Customer Reviews

The Odyssey (Penguin Classics Deluxe Editio)

5 star:		(6)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

Robert Fagles' translation of The Odyssey puts the text into modern language that makes this book ideal for teaching in a high school English classroom. I read this in my high school English classroom and, contrary to most students my age, enjoyed it immensely. He keeps the flow of Homer's prose while making the text easy to understand.

This is a great book, and as a Kindle owner, I was happy to see it available. I would also like to see The Iliad as translated by Fagles available for the Kindle.

We just started reading the Odyssey in my 9th grade English class. I got a free version on my Kindle a few weeks ago (the Pope version), and I didn't like it at all. But Fagles's version is great. He translates it in a way that is easy to understand, and makes you want to read on. I recommend this to everyone, young or old.

I first read the Odyssey almost 50 years ago as a freshman in college. Back then, I struggled so much reading and understanding the text I don't think I grasped any of the larger issues the instructor was trying to teach. This edition, masterfully translated by Robert Fagles, was truly a pleasure to read. I found myself reading many passages (and even long sections) out loud and really felt I was hearing something like a performance with oral cadences and lively movement. And this time I was totally caught up in the dramatic unfolding of events.

Don't be mislead by TV, movie and graphic novel versions of this classic story. Odysseus is not an ancient version of Mad Max careening from one bloody encounter to another. In fact the reader does not even meet Odysseus until Book Five, almost one-fourth of the way through the book. All of the famous exploits are told as a series of long "flashbacks." Odysseus actually reaches his home island of Ithaca in the middle of Book Thirteen. So almost one-half of the book is not Odysseus' seafaring adventures but his coping with his complex homecoming situation and subsequent plotting and maneuvering. So put the cartoon versions out of your mind and settle in for a story of high drama and suspense full of well-crafted characters including perceptive portraits of the women Odysseus encounters.

Kindle readers will really appreciate that this Kindle edition is a complete duplicate of the print edition. It contains the extensive introduction by Bernard Knox. And, in a Kindle bonus, the authoritative line notes are "hyper-linked" in the text; just click on the underlined line number to jump to that line's note. And, yes, it does have relatively unobtrusive line numbering so you can use this version in a class where everyone else has the print edition. (I just did!) You get all the maps, genealogies, textual variants, and spelling and pronunciation guides of the print edition. And, I encountered no typos, transcribing errors or blunders in the text.

This Kindle edition is a respectable version of the Penguin Classics Deluxe Edition of one of the greatest stories ever told and well worth the moderate price.

I just purchased the Kindle version and it is indeed the Fagles translation and not the Pope translation. Amazon must have corrected their earlier error.

A very long book that reads easy and flows. But, be prepared for hours of reading. I read this classic epic poem when I was in High School, but I enjoyed and appreciated it so much more now that I am older. Suggest you take the time to read or reread this thrilling story.

This is simply an excellent Kindle version of a quality print edition. The Kindle version retains all the supplementary materials of the hard cover book, including the 60 page intro, notes (hyperlinked), and pronunciation glossary. The line breaks are fine, and the font is pleasing. The only draw backs are that the maps and genealogies are difficult to read in this format.

One of the pillars of Western Civilization, Homer's The Odyssey and The Iliad (his other work) are must reads. The Odyssey is a brilliant look at a man's journey in life and in an era when honor was paramount. The Fagles edition is easy to read for the modern reader. You can always make arguments about translation, but this one a strong one especially if it's your first venture into the classics.

There is also public domain ones available for free and that's great to try it out before buying.

CAN$15.93 for a "new translation" (a bit of a joke that "new" is, actually, since this version of The Odyssey was first released in 1996!!!) of a 2500 year old book that is, in many translations (as well of course the original) in the public domain. Really ... that is utter madness ... and also more expensive than the actual physical book in its paperback version. I bought the Kindle version of the Fagles translation of the Iliad companion to this Penguin Fagles translation of Odyssey ebook in June 2011 for CAN$ 9.69 and noted at the time that this Odyssey was priced the same. Now in September they both cost CAN$ 15.69. (Note ... upon checking again in November 2011 I see that it has been re-priced again to $15.93; it is as if the prices are changing regularly with the value of currency perhaps??? Please Penguin do not set prices considering only your greedy desire to make more money selling less books in the short term. I have never bought more books than since getting this Kindle about a year ago. Please Penguin do not follow the growing publisher trend of holding our Kindles hostage to your greed with your so-called "agency" pricing model. I will not ever pay this much for translations of old, classic literature, or older works in English that the publisher's only contribution to has been to add some brief scholarly introduction to a work that is in the public domain, or nearly so. I will not support greedy publishers who seek to take advantage of the dedication and enthusiasm of Kindle owners. We were all sold on a vision of the Kindle that promised more books for less money (due to the huge savings to publishers that e-books represent); I remember that for some time that Amazon boasted something like "fiction for $10 or less" as a selling point for the new technology. Now Penguin you, and many other of the large publishing houses, are reneging on that vision that Amazon promised and you, for a time, participated in and encouraged Kindle buyers to believe. Now your greed has taken over you sense; and, I suspect your sales (not to mention your authors) will suffer, if not now, then soon. I encourage all readers of this review to boycott all products from publishers that participate in this new pricing model, or who Amazon identifies with the disclaimer "The price was set by the publisher" on books' Kindle description pages.