Odyssey of Homer, The

by Homer and Andrew Homer

Book Overview

Composed at the rosy-fingered dawn of world literature almost three millennia ago, The Odyssey is a poem about violence and the aftermath of war; about wealth, poverty and power; about marriage and... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Paperback
• ISBN: B09M7PTTWM
• Release Date: January 1956
• Publisher: Oxford / Galaxy
• Weight: 0.75 lbs.

Customer Reviews

Not What I Expected

The preview for the quality and book style (Hardcover, Very good) depicts the Penguin Classics Clothbound Edition. The book and translation I received was not at all that edition. I expected to receive my dream style of book, and got something visually completely different. When buying older books like this, there are many translations of them, which is also why i was hoping to receive the Penguin edition specifically.

Falling apart when bought in good condition

I bought the book in good condition, and it’s literally falling apart, I’m afraid of evening opening this book anymore. This is not good condition like ordered.

Book sent was not the book I ordered

The preview and the book that I intended to order was supposed to be exactly the Odyssey homer not a modern translation by a Richmond lattimore.

perfect

exactly what you want when thrifting homer

Disappointed in condition

I bought a copy in “very good” condition to get it covered in another person’s annotations. Extremely disappointed as I needed a copy quickly for school.

Book listed as in far better shape than it is.

Every single page has extensive underlining and writing. Let's hope this came from a good student and doesn't steer my student wrong.

5 stars for being unique and comfortable in its own skin.

Most everybody knows about the Odyssey of Homer (the story and all that), so this review is about this particular translation by Stanley Lombardo. You have the classic English verse translations (Chapman, Pope, Cowper) and the classic prose translations (Butcher and Lang, Palmer), then you have the twentieth century crowd (Lattimore, Fitzgerald, Mandelbaum, Fagles, Rieu, Rouse, Shewring etc...) Some of these are verse and some prose, some literal and some poetic. Some are easy to read and some more difficult. Lombardo's translation of the Iliad and the Odyssey are somewhat unusual in that they are both verse and very clear and easy to read. Very much modern-day speech. Not that Fagles or Fitzgerald or Mandelbaum, for instance, (all verse translations) are difficult to read, but Lombardo's verse translation is really in a different category. His translations of the Iliad and the Odyssey sort of stand alone in their simple style and may be worth reading for that reason alone. I think also there is an unselfconsciousness in Lombardo's effort - and attitude - as well as a "very well then hang me, devils" confidence that comes through. Fresh, quick, engaging, spare, alive (typical words used by professional/academic reviewers for this translation...) An interesting touch by Lombardo is whenever Homer goes into one of his celebrated similes or metaphors Lombardo puts them into italics and sets them apart in the text. There are more of these in the Iliad than the Odyssey, but it is interesting to read them separate this way. He uses very much 'man on the street' expressions, and his verse reads very quickly, or, 'lightly' like a clear stream flowing easily over stones. I don't want to give the impression these are simplified versions of Homer's epics. They are real, unabridged translations. Serious translations, and though they are relatively new they seem to occupy a unique position in the gallery of English translations of Homer. They are worth aquiring for their uniqueness alone if you have the usual abiding interest and curiosity in new translations of Homer that most people develope who are drawn to these two epic poems.