Homer's Odyssey by Homer

Homer's Odyssey by Homer

One of the great epics of Western literature, The Odyssey covers the events after the Trojan War as Odysseus travels home, encountering many strange monsters and creatures along the way. Featuring numerous figures of ancient Greek mythology, Homer's epic poem is one of the world's oldest surviving literary works and preserves various aspects of ancient Greek beliefs and culture for the modern reader. From fearsome giants to a cunning sorceress, Odysseus must confront peril after peril, all the while wondering if the path of his fate ever leads homeward, and if his wife Penelope and son Telemachus remain safe. Featuring a classic, readable translation and a new introduction. Now in a stunning, compact Collector's Edition.

Little is known for certain about the life of Homer, the Greek poet credited as the author of the great epics The Iliad and The Odyssey, although he is believed to have been born sometime between the twelfth and eighth centuries BC. The Odyssey describes the trials of the hero Odysseus on his journey home to Ithaca following the Trojan War. It has had a huge influence on Western literature, inspiring extensive translations, poems, plays and novels.

Jan Haywood is Associate Professor in Ancient History at the University of Leicester. He is the co-author, with Naoíse Mac Sweeney, of a book on cross-cultural receptions of the Trojan War tradition ('Homer’s Iliad and the Trojan War: Dialogues on Tradition', London, Bloomsbury, 2018), and has also published several articles and book chapters on ancient Greek literature, including contemporary responses to the Homeric poems. He is deeply committed to opening up the study of the classical world to wider audiences and is the co-founder of the Herodotus Helpline – a free online seminar series open to anyone interested in the ancient Greek historian Herodotus and his world.

Jake Jackson (General Editor) has written, edited and contributed to over 20 books. Related works include studies of Babylonian creation myths, the philosophy to time and William Blake's use of mythology in his visionary literature.