Author(s): Homer

Penguin Black Classics

READ THE STORY BEHIND THE NEW BBC/NETFLIX EPIC SERIES, TROY- FALL OF A CITYHigh on Olympus, Zeus and the assembled deities look down on the world of men, to the city of Troy where a bitter and bloody war has dragged into its tenth year, and a quarrel rages between a legendary warrior and his commander. Greek ships decay, men languish, exhausted, and behind the walls of Troy a desperate people await the next turn of fate.This is theIliad- an ancient story of enduring power; magnetic characters defined by stirring and momentous speeches; a panorama of human lives locked in a heroic struggle beneath a mischievous or indifferent heaven. Above all, this is a tale of the devastation, waste and pity of war.Caroline Alexander's virtuoso translation captures the rhythms and energy of Homer's original Greek while making the text as accessible as possible to a modern reader, accompanied by extensive extra material to provide a background to the poem.The result of 3,000 years of story-telling, Homer's epic tale of the fall of Troy has resonated with every age and every human conflict- this is theIliadat its most electrifying and vital.