The Sweet Girl

A bold novel of the lives of girls and women in ancient Greece, from the celebrated, award-winning author of The Golden Mean.

Aristotle has never been able to resist a keen mind, and Pythias is certainly her father’s daughter: besting his brightest students, refusing to content herself with a life circumscribed by the kitchen, the loom, and, eventually, a husband. Into her teenage years, she is protected by the reputation of her adored father, but with the death of Alexander the Great, her fortunes suddenly change. Aristotle’s family is forced to flee Athens for a small town, where the great philosopher soon dies, and orphaned Pythias quickly discovers that the world is not a place of logic after all, but one of superstition. As threats close in on her, she will need every ounce of wit she possesses, and the courage to seek refuge where she least expects it.