The Penelopiad "Homer's Odyssey is not the only version of the story. Mythic material was originally oral, and also local — a myth would be told one way in one place and quite differently in another. I have drawn on material other than the Odyssey, especially for the details of Penelope's parentage, her early life and marriage, and the scandalous rumors circulating about her. I've chosen to give the telling of the story to Penelope and to the twelve hanged maids. The maids form a chanting and singing Chorus, which focuses on two questions that must pose themselves after any close reading of the Odyssey: What led to the hanging of the maids, and what was Penelope really up to? The story as told in the Odyssey doesn't hold water: there are too many inconsistencies. I've always been haunted by the hanged maids and, in The Penelopiad, so is Penelope herself."  —from Margaret Atwood's Foreword to The Penelopiad. Home Biography Novels Short Fiction Poetry Site Awards Excerpts from The Penelopiad Excerpt: Foreword to the Penelopiad - Canongate Extract: "My marriage was arranged." - Canongate Excerpt: "What can I tell you about the next ten years?" - PBS Interviews and Articles Regarding The Penelopiad Margaret Atwood's Acting Debut (10/2005) - The Times Conversation with Atwood and Lloyd (10/2005) - The Guardian Interview with Boyd Tonkin Book Reviews A Collection of Reviews - Canongate The New York Times, 2005 The Times, 2005 The Independent, 2005 Forbes, 2005 Entertainment Weekly, 2005 Quill and Quire, 2005 Bookreporter.com, 2005 Audio Review: NPR, 2005 to Margaret Atwood's Novels to Margaret Atwood Luminarium Copyright ©1996-2007 Anniina Jokinen. All Rights Reserved. Book cover images remain under the copyright of their respective copyright owners. This page created on December 18, 2006 by Anniina Jokinen. Last updated January 3, 2007. About this Website | Luminarium Privacy Statement. Margaret Atwood has gone on to become not just a major Canadian Writer, and a woman writer (whom some would call a Feminist Writer), but an award-winning author of English literature. Her works include novels, short stories, poetry, etc.