Title: Paradise Lost, Book IX.
Author: John Milton.
What I think so far: This isn’t technically a book, but is instead a long poem from the 1600s; it needs to be considered as such. Reading it as an atheist who respects women (in the words of Charlotte Bronte, “Milton tried to see the first woman. It was his cook that he saw.”), Paradise Lost can prove itself difficult at times. Outside of Milton’s outdated writing however, Paradise Lost does have some engaging features – the portrayal of Satan-snake is both predictably malevolent as well as sympathetic, and God’s wrath shines through with Eden’s flaws. Even Eve, as awfully stereotypical as she is written, has her redeeming features if you read the text through a modern lens.
Would I recommend?: If you enjoy criticising biblical stories, finding the flaws of a Protestant God, sympathising with the devil, and entirely understanding why Eve (the woman who supposedly inflicted the pain of childbirth on all females) decided that she’d had enough of her subordinate lifestyle and disobeyed her God, I definitely recommend this. It’s not a long read, and once you get into the flow of Milton’s poetry, it becomes an interesting experience if nothing else.
Rating: 7/10
Words by Charlie Ginger Jones