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The Leto Bundle
A sensual, compelling new novel inspired by dramatic chronicles, contemporary events, and the tragic figure of a woman-goddess in permanent exile
Room XIX of the Museum of Albion doesn't usually have many visitors. But when a huge crowd of dispossessed immigrants and homeless gather to see a mummy that has recently been moved, political pressure mounts, and the curator must reveal the mystery behind the locked door. To the passionate young man who has adopted the mummy as a figurehead, the curator explains that the once secret exhibit is a bundle of rare objects and intriguing documents that tell of the wanderings of an unknown woman named Leto. Marina Warner's magical new novel weaves together the story of this ancient goddess and eternal refugee with the drama of the curator, her new friend, and the people whose lives will be transformed by The Leto Bundle.
As Leto moves westward across the map from her first home, she slips through time, reappearing in different guises and ever on the run. She gives birth to twins during a far-off era of civil strife, shelters with wolves, stows away on a ship, works as a chambermaid in a war-torn city, and, in a bombing attack, saves her daughter but loses her son. The novel sweeps from mythological times to the Middle Ages, to Victorian Europe, and then to the present day, when Leto reappears, still searching, of course, for her long-lost son.
The Leto Bundle retells the story of the eternal refugee in a magical modern novel of huge scope and imaginative force.
Room XIX of the Museum of Albion doesn't usually have many visitors. But when a huge crowd of dispossessed immigrants and homeless gather to see a mummy that has recently been moved, political pressure mounts, and the curator must reveal the mystery behind the locked door. To the passionate young man who has adopted the mummy as a figurehead, the curator explains that the once secret exhibit is a bundle of rare objects and intriguing documents that tell of the wanderings of an unknown woman named Leto. Marina Warner's magical new novel weaves together the story of this ancient goddess and eternal refugee with the drama of the curator, her new friend, and the people whose lives will be transformed by The Leto Bundle.
As Leto moves westward across the map from her first home, she slips through time, reappearing in different guises and ever on the run. She gives birth to twins during a far-off era of civil strife, shelters with wolves, stows away on a ship, works as a chambermaid in a war-torn city, and, in a bombing attack, saves her daughter but loses her son. The novel sweeps from mythological times to the Middle Ages, to Victorian Europe, and then to the present day, when Leto reappears, still searching, of course, for her long-lost son.
The Leto Bundle retells the story of the eternal refugee in a magical modern novel of huge scope and imaginative force.
384 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 2001
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194 people want to read
About the author
Marina Warner
173 books343 followersMarina Sarah Warner is a British novelist, short story writer, historian and mythographer. She is known for her many non-fiction books relating to feminism and myth.
She is a professor in the Department of Literature, Film and Theatre at the University of Essex, and gave the Reith Lectures on the BBC in 1994 on the theme of 'Managing Monsters: Six Myths of Our Time.'
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
November 14, 2018
THE LETO BUNDLE is based on the myth of the female Titan who is raped by Zeus, thereafter becoming pregnant. Zeus promises to help her, but soon abandons her when Hera, his wife, makes objections. Forced into exile, Leto is condemned to wander throughout the world after she gives birth to her twins, Apollo and Artemis. Warner uses the myth to trace the plight of the refugee through the centuries. It sounds like an interesting perspective, as Leto could work as a recognizable icon of all the victims of our postmodern, globalized era.
But this is a baffling, disappointing novel. Her characters seem to be symbolic archetypes and I felt it was impossible to relate to their story. The narrative structure is very complicated, and the accumulation of pointless descriptions as well as the distracting narrative clutter really taxed my endurance. I believe Warner's academic writing is much better than her fiction.
But this is a baffling, disappointing novel. Her characters seem to be symbolic archetypes and I felt it was impossible to relate to their story. The narrative structure is very complicated, and the accumulation of pointless descriptions as well as the distracting narrative clutter really taxed my endurance. I believe Warner's academic writing is much better than her fiction.
July 25, 2020
[2.8] A bit disappointed. This was so promising(!!!), but things started going downhill for me. I would've liked it if the story was told differently and more focused on a different character (I have one in mind, but I want this to be spoiler-free). All things considered, the writing style is definitely what stood out to me the most.
May 18, 2025
Published 24 years ago, this book feels incredibly fresh. It's musings on the causes and challenges of population displacement and the human cost are empathic, spiritual, blunt and brutal. Warner's background as a historian meets her interests in mythology and fable, Christianity and feminism and contemporary pop culture all combine to make this a novel with an epic time sweep and an, at times, disconcerting, fluidity of period and character. She's created some likeable, believable and honestly-rendered characters and she isn't afraid to bury a sucker-punch in an otherwise conventional narrative arc...rabbit sex anyone?? Her displaced people are kind and tough and evoke our sympathy without ever descending into a weak victim trope. This is a clever book with an unusual structure and an urgent message. Very impressive.
October 27, 2008
This book is... a bit mad... mix of mythology, commentary on modern society, history...most of the main characters are women. I don't think i've ever read english like it... are these words that are out of use, or did she make them up? the story is a bit of a mind bender, spanning thousands of years, a character like Orlando or something (what I can remember of the story). I think i need to read this one again!
July 26, 2013
Themes of dispossession, immigration, redemption thread through this book. The time-warping story of Leto the Titan who becomes Laetitia the martyr, Lettice the stowaway, Ella the maid and Nellie the refugee teaches us that not only the dispossessed and underprivileged are lost, and challenges us not to become trapped by the very freedom we seek.
December 11, 2008
I am in awe of Marina Warner as a mythographer. This novel was not as impressive to me as books of hers like Phantasmagoria and Fantastic Metamorphoses, Other Worlds.
Want to read
July 29, 201101 longlisted for booker prize
June 23, 2012
Huge fan of her non-fiction ie. No Go The Bogeyman but, unfortunately Ms Warner's fiction doesn't live up to the high standards of her other work.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews