The Iliad: (Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition)

I bought this PB edition of Fagles' translation specifically for the deckled page edges. Anyone not considering deckled page edges to be an enhancement might consider the (non-Deluxe) Penguin Classics edition. The book cover also has French flaps.

Not a bad version. I'd like to find a copy where Hector kills the insufferable git Achilles mind. Hector gets such a bad press and he is, apart from possibly Patroclus, the only real hero in the book, the chap who overcomes his fear to face his worst nightmare. OK so he get's killed but heroism is facing and overcoming fear not being an unstoppable murderous thug in impenetrable armour who has numerous hissy fits.

Fagles great translation and telling of this great epic. It is accompanied by an excellent essay on the background and history of rhe ten years war between the Greek city-states and Troy,fomented and maintained by the gods. It has very helpful notes on the background, the pronunciation of names, the places and a very full index. Even those who know the basic story well will find that the book sheds new light on the pre-classical world and on human behaviour.The introduction alone is worth the price

Beautiful book, lovely translation. I bought this when it first can out decades ago and I’m really happy it feels the same. Isn’t that enough advice already?

Almost my first experience of the Iliad by Homer, here translated by Robert Fagles with a simply superb introduction by Bernard Knox who lays the groundwork for the plot and illuminates the characters of the story. The translation itself is excellent although at times some colloquial terms have been used to express the feeling of the original Greek to a modern reader. This did detract but overall it was a translation which held you in all its heat of battle or sorrow for dying men. We see that even though there are many lines of the poem repeated so as to give a sense of the character involved it never becomes boring or lacking creativity. The battle scenes are brutal as they would be in reality with little held back, especially the fighting of Achilles which is merciless. Somehow the poem expresses both the violence in the battles and the pain of loss by the death of any of the individuals involved. It's the first time I have met this way of storytelling without a solid development of character beforehand. Homer was truly adept at this. I am looking forward to his "Odyssey" all the more. Something I did notice which stood out strongly and that was the bias inherent in Homer's favouring the Achaeans over the Trojans. Many times we see him speaking of the Achaeans as great in all they did, their stalwartness and courage whereas Trojans were often portrayed as cowardly or when they achieved some feat as lucky or as given the advantage by the Gods. Strangely even though Homer finds something good to say for most of the participants he seems reluctant in the case of Helen who is seen as a prostitute at best, it doesn't seem that there is any attempt at expressing the feelings between Paris and Helen rather their "romance" seems to be a sideline to the real story which is that of Achilles, the beloved of the Gods, his pride, strength and love of war. These criticisms would be irrelevant if one did not get the feeling that the Iliad was written as a kind of historical narrative since of course Troy did exist and its destruction did occur. I found this feeling hard to avoid although I'm sure others do not have this problem. Many points come across as to the lifestyle and ways of thought of the ancient Greeks: (1) Nothing happens without the Gods intervention or influence in everyday life. The Gods are ever-present sometimes even appearing to people in person, most of the time in disguise. (2) Women themselves were looked on as prizes, eg literally as a prize when Achilles captured Briseis. Their beauty and handicrafts were recognised but that's about it. (3) A man's worth was measured through courage, bravery in war and skills if in peacetime. Riches are secondary. Athletic prowess is essential. Older men are looked on with respect especially for their achievements in the past eg Nestor. (4) Men don't have freedom in their lives, everything is dictated by the Gods or fate. Choices don't seem to exist like they do today. But then even the Gods are under the yoke of fate, it is often noted that it is not a God's fate to die since they are immortal but by saying this they must be under the sway of fate as well. An excellent story, told I think, as it was intended.

superb

This is an incredible edition of an incredible work of art. For everyone saying the pages are poorly cut - this is a stylistic feature of the Penguin Deluxe Classics editions, not an error in the printing.

The quality of the paper and the size of the print make this book a pleasure to read. I would like to read other books in this series.

I love the Penguin Deluxe editions! Bought it for a reread since it's been a few years. Highly recommend the Robert Fagles translation.

A very beautiful cover! The slightly torn page edges really add to it as well

A pleasure to look at and hold, an absolute delight to read. A treasure to pass down to future generations.

El libro es un clásico, nada que argumentar ahí. La edición se ve bella. El problema es que cómo usualmente pasa con libros grandes y Amazon, este termina por llegar dañado. Haré la devolución pero me molesta la falta de cuidado, hubo una época en que no sucedía esto.

What can I say, this poem has lived through the ages, just fantastic. There are points reading this that I felt at was at the walls of Troy. This version is well translated and printed with good fonts. I mean Homer of course I would recommend reading this.