Take a photo of a barcode or cover
percy_hanawalt 's review for:
The Iliad
by Homer
Giving a starred rating to The Iliad feels weird because, well… it’s The Iliad. Whether I enjoyed it or not, it’s still going to be one of the world’s fundamental works. That said, I did very much enjoy it. I can’t read Ancient Greek, so I can’t really comment on the translation, but it felt readily comprehensible without sounding overly modernized. I know one frequent critique of this translation is that it’s sometimes uncharitable towards its female characters; however, I thought that Helen in particular came across as a believable and even relatable — if you haven’t lamented your birth in the harsh light of the consequences of your impulsive romantic decisions, you haven’t lived enough yet.
This is also a truly action-packed story. A significant portion of the book is descriptions of battle. A character will be introduced, you’ll hear a bit about his backstory, and then he’ll be graphically cut down. Soldiers have their eyeballs popped out of their head, their skulls split open, and their guts spilled everywhere. Honestly, at times, the rhythm of reading the text felt more than a little similar to the experience of watching 300. If you’re intimidated by “the classics” because you fear a slow, introspective read, this would be a fantastic option.
I also found the interactions between the gods and the mortals to be some of the most interesting parts of the book. The gods make numerous interventions in the war, both through psychological and direct physical manipulation. Feeling as though your fate is in the hands of entities far more powerful than you are, who make decisions based largely around interpersonal squabbles, is terrifying, and yet, it’s an apt metaphor for many of the challenges of living in a human society.
A violent, moving, and timeless work.
This is also a truly action-packed story. A significant portion of the book is descriptions of battle. A character will be introduced, you’ll hear a bit about his backstory, and then he’ll be graphically cut down. Soldiers have their eyeballs popped out of their head, their skulls split open, and their guts spilled everywhere. Honestly, at times, the rhythm of reading the text felt more than a little similar to the experience of watching 300. If you’re intimidated by “the classics” because you fear a slow, introspective read, this would be a fantastic option.
I also found the interactions between the gods and the mortals to be some of the most interesting parts of the book. The gods make numerous interventions in the war, both through psychological and direct physical manipulation. Feeling as though your fate is in the hands of entities far more powerful than you are, who make decisions based largely around interpersonal squabbles, is terrifying, and yet, it’s an apt metaphor for many of the challenges of living in a human society.
A violent, moving, and timeless work.