Homer The Odyssey

First posted 6/20/2020; updated 7/6/2020.

The Odyssey Homer

First Publication: 800 B.C. Category: historical/epic poetry Sales: 45 million

Accolades (click on badges to see full lists):

About the Book: “The Odyssey is the original collection of tall traveler’s tales. Odysseus, on his way home from the Trojan War, encounters all kinds of marvels from one-eyed giants to witches and beautiful temptresses. His adventures are many and memorable before he gets back to Ithaca and his faithful wife Penelope.” AZ The epic poem “retells the events of the war between Greece and the city of Troy, focusing on Achilles' quarrel with Agamemnon.” BN “Helen, queen of Sparta and the most beautiful woman in the world, is kidnapped by Paris, a Trojan prince. Hungry for revenge, the Greek Army lays siege on Troy. For nine long years they are unsuccessful – until they come up with a plan for their greatest-ever attack on the city. For victory or death, the two armies will collide for the final time.” BN “We can never be certain that both these stories belonged to Homer. In fact, ‘Homer’ may not be a real name but a kind of nickname meaning perhaps ‘the hostage’ or ‘the blind one’. Whatever the truth of their origin…these tales… developed around three thousand years ago, may well still be read in three thousand years’ time.” AZ “Its symbolic evocation of human life as an epic journey homewards has inspired everything from James Joyce’s Ulysses to the Coen brothers' film, O Brother Where Art Thou?” TG Resources and Related Links: AZ Amazon BN Barnes & Noble LN The Literature Network (read online) TG Telegraph: The Perfect Library

Homer's The Iliad

First posted 6/25/2020; updated 7/6/2020.

The Iliad Homer

First Publication: 800 B.C. Category: historical/epic poetry Sales: ?

Accolades (click on badges to see full lists):

About the Book: “The Iliad is the oldest Greek poem and perhaps the best-known epic in Western literature.” BN It “recreates a few dramatic weeks near the end of the fabled Trojan War, ending with the funeral of Hector, defender of the doomed city. Through its majestic verses stride…fabled heroes…never far from the center of the story are the quarreling gods: Zeus, Poseidon, Apollo, Hera, Athena, and Aphrodite.” BN It found “eager new audiences when it was translated into many languages during the Renaissance.” BN It has subsequently “inspired countless works” BN and become “a beloved fixture of early Greek culture,” BN “Its themes of honor, power, status, heroism, and the whims of the gods have ensured its enduring popularity and immeasurable cultural influence.” BN The Greek poet Homer is attributed with writing both The Iliad and The Odyssey although there is debate about “whether his works are…by the same hand, or have their origins in the lays of Homer and his followers (Homeridae).” LN In addition, this “assemblage of stories and legends shaped into a compelling single narrative” BN “was probably recited orally by bards for generations before being written down in the eighth century B.C.” BN Resources and Related Links: BN Barnes & Noble LN The Literature Network (read online) TG Telegraph: The Perfect Library

Leo Tolstoy War and Peace

First posted 6/10/2020; updated 7/5/2020.

War and Peace Leo Tolstoy

First Publication: 1869 Category: historical novel Sales: 36 million

Accolades:

About the Book: “The most famous – and perhaps greatest – novel of all time,” BN War and Peace is “both an intimate study of individual passions and an epic history of Russia and its people.” BN The novel is “noted for its mastery of realistic detail and variety of psychological analysis” LN as it details “the metamorphosis of five families, some peasant, some aristocratic” AZ struggling for survival during Napoleon’s invasion of Russia.” BN “The theme of war, however, is subordinate to the story of family existence, which involves Tolstoy’s optimistic belief in the life-asserting pattern of human existence.” LN “Each individual is immersed in experiences and conversations elucidating Tolstoy’s themes of self-sacrifice and self-indulgence, anguish and ecstasy, diplomacy and deception, and religion and perdition. The complexities of character and plot are sometimes enigmatic, and names are often exhausting to recollect, but the genius of this book is everlasting.” AZ The impressive dialog sparkles with humor and wit, and the vivid scenes of battle are riveting.” AZ “The novel also sets forth a theory of history, concluding that there is a minimum of free choice; all is ruled by an inexorable historical determinism.” LN “War and Peace is nothing more or less than a complete portrait of human existence.” BN The book is well known for its length. “Even the author said it couldn't be described as a novel. But the characters of Andrei, Pierre and Natasha – and the tragic and unexpected way their lives intersect – grip you for all 1,400 pages.” TG Resources and Related Links: AZ Amazon (review from Library Journal by Barbara Mann) BN Barnes & Noble LN The Literature Network TG Telegraph: The Perfect Library

Dante Alighieri's Divina Commedia (The Divine Comedy)

First posted 6/12/2020; updated 6/26/2020.

