Paradise Lost: The Novel [Hardcover]

Joseph Lanzara (Author), Gustave Dore (Illustrator)

Book Description

Publication Date: June 1994

SOON TO BECOME A MAJOR MOTION PICTURE!
John Milton's monumental epic of warring angels, Satan, Heaven, Hell, and the ultimate tragic love story of Adam and Eve.

"Lanzara paraphrases the original text very closely; this novel version seeks to overcome the anxieties of those intimidated by [the poem's] complex language."
- The English Association, The University of Leicester

"An ambitious and intriguing undertaking."
- Society for Values in Higher Education

"Readers will immediately be impressed with Lanzara's flowing style, his clarity of language, and his simplicity in expression."
- Dr. Richard L. Summer, Cedarville College

"Lanzara has smoothed the convoluted epic lines into twentieth century prose....Despite the new genre, Lanzara's book is anything but vanilla narrative. His writing has an invisible poetic quality, an elevation of language that honors the original."
- Inklings

--This text refers to the Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 255 pages
• Publisher: New Arts Library; First Edition edition (June 1994)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0963962140
• ISBN-13: 978-0963962140
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (6 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #2,003,672 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

13 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very dramatic and very gripping, April 1, 2006

By 

Andrew Newman (Charlotte, NC) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Paradise Lost: The Novel (Hardcover)

I was very interested in reading Paradise Lost but the language of the original version is simply too complex. I couldn't find a good abridged version so I found this. It is one of my favorite books.

The Good

It allows people to read Paradise Lost without having to have a 17th century translator. It is dramatic, tragic, and even has a little action.

The Bad

It is not written in modern English. It is in a semi-Shakespearian prose that can be hard to get through at times. If classics aren't exactly your thing then don't read this. Its also pretty hard to get a hold of.

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars For Comparison Shoppers, February 8, 2009

By 

Tyler Roach (New York, NY) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Paradise Lost: The Novel: Based Upon The Epic Poem By John Milton (Paperback)

Trying to decide between this Novel and its competitor, the Parallel Prose version? This may help.

If you are a student seeking an accurate, detailed, line by line paraphrase of Milton's language, the Parallel version does it as well as anything probably ever will. Use it as a research tool for specific assignments.

For enjoyable reading, however, the Novel is recommended. You can read this novel cover to cover in one afternoon. While it boldly changes elements of Milton's narrative in ways that would not be sanctioned by academia, the result is a remarkable work of literature in its own right.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Highly Recommended, December 8, 2008

By 

Isabella Rowlands - See all my reviews

This review is from: Paradise Lost: The Novel: Based Upon The Epic Poem By John Milton (Paperback)

I have read Paradise Lost and I will probably read it again. But this version is the one I will return to again and again, I suspect. It loses none of its power in the retelling.