The Odyssey

One of the two major ancient Greek epics-and one of the most popular stories of all time-Homer's Odyssey has been a classic of Western literature for centuries. This translation into spare, elegant blank verse, is certain to attract the same praise and admiration as Herbert Jordan's previous rendition of Homer's Iliad. In keeping with the style of his Iliad, Jordan renders the Odyssey line-for-line in iambic pentameter, a pleasing five-beat meter used not only by Shakespeare but also by his contemporary George Chapman, the first great translator of Homer into English verse. Jordan deftly pilots Homer's dactyls and extended metaphors, capturing the essence of the poet's meanings while avoiding either an overly literal or colloquial style. This edition includes maps of the Aegean region and Odysseus' travels, explanatory notes, a pronunciation glossary of nouns, and an index of similes. E. Christian Kopff's introduction parses the Odyssey's meaning and intent and contextualizes the poem within the larger epic tradition. Readers never tire of the story of Odysseus' return home from the Trojan War. This lively and energetic rendition invites twenty-first-century readers and students of Homer's epic to experience these adventures as if for the first time. "A remarkably fresh and clear translation. As deceptively simple as an Attic frieze, it is at once true to its ancient original and inviting to readers today." Luc Sante, translator of Félix Fénéon's Novels in Three Lines Volume 49 in the Oklahoma Series in Classical Culture Herbert Jordan, an attorney, is an independent scholar of Greek. His highly acclaimed translation of the Iliad was published in 2008. E. Christian Kopff, Associate Professor of Classics at the University of Colorado, Boulder, is the editor of the Teubner critical Greek edition of Euripides' Bacchae.