I have always been a fan of Greek mythology. Although I'd never heard of Sappho until discovering this novel more than a year ago, I've come to appreciate the attention Jong gives to Sappho's life and poetry.The novel moves quickly and is just what I've come to expect from this author's writing. The prose is witty, sensual and retrospective as the protagonist laments the taking of her daughter while longing for the embrace of her lover. Imagery describing the Greek isle of Lesbos and other locales is exquisite and alluring. Jong's Sappho undergoes differing degrees of change from the time she departs her native island to the conclusion of the novel. The beginning of the story finds Sappho precocious, albeit extremely naive. The circumstances she encounters - nearly losing her life from shipwreck, landing in the domain of the amazons, braving Hades' domain - teach her about herself and the ever changing world in which she lives. These lessons give Sappho a wisdom she would not have otherwise attained. This wisdom becomes a vital asset in the final chapters as she must once again navigate the precarious terrain of new love while struggling to mend relations with her daughter and instruct young, eager students.The conclusion leaves the reader with a question, one it seems Jong attempts to answer throughout the whole of the book. Do human beings decide their own fate? Or, are they subjected solely to the whims of some fickle higher power? Jong leaves this question unanswered.I selected this book to read as part of my "research" for a current novella project. I was looking for novels with a strong female lead. This book certainly fits the bill. What makes it more spectacular is the fact that, despite its intrinsically feminine angle, Sappho is almost completely inundated by the presence of men. Whether the memory of her dead father or the company of Aesop the fable-maker, Sappho must define her own existence separate from the constant influence of men. For this reason, I found this book an excellent tool for my "research".I would encourage the male reader not to shy away from this book, despite its feminine qualities. If Erica Jong excels at anything, it is writing a universal character whose application crosses the boundaries of sex, social opinion, and religious predisposition. It is a profound piece of work.
In this book, Erica Jong pays homage to the first great female poet of our Western culture and, although there are not many solid facts concerning Sappho´s life, the author weaves a curious tale, which seems to find inspiration in the epic tales of the Greek.Since an early age, Sappho knows that her life purpose is to sing the glory of Aphrodite. Completely fascinated with the works (and charm) of the poet Alcaeus, she finds herself in the middle of a rebellion to overthrow the dictator of her home island, Lesbos. The coup goes wrong and the two lovers are separated: Alcaeus is banished forever from the land and Sappho must marry an old merchant. The young poet never forgets her first love and, after the death of her husband, starts a journey to find her lover, which will lead her to the ancient oracle of Delphi, the land of the pharaohs and the mythical realms of the Amazons and Centaurs, with a brief stop at Hade´s underworld.The structure of the book reminds me of the classical works of Homer and Virgil – there is a hero, who has to go on a very long journey and faces lots of perils, many of which are created by the gods. During the story, the main character is constantly praised for his/her achievements and, in the end, gets the most desired prize – a name in History!Erica Jong´s Sappho is portrayed as a true feminist, who wants to be free of all moral constraints when it comes to love, sexuality and the typical female roles, in general. But, although she is quite spirited in the first half of the book, she starts losing her spark as her journey proceeds to different lands and, in the last part of the story, she just seems to be your normal romantic character, constantly pining over her lost love. Therefore, what seemed to be a 5 star read in the beginning just went falling down the hill and I cannot give more than a 3 star rating. I really enjoyed the mix of History and Mythology – the stop in the land of the Amazons is quite fascinating – but Sappho´s evolution as a character is just disappointing.
What do You think about Sappho's Leap (2004)?
This is a hard one to review. I found Sappho's Leap to be poorly executed. The characters and their actions make no sense. The dialogue is horribly stilted. The plot is meandering - maybe picaresque would be a kinder word. In fact, the whole thing feels rather like a comedy, one of those old-fashioned comedies from another literary era where culture has changed too much for you to appreciate the jokes even though you know they're supposed to be funny. And yet, I kind of grew to like it. I enjoyed the adventures of all these foolish humans (and part-humans) and their dumb choices. Jong's prose has moments of pithy beauty in the midst of Sappho's comic-erotic odyssey. Maybe this is what humanity looks like from a god's eye view: silly, but endearing, and somehow moving in its silliness. I suspect if I give this another shot, with different expectations next time, I might like it more.
—Mo
If you've heard me refer to a certain popular book as 50 Shades of Slutty, you may think me a prude.You would be wrong.I don't loathe erotica. I loathe badly written porn, sure, but not all erotica counts as such. A book can contain beautiful, even graphic, descriptions of sex and sexuality without crossing over the line to smut. A writer must learn the difference.For instance, I wouldn't at all mind my husband watching Orange is the New Black. It is a great show. Yeah, there's some graphic female on female sex. Could I do without that? Sure. But the show is solid. The writing is wonderful. The point of the show is not the sex. The point is the story, and you'd be hard pressed to take an honest look at a women's prison and NOT include girl on girl action and inmates sleeping with guards. That's how it is. On the other hand, I won't be buying my man a subscription to Hustler.That's the difference between the new trend toward over-sexed novels and a book like Sappho's Leap by Erica Jong. Erica writes about an ancient poet known for her sexual descriptions of love for other women. You can't tell Sappho's story without touching on that subject.Sappho has fascinated me for a while. Very few female voices filter down thousands of years. Sappho's has. Why? Maybe it is the universal truth in her simple stanzas. We all love. Men, women, parents, lovers, etc...Love love love love love love.I enjoyed Jong's novel. I have heard her name for ages and always planned to read one of her books. I'm glad I chose this one. Her storytelling is superb. It isn't overly flowery or descriptive, but it is honest in its telling. I like that. I found myself immediately drawn into Sappho's tale. I wanted to know every detail. I wanted to love her and be loved by her. I felt transported to a world that only exists in history, one I rarely think much about.A beautiful read. A lesson in accurately and beautifully portraying a sexually liberated women without making her seem a dirty slut and without making dirty slut-hood seem desirable. ;)Brava, Ms Jong. Brava.Review originally published here: http://madamerubieswrites.blogspot.co...
—Heather Truett
Just finished this. It was almost-brilliant, falling just short of brilliance across the board. Insufficient supporting character development, and patchy, insufficient plotting (in particular the poorly-realized nonsense with the Amazons and centaurs, which had so much unrealized potential). Too hasty a resolution of the period on the unnamed island. Too many loose ends--the Pharoah in particular, and how Alcaus and Praxinoa came to be in the right boat at the right time at the end there. She spends 2/3 of the book having Sappho long for Alcaus, and then completely fails to develop his character at all when he finally shows up. He remains unknown to the reader, a good looking guy with no apparent personality, since there is so little interaction, so little real detail to go on. That's probably the most major disappointment. Other aspects of the story are well-handled: Sappho's school of poetry and temple to Aphrodite; the clever interpollation of interaction between Aphrodite and Zeus that affects Sappho's life; Praxinoa's and Cleis' character development; the descriptions of places in the Agean and the effects of place on the characters lives, needs and wants.
—Yarrow
