The Way to Colonos

Sophocles Retold

By: Kay Cicellis, Rachel Cusk (Foreword by)

Write A Review

Paperback | 1 April 2026

At a Glance

Format
Paperback

Dimensions(cm)
21.6 x 12.7 x 2.1

Paperback

RRP $32.99

$32.75

or 4 interest-free payments of $8.19 with

or

Ships in 3 to 5 business days

A fiery modern retelling of three Greek tragedies, 'written in an ageless prose that instantly strikes the reader as the work of a master.' (Rachel Cusk, from the foreword)

First published in 1961, The Way to Colonos recasts three seminal plays by Sophocles into tales of modern women and warfare, probing their characters with savage intimacy. Antigone a stylish woman in her thirties wheeling her father, Oedipus, onto the ferry to Colonos, is disgusted by his self-absorption, guilt, and evasions. A suburban Electra dreams of a bloody confrontation with her mother, Clytemnestra, that may never come to pass. Philoctetes, a castaway soldier, navigates shifting allegiances in a guerrilla war that divided Greece after World War II.

As Rachel Cusk writes in her foreword to this new edition, Cicellis was a woman before her time, whose work written in English, her second language offers particularly 'shocking insight into the secret lives of young women' and is only now 'free to reach readers with an appetite for female artistic authority, who wish to see the world through sharp fresh eyes.'

Shipping

	Standard Shipping	Express Shipping
Metro postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Regional postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95
Rural postcodes:	$9.99	$14.95

Orders over $89.00 qualify for free shipping.

How to return your order

At Booktopia, we offer hassle-free returns in accordance with our returns policy. If you wish to return an item, please get in touch with Booktopia Customer Care.

Additional postage charges may be applicable.