In the summer of 1348, the Black Death ravages Florence and ten young Florentines flee to take refuge in the countryside where they entertain themselves with disparate tales of love, eros, death and corruption featuring a host of colourful characters from corrupt clergymen and mad kings to devious lovers and false saints. Taken from the Greek for 'ten days' Boccaccio's medieval tales draw on many ancient European and global mythologies and in turn heavily influenced the likes of Chaucer and Shakespeare. J.G. Nichols' new translation stays as faithful to the original as possible while being written in a clear and eminently readable modern English, capturing the timeless humour and adventure from one of the great original classics of European Literature.