4.88k reviews for:

The Iliad

Homer

3.8 AVERAGE


3.5 stars
adventurous dark informative slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: No
Loveable characters: No
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Note: The Iliad has been translated many times, and for this review, I read the 1898 Butler version. YMMV with different translators. 

I read The Odyssey back in junior high and recall generally enjoying it, so I was excited to pick up this… prequel? Earlier installment? 

Whatever you wish to call it, The Iliad is, as of this writing, the oldest book I’ve reviewed! Written sometime in the 7th or 8th century BC in what’s now known as Greece, the book has a long and storied history and has been the inspiration for innumerable other works of literature and art. Which, of course, created quite the expectation going in, an expectation that this book sadly failed to live up to. 

The Trojan War has been raging for years, with a coalition of various kings and princes from different kingdoms besieging the city of Troy to help recover King Menelaus’ wife, Helen, from her abductor Paris. However, a dispute over the fate of several captive women leads one of the attackers’ greatest fighters, Achilles, to swear off fighting until he’s given restitution. The declaration leads to further involvement from the gods, who each have their own stake in the war, and might finally bring some progress in the endless stalemate. 

The Iliad is another one of those books that’s really more of valuable piece of history (actual history, in this case, rather than fandom history like Ian Watson’s Draco) than it is a fun story to read on its own. Somewhere in the pages an interesting story lurks, but for the majority of the book it’s hidden behind a series of repetitive battle scenes. Characters are introduced, given a paragraph of exposition about their history, relatives, and previous feats, and the summarily killed. Rinse and repeat for dozens of pages. 

I did enjoy the Olympus segments however, watching the gods and their shenanigans and the influence of those shenanigans on the lives of those on earth. “Mortal lives are a game in the hands of immortals” is a favorite literary device of mine and this is one of the most classic examples of it. The latter half of the story improves greatly as well, focusing on a few characters and taking the time to develop them beyond their battle prowess. If the story had started around the 50% mark, this would have easily been three stars for me, but by the time I got there, I was so bored that I was having to fight the urge to skim and didn’t get as much out of it as I might have otherwise. 

Ultimately while I do recommend The Iliad for those with any curiosity whatsoever about the influences of modern literature, it’s an academic exercise, not something I would be interested in ever reading again for the sake of it. 

Expand filter menu Content Warnings

This is only my third translation of the Iliad but I feel confident in telling you how phenomenal it is. I have a BA in Classics so I've read and studied many many ancient texts and have read the Iliad for 4 separate classes, so I have experience with the text and translations of it, and Henry's is so good. It's one thing to be able to translate a text, but I found myself saying things like "oh I don't remember that" or finding someing quite funny that I never noticed in other translations. That isn't to say other translations suck, they are also great works, but Henry's is translated by a modern woman which is still a fairly rare phenomenon and I can feel it. I can feel the difference between a 2020s translation by a female author and a 90s version by a man (just look at how Achilles describes his pain when Patroclus does - the men of the last were not translating it that way)
slow-paced
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
adventurous challenging emotional tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: No
Flaws of characters a main focus: Complicated

Vilka våldsamma scener! Obskyra, vågade metaforer. Slutet var lite svagt
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Loveable characters: Complicated
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes
adventurous tense slow-paced

A classic!

Expand filter menu Content Warnings
dark emotional informative tense slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven: A mix
Strong character development: Complicated
Loveable characters: Complicated
Diverse cast of characters: Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus: Yes

Patroclus was so loved!!!!!!