The Iliad

Virtuoso * New York Review of Books * Caroline Alexander's Iliad is miraculous. It has the rhythms and even the lineation of the original Homeric text. Its language conveys the precise meaning of the Greek in a sinewy yet propulsive style that drives the reader inexorably forward. In my judgement, this new translation is far superior to the familiar and admired work of Lattimore, Fitzgerald and Fagles -- G.W. Bowersock, Institute for Advanced Study, Princeton Of the many new translations of Homers poem that have come out in the past two or three years, perhaps the most highly readable is Caroline Alexanders. Thought to be the first woman to have Englished the poem, Alexander embraces Matthew Arnolds four essential Homeric qualities: rapidity, plainness of style, simplicity of ideas and nobility of manner, in lines that ebb and flow with the tide of battle. The book wears its learning lightly, the introduction pitching the Iliad as the ultimate anti-war poem. * Times Literary Supplement * The Homeric Iliad originates from a rich tradition of performing song. It was meant to be heard. True to the living word of the original Greek, Caroline Alexanders new translation invites us to engage directly with this tradition. When I read her verses I can almost hear the music of Homeric performance. -- Professor Gregory Nagy, Professor of Classical Greek Literarture, Harvard University Caroline Alexander has done admirably in rendering the meaning of the Homeric text faithfully and suitably dignified language. The format gives a genuine sense of reading a verse epic. Her line-numbers match the Greek, which will make this version convenient for use by college teachers and students -- Martin West, Emeritus Fellow of All Souls College, Oxford

Caroline Alexander is the author of seven books of non-fiction including the international bestsellers The Endurance: Shackletons Legendary Antarctic Expedition and The Bounty: The True Story of the Mutiny on the Bounty. A contributing writer for National Geographic, Alexander has also written for the New Yorker, Smithsonian and Granta among other publications. Alexanders latest books are Lost Gold of the Dark Ages: War, Treasure and the Mystery of the Saxons and The War That Killed Achilles: The True Story of the Iliad and the Trojan War. Between 1982 and 1985, Alexander established a department of Classics at the University of Malawi, in central-east Africa.