The Divine Comedy (Divina Commedia) Dante Alighieri

Completed: 1320 Category: poetry Sales: 12 million

Accolades:

About the Book: The Divine Comedy is a narrative poem begun around 1308 and completed in 1320 It is widely considered “the pre-eminent work in Italian literature.” WK Its “imaginative vision of the afterlife is representative of the medieval world-view as it had developed in the Western Curch by the 14th century.” WK The poem consists of three parts: Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso, focused respectively on Dante’s journeys through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven. “Allegorically, the poem represents the soul’s journey towards God, beginning with the recognition and rejection of sin (Inferno), followed by the penitent Christian life (Purgatorio), … [and] the soul’s ascent to God (Paradiso).” WK “Crystallizing the power and beauty inherent in the great poet’s…conception of the aspiring soul,” AZ this “poetic masterpiece…is a moving human drama” AZ and “a dazzling work of sublime truth and mystical intensity” AZ “belonging in the immortal company of the great works of literature.” AZ “Its intense recreation of the depths and the heights of human experience has become the key with which Western civilization has sought to unlock the mystery of its own identity.” BN Resources and Related Links: AZ Amazon BN Barnes & Noble WK Wikipedia

Chinua Achebe Things Fall Apart

First posted 6/12/2020; last updated 7/5/2020.

Things Fall Apart Chinua Achebe

First Publication: 1958 Category: poetic fiction/children’s novel Sales: 20 million

Accolades:

About the Book: “Things Fall Apart is the first of three novels in Chinua Achebe’s critically acclaimed African Trilogy.” AZ “Its story chronicles pre-colonial life in the south-eastern part of Nigeria and the arrival of the Europeans during the late nineteenth century.” WK “The title of the novel was borrowed from W. B. Yeats’ 1919 poem ‘The Second Coming.’” WK The story is “told through the fictional experiences of Okonkwo, a wealthy and fearless Igbo warrior” AZ “and local wrestling champion in the fictional Nigerian clan of Umuofia.” WK “The work is split into three parts, with the first describing his family, personal history, and the customs and society of the Igbo, and the second and third sections introducing the influence of British colonialism and Christian missionaries on the Igbo community.” WK Things Fall Apart explores one man’s futile resistance to the devaluing of his Igbo traditions by British political andreligious forces and his despair as his community capitulates to the powerful new order.” AZ The book “provides one of the most illuminating and permanent monuments to African experience. Achebe does not only capture life in a pre-colonial African village, he conveys the tragedy of the loss of that world while broadening our understanding of our contemporary realities.” AZ The book has been translated into 57 languages AZ and “is a staple book in schools throughout Africa and is widely read and studied in English-speaking countries around the world.” WZ Resources and Related Links: AZ Amazon WK Wikipedia

Daniel Defoe's Robinson Crusoe published 300 years ago today!

First posted 7/6/2020.

Robinson Crusoe Daniel Defoe

First Publication: April 25, 1719 Category: adventure novel Sales: 1 million

Accolades (click on badges to see full lists):

About the Book: “Robinson Crusoe is one of the most popular and influential adventure stories of all time” BN and “a pioneering work of realist fiction.” AZ “This classic tale of shipwreck and survival on an uninhabited island was an instant success when first published in 1719 and has inspired countless imitations.” BN “Inspired by the real life story of Alexander Selkirk, a castaway who lived on an island in the Pacific for four years,” AZ “it was widely believed to be a true account of actual events.” AZ “At the beginning of the novel we find Robinson Crusoe desiring a life at sea, despite the wishes of his parents for him to pursue a more sensible career. Despite numerous disasters and misadventures at sea he is not to be deterred from his life choice. Ultimately he finds himself stranded on a deserted island when his ship is destroyed in a storm.” AZ Forced to overcome despair, doubt, and self-pity, he struggles to create a life for himself in the wilderness.” BN “He makes do with the supplies that he has salvaged from the wreckage and the resources he finds on the island.” AZ “His many adventures are recounted in vivid detail, including a fierce battle with cannibals and his rescue of Friday, the man who becomes his trusted companion.” BN “Full of enchanting detail and daring heroics, Robinson Crusoe is a celebration of courage, patience, ingenuity, and hard work.” BN Resources and Related Links: AZ Amazon BN Barnes & Noble