In ancient Greek mythology, nine muses helped humanity reach peaks of science, literature and the arts. In , folklorist and astrophysicist Moiya McTier gives each of them a new voice, and lets each tell the story of creativity, inventiveness and genius through the centuries. This makes for a book that covers everything from the developments of spandex and telescopes to birth control and the internet in a uniquely engaging and entertaining way.
McTier is a sharp writer who doesn鈥檛 shy away from issues of contemporary politics, technology or art, so Mothers of Invention both opens and closes with a stark assessment of the state of creativity today. Through the voice of Clio, the muse of history, McTier raises issues around what makes a person a genius, who gets to claim credit for genius work and how these ideas have changed in the age of social media influencers and artificial intelligence. Humanity has a problem with creativity, argues Clio, before setting out to tell each of her sisters鈥� stories to try to explain how we got here. What follows is a skilfully written romp through different areas of art and science, each interspersed with diary entries in the voice of the muse who patronises it, which allows McTier to have a lot of fun, as well as be creative herself.
Polymnia, the muse of sacred hymns, is recast as a power-hungry villain who inspires humans to tame electricity for her own selfish reasons. Meanwhile, the muse of tragedy, Melpomene, hangs out with Wilbur and Orville Wright as they master flight, a high-drama endeavour with no shortage of tragic moments. The development of birth control is told through the sometimes-racy diary entries of the muse of erotic poetry, Erato, and the reader learns about television from the quick-witted muse of comedy, Thalia. McTier鈥檚 prose is energetic and always has a point of view 鈥� the muses are often shown failing to protect humans from societal ills such as sexism and racism, for example 鈥� and her ability to blend arts and science is rather masterful.
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This is a book that is fun and hopeful, as well as being, at times, cynical and acerbic. Not all muses have a distaste for modern mortal society, but McTier certainly has her discontents and is not afraid to voice them, at times nearing overly didactic territory. Despite the muses being part of Western myth, the book鈥檚 historical stories sometimes include characters from all over the globe, and I wished for even more of that. I think it could have helped to strengthen McTier鈥檚 overall call for less emphasis on fame, and more focus on how creative work is always done with the help of a collective. 鈥淲hen we鈥檙e making something new, we鈥檙e never truly alone,鈥� writes McTier, fiercely calling on each of us to be each other鈥檚 muses.
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