The Iliad

By: Homer, Robert Fagles - translator, Bernard Knox - introduction

Narrated by: Derek Jacobi, Maria Tucci

Dating to the ninth century BC, Homer’s timeless poem still vividly conveys the horror and heroism of men and gods wrestling with towering emotions and battling amidst devastation and destruction, as it moves inexorably to the wrenching, tragic conclusion of the Trojan War. Renowned classicist Bernard Knox observes in his superb Introduction that although the violence of the Iliad is grim and relentless, it coexists with both images of civilized life and a poignant yearning for peace.

Combining the skills of a poet and scholar, Robert Fagles brings the energy of contemporary language to this enduring heroic epic. He maintains the drive and metric music of Homer’s poetry, and evokes the impact and nuance of the Iliad’s mesmerizing repeated phrases in what Peter Levi calls “an astonishing performance.”Translation Copyright ©1990 by Robert Fagles; (P)1992 Penguin-HighBridge Audio, Packaging ©1992 Penguin-HighBridge Audio

Critic reviews

“Fitzgerald has solved virtually every problem that has plagued translators of Homer. The narrative runs, the dialogue speaks, the military action is clear, and the repetitive epithets become useful text rather than exotic relics.” –Atlantic Monthly

“Fitzgerald’ s swift rhythms, bright images, and superb English make Homer live as never before…This is for every reader in our time and possibly for all time.”–Library Journal

“[Fitzgerald’ s Odyssey and Iliad] open up once more the unique greatness of Homer’s art at the level above the formula; yet at the same time they do not neglect the brilliant texture of Homeric verse at the level of the line and the phrase.” –The Yale Review

“What an age can read in Homer, what its translators can manage to say in his presence, is one gauge of its morale, one index to its system of exultations and reticences. The supple, the iridescent, the ironic, these modes are among our strengths, and among Mr. Fitzgerald’s.” –National Review

With an Introduction by Gregory Nagy

Bit dissapointed

Well for sure I’m a homer neophyte but I’ve just finished listening to the rouse translation unabridged which I understand is a Prose translation so in order to ‘go deeper’ into homerville I felt obligated to listen to one of the classic poetry translations (fagles, Lattimore etc) but in this case the story is clearly abridged and I feel the prose does does not have the gravitas of the rouse version. Additionally I feel completely cheated when we wizz through hours and hours of battle in 10mins !

Abridgement with no Alternative

I will get straight to the point: do not let this audiobook be your sole experience of the Iliad. This is an abridged recording, and so much wonderful and necessary detail is left out (yes — even the dreaded catalog of ships is necessary.)

For the highlights, Derek Jacobi is an EXCELLENT narrator and it is by virtue of this that I was able to tolerate the abridgement to the final lines. He breathes life into characters, always distinct between their voices. It is an incredibly dynamic performance: he reflects rhythm of the poetry with his cadence and does justice to Fagles' lively style.

To my knowledge no unabridged version of Fagles' translation has been available as an audiobook. As a result, for those who enjoy listening and following along, you will be forced to stop and read on your own at length - sometimes entire books worth, like the penultimate book. Furthermore, the entire chapters do not correspond at all with sections of the book in the Fagles version.

I can only recommend this recording to those who have read the Iliad before and know every detail of it well. Perhaps the abridgement will be an enjoyable return to some highlights. To everyone else, unless you are willing to stop and read between the abridged sections on your own as I have, I would avoid this recording. Wonderful as the performance is, do not sacrifice your holistic understanding of this great text for convenience.

Derek Jacobi

The famous Fagles translation and read by Derek Jacobi...fantastic, except it's not all that I remember, as it is abridged and includes another narrator filling in some of the abridged areas...not sure why they had to do this. Jacobi is a master.

One of my favorite books

The voice acting is very entertaining and I might just be a complete nerd but I loved the story and how it was written, as confusing as it was at times.

Abridged but still so moving

Yes, I do wish that this was a complete performance, but that does not dimish the magnificence of both the translation by Fagles and the inspired performance by Derek Jacobi.

If it were complete, I would have given it seven stars. All the important parts are there, fortunately, so the audience (theomenoi) should not have difficulty envisioning the drama, as it is told by the bard.

Books and line numbers, though, would have helped better than chapters. A serious complaint!