Gilgamesh

A New English Version

By: Stephen Mitchell - translator

Narrated by: George Guidall

Length: 4 hrs and 5 mins

Publisher's summary

This brilliant new treatment of the world's oldest epic is a literary event on par with Seamus Heaney's wildly popular Beowulf translation. Esteemed translator and best-selling author Stephen Mitchell energizes a heroic tale so old it predates Homer's Iliad by more than a millennium.

In the ancient city of Uruk, the tyrannical King Gilgamesh tramples citizens "like a wild bull". The gods send an untamed man named Enkidu to control the ruthless king, but after fighting, Enkidu and Gilgamesh become great friends and embark on a series of adventures. They kill fearsome creatures before Enkidu succumbs to disease, leaving Gilgamesh despondent and alone. Eventually, Gilgamesh moves forward, and his quest becomes a soul-searching journey of self-discovery.

Mitchell's treatment of this extraordinary work is the finest yet, surpassing previous versions in its preservation of the wisdom and beauty of the original.

©2004 Stephen Mitchell (P)2004 Recorded Books LLC

Critic reviews

"Stephen Mitchell's Gilgamesh is a wonderful version....This is certainly the best that I have seen in English." (Harold Bloom)
"Here is a flowing, unbroken version that reads as effortlessly as a novel....Vibrant, earnest, unfussibly accesible....The muscular eloquence and rousing simplicity of Mitchell's four-beat line effectively unleashes the grand vehemence of the epic's battle scenes." (The New York Times Book Review)
"Mitchell seeks language that is as swift and strong as the story itself. He conveys the evenhanded generosity of the original poet....This wonderful new version of the story of Gilgamesh shows how the story came to achieve literary immortality: not because it is a rare ancient artifact, but because reading it can make people in the here and now feel more completely alive." (Publishers Weekly)

Great strong translation

Here is a daring translation of Gilgamesh that is easy to listen to, although strong in language and flavor. It makes you feel like you are getting close to experiencing one of the seminal myth/legends in vivo, that all cultures and peoples have deep in their psyches.

Also, there is a long commentary that follows the translation that is valuable in emphasising the intrepretive role of this translator and giving the listener/reader a way to evaluate his/her own reaction and perhaps judge any possbile bias in this translation.

All in all, very pleasurable and valuable.

A New Version of the Oldest Story

What a great experience this version of the epic is! What a pleasure to listen to. Normally I would bemoan the unscholarly treatment Mitchell has given the story; I'd never condone such loose treatment of, say, the Homeric epics. But given the fragmentary nature of the epic as it has come down to us, such a treatment is the only way to enable us modern readers to really dig in to the story, to experience it as a literary work rather than an archeological artifact. And what a wonderful story, and a titanic literary achievement it is!

George Guidall is fantastic as always; one could not ask for a better reading.

Listeners should note that the epic itself is only about half of the audiobook. The second half is an essay about the epic as literature, its discovery, and the editor's process. Not a bad essay, though a little lightweight.

an entertaining listen

the epic had a wonderful flow. I did find it amusing that in the deconstruction we are chided about imposing our own cultural bias, but only after the author has imposed his own cultural, political, and religious biases.

A most magnificent Post Modern Story

This story is enchanting. The way it spirals on gives it a trance like feel. The way the character is revealed to be the narrator all along is beautifully crafted. An excellent version.

Beautifully translated, fascinating epic poem

The poem itself is raw but enchanting, full of ancient wisdom. The translation is eloquent and assessable. A wonderful discovery.

Gilgamesh and George Guidall

This was one of those books that I might have passed over but for Deal if the Day. What an wonderful ancient story, masterfully presented by George Guidall. I thoroughly enjoyed it.

I enjoyed it

The story as told by this author was very good! I even like the majority of the authors essay presented at the end. I could have lived without the wildly unnecessary tirade endorsing cultural and moral relativism and on George Bush Junior's preemptive war included in the essay but other than that the essay mostly adds to the experience. I would have preferred as close to a word for word translation as one could get but this does nicely.

A Classic Renewed

This edition of Gilgamesh is smooth, engaging, and well done. The story of Gilgamesh is both ancient and current with themes of arrogance, of abuse of power, of faithfulness, a mother's love, hope, and despair, all coming full circle as our hero becomes yes, fully human.

The narrator's voice, inflection, and cadence are all matched to this epic and help make the story enjoyable and of some urgency. There is little down time in this story and the narration helps make that point.

At the end of this version are a couple or four chapters of various lengths which serve two purposes. First, they provide insights into the story craft, the meanings of some of the story's parts, and observations concerning fate, choices, and consequences. Insights are also provided into ancient cultural symbol and belief. The last chapters describe the resources and process of the preparation of this version of the epic. Thus, this book includes the story itself, an interpretive discussion, and a description of the making of the version presented here.

The story is clearly well done and is the star of the show. The interpretive discussion and process description provide valuable and useful additional information for the reader.

Well done.

Recommended

Inanna remember!

I am required by this app to write a review of the audiobook I just listened to. So here it goes, it was audible.
But to be honest I think it's the best reading of the Gilgamesh tale I've come across. I'm not going to waste your time by stating obvious facts. The only fact I will say is that I enjoyed it. If you like ancient poems you can't go wrong with this reading. Too bad audible doesn't have more books about the ancient Mesopotamians or any of their kings.

Superbly Engaging and Instructive

A beautifully rendered piece of literary art brought to us from the distant, forgotten past by two great masters, the writer and the narrator.