57:
416:
359:
351:
256:
204:
188:
184:
133:
37:
372:
26:
229:
209:
98:
200:
245:
168:
445:
225:
192:
87:
251:
The book also contains Carson's very loose translation of the
127:
396:
Sam
Anderson, "The Inscrutable Brilliance of Anne Carson,"
233:
365:
The book was referenced, alongside Carson's previous work
153:
302:
298:
203:, especially on surviving fragments of the lyric poet
191:, published in 1998 and based loosely on the myth of
466:
297:. Consider transferring direct quotations to
25:
510:Classical mythology in popular culture
467:
288:too many or overly lengthy quotations
414:
410:
408:
406:
392:
390:
388:
270:
13:
14:
566:
438:
403:
385:
444:
275:
515:LGBT speculative fiction novels
16:1998 verse novel by Anne Carson
415:Liss, Sarah (March 11, 2003).
326:describes the book as follows:
1:
378:
342:
7:
398:The New York Times Magazine
240:forms the third point of a
10:
573:
540:Novels set in Buenos Aires
216:
555:LGBT literature in Canada
163:
151:
139:
125:
113:
105:
93:
83:
73:
63:
53:
43:
33:
24:
295:summarize the quotations
266:
550:English-language novels
500:Canadian romance novels
485:Canadian fantasy novels
458:New York Times Magazine
371:, in a 2004 episode of
495:Novels with gay themes
340:
255:fragments, using many
505:Alfred A. Knopf books
417:"Myth Interpretation"
328:
159:PS3553.A7667 A94 1998
20:Autobiography of Red
520:Canadian LGBT novels
475:1998 Canadian novels
453:at Wikimedia Commons
451:Autobiography of Red
368:Eros the Bittersweet
348:Autobiography of Red
335:Autobiography of Red
226:Greek monster Geryon
222:Autobiography of Red
180:Autobiography of Red
480:1998 fantasy novels
21:
545:Novels set in Peru
19:
525:1990s LGBT novels
449:Media related to
400:, March 17, 2013.
320:
319:
176:
175:
84:Publication place
562:
448:
432:
431:
429:
427:
412:
401:
394:
356:Michael Ondaatje
315:
312:
306:
279:
278:
271:
232:, Herakles' new
164:Followed by
155:
129:
75:Publication date
29:
22:
18:
572:
571:
565:
564:
563:
561:
560:
559:
465:
464:
441:
436:
435:
425:
423:
413:
404:
395:
386:
381:
345:
316:
310:
307:
301:or excerpts to
292:
280:
276:
269:
219:
144:
94:Media type
76:
68:Alfred A. Knopf
17:
12:
11:
5:
570:
569:
558:
557:
552:
547:
542:
537:
535:Bildungsromans
532:
527:
522:
517:
512:
507:
502:
497:
492:
487:
482:
477:
463:
462:
460:on Anne Carson
454:
440:
439:External links
437:
434:
433:
402:
383:
382:
380:
377:
344:
341:
318:
317:
283:
281:
274:
268:
265:
261:Gertrude Stein
218:
215:
174:
173:
165:
161:
160:
157:
149:
148:
145:
140:
137:
136:
131:
123:
122:
117:
111:
110:
107:
103:
102:
95:
91:
90:
85:
81:
80:
79:March 31, 1998
77:
74:
71:
70:
65:
61:
60:
55:
51:
50:
45:
41:
40:
35:
31:
30:
15:
9:
6:
4:
3:
2:
568:
567:
556:
553:
551:
548:
546:
543:
541:
538:
536:
533:
531:
528:
526:
523:
521:
518:
516:
513:
511:
508:
506:
503:
501:
498:
496:
493:
491:
488:
486:
483:
481:
478:
476:
473:
472:
470:
461:
459:
455:
452:
447:
443:
442:
422:
418:
411:
409:
407:
399:
393:
391:
389:
384:
376:
374:
370:
369:
363:
361:
357:
353:
349:
339:
336:
332:
327:
325:
314:
304:
300:
296:
290:
289:
284:This section
282:
273:
272:
264:
262:
258:
254:
249:
247:
243:
242:love triangle
239:
235:
231:
227:
223:
214:
212:
211:
206:
202:
198:
194:
190:
186:
182:
181:
172:
170:
166:
162:
158:
156:
154:LC Class
150:
146:
143:
142:Dewey Decimal
138:
135:
132:
130:
124:
121:
120:0-375-40133-4
118:
116:
112:
108:
104:
100:
96:
92:
89:
86:
82:
78:
72:
69:
66:
62:
59:
56:
52:
49:
46:
42:
39:
36:
32:
28:
23:
490:Verse novels
457:
424:. Retrieved
420:
397:
366:
364:
360:Susan Sontag
347:
346:
334:
333:
329:
324:Sam Anderson
321:
308:
293:Please help
285:
257:anachronisms
252:
250:
221:
220:
208:
179:
178:
177:
167:
530:LGBT poetry
426:February 2,
352:Alice Munro
205:Stesichorus
197:Tenth Labor
189:Anne Carson
185:verse novel
169:Red Doc>
38:Anne Carson
469:Categories
421:The Walrus
379:References
373:The L Word
311:March 2016
303:Wikisource
147:811/.54 21
343:Reception
299:Wikiquote
286:contains
253:Geryoneis
230:Argentina
210:Geryoneis
99:Hardcover
64:Publisher
234:Peruvian
201:Herakles
195:and the
134:37975550
44:Language
322:Critic
246:volcano
217:Summary
207:' poem
97:Print (
58:Romance
48:English
238:Ancash
236:lover
193:Geryon
171:
109:149 pp
88:Canada
34:Author
267:Style
183:is a
106:Pages
54:Genre
428:2020
128:OCLC
115:ISBN
199:of
187:by
471::
419:.
405:^
387:^
375:.
358:,
354:,
263:.
248:.
213:.
430:.
313:)
309:(
305:.
291:.
101:)
Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License. Additional terms may apply.
