The Odyssey

Audible Iliad & Odyssey, Book 2

De: Homer, Emily Wilson - translator

Narrado por: Claire Danes

Acclaimed actress Claire Danes burnishes an epic story of heroes, gods, and monsters in a groundbreaking translation of The Odyssey, the first great adventure story in the Western literary tradition. When the wily warrior-king Odysseus sets off for home after the Trojan War, he doesn’t realize this simple undertaking will become a perilous journey of 10 years. Beset at every turn, he encounters obstacles, detours, and temptations—both supernatural and human—while his wife Penelope fends off would-be suitors desperate to take the throne.

Emily Wilson is the first woman to take on the daunting task of translating over 100,000 lines of a three-millennium-old poem from Ancient Greek to modern-day English. Her breathtaking rendition captures the poetic immediacy of the original text, while allowing listeners to experience The Odyssey with an honesty and directness few other versions have achieved. The result is a lean, fleet-footed translation that recaptures Homer’s “nimble gallop” and brings an ancient epic to new life. A fascinating introduction provides an informative overview of the Bronze Age milieu that produced the epic, the major themes of the poem, the controversies about its origins, and the unparalleled scope of its impact and influence.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2018 Emily Wilson (translation), Adrian Kitzinger (maps copyright) (P)2018 Audible, Inc.

Highly recommended

I Didn’t hesitate to get this audiobook, after hearing the Handmaid’s Tale when it first came out. I wish Claire Danes would narrate every book ! I have been wanting to read this book for a long time and when I heard Madeline Miller (who wrote Circe, a book I also thoroughly enjoyed this year) praise Emily Wilson for her translation of the book, I jumped at the opportunity.

Perfect! Just perfect!

This is the best translation of The Odyssey IMHO because of its style. The story itself is a classic, everyone who have struggled or is struggling to achieve a goal knows or should know about the story of Odysseus. And this translation by Emily Wilson, this performance by Claire Danes, is the best way to know about him.

Not your father's Odyssey

Gender plays a big part in this new translation; most of the reviews have focused on this being the first translation of Homer by a woman. But there's much more going on here: This version attends to questions of class and status. Slavery is presented in harsh reality. I've not read the Greek in a long time so I don't know how faithful this version is to the original but it does make for a compelling and thought provoking narrative. While Claire Danes is an excellent reader and does what she can with the text I'm not certain that a female voice works throughout the whole thing.

This new Odyssey is great to listen to!

I love the story and this praised new translation is great. My only complaint is that the reader mispronounces quite a few names. Audible should have asked the reader to consult a classicist on the pronunciation of names like "Achilleus," "Circe," "Skylla," and many more.
I listen to books at the gym. This book is especially good for that because the epic has a lot of repetition. The Odyssey was sung, so the listeners imagined the scenes and events narrated in the poem; by listening, you will do the same thing and enjoy it.
I highly recommend it!

Great Greek Mythology Read

Great translation of a classic. Claire Danes did an amazing job reading this book. I would skip the intro though, almost as long as the book.

Evergreen classic that stands the test of time

This is a refreshing perspective into the classic which made it highly enjoyable for commuting and long drives.

really liked this

I really liked this. it was a little long, but now I can say I've listened to the Odyssey.

incredible performance

For those of us who never got through the Odyssey in that freshman lit class, this is an amazing performance of this classic story. Thanks for making it accessible with this spectacular performance and thoughtful translation.

Compelling Combination

Claire Danes' sharply crafted narration is brimming with the vitality of Emily Wilson's translation to present us with an Odysseus challenging us today to define him.

STUNNING

Everything about this recorded book is fantastic: the story, the translation, and the reader's performance. Absolutely highest recommendation. Don't waste another moment before listening to this amazing work.