The Aeneid

By: Virgil

Narrated by: Simon Callow

Length: 12 hrs and 26 mins

Publisher's summary

Here is the much-anticipated new translation of Virgil's epic poem from the award-winning translator Robert Fagles.

The publication of a new translation by Fagles is a literary event. His translations of both the Iliad and Odyssey have sold hundreds of thousands of copies and have become the standard translations of our era. Now, with this stunning modern verse translation, Fagles has reintroduced Virgil's Aeneid to a whole new generation, and completed the classical triptych at the heart of Western civilization.

The Aeneid is a sweeping epic of arms and heroism and a searching portrait of a man caught between love, duty, and the force of his own destiny. Here, Fagles brings to life the timeless journey of Aeneas as he flees the ashes of Troy to found Roman society and change forever the course of the Western world.

Fagles' translation retains all of the gravitas and humanity of the original as well as its powerful blend of poetry and myth.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.

©2006 Robert Fagles
(P)2006 Penguin Audio, a member of Penguin Group (USA) Inc. All rights reserved.

Book great, voice actor terrible

Such an amazing novel, that I will have to reread on Kindle for the pleasure of it.

However, this was the worst reading of an audible book I have ever heard. I'm concerned that Simon Callow believes that all women are screeching birds. He certainly voices them as such. I would consider C3P0 or jar jar Binks as a voice actor before ever listening to Callows cracking voice again. Honestly, no self respecting high School drama teacher would ever allow such overacting. Bad. Bad. Bad.

Great reading, BAD audio engineering

Story: Classic. If you ignore the underlying Roman Propoganda, a good facsimile of a greek epic.
Reading/Editing: Good with one exception...
Reader drops to barely audible whispers frequently at the end of most sentences!
VERY annoying. 3 out of 4 sentences end in whispers!
I found myself turning the volume UP then down then UP then down then UP then down.
Stop whispering!
Sooooo annoying.
The voice actor has a great voice. Would have given this 5 stars otherwise, but the audio volume fluctuance ruined my experience.

Good, but the audio cannot be sped up.

This audio book is great, but when sped up the line endings are slurred. The narrator always speeds up the ending of the lines or during intense dialogue and dramatic moments. This makes for a natural flow of the performance, but puts the listener at a disadvantage when speeding up the recording. I recommend it, but not if you need to power through the book. When heard at a normal speed, it's good.

Apart from that, the Aeneid is the great epic of the Romans! It rivals Homer! Virgil's take on epic poetry is more fluid, taking dramatic turns more satisfying and succinct than Homer, but for me does not stand above the Illiad. Homer's works are far more dense in meaning and reflective of human nature, virtue and the soul. But listen and discover for youself!

Nicely done

A well-narrated classic is always enjoyable. My only complaint is that the chapter breaks are clunky.

Good Rendition

Entertaining enough. If you don't like historical poetry, then this isn't for you. If you do... Enjoy away!

great story, bad reading/performance

Hard to understand a lot of what is said because the reader constantly trails off on sentences.

Great tale. Great voice actor. Distracting performance.

The story is obviously a classic. Simon callow is an incredible dramatic actor. And he puts on quite a performance here. But it's such a performance that it distracts from the story quite a bit. The voices he creates for old women and grieving women are a little over the top.

Ratings are of this version, NOT the real Aeneid

Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?

Unfortunately, I can't recommend this or any of the audio-format Aeneids to a friend. Vergil is one of the most difficult poets in any language to translate. And while Fagles' Iliad is a classic for a reason, he doesn't "feel" Vergil the way that he "feels" Homer. The translation is turgid and stodgy and. . .basically everything that people who do not read Latin assume that Vergil is.

I can only recommend either the Lombardo or Ahl translations, and neither has been recorded.

Would you ever listen to anything by Virgil again?

Absolutely, if someone records a better translation.

Do you think The Aeneid needs a follow-up book? Why or why not?

And. . .we see auto-forms gone hilariously wrong.

The Roman Epic

I did not find this as gripping as either the Iliad or the Odyssey, but it is a solid work. If you have read Homer, much of the style will feel very similar. Definitely worth the time.

reader is too much

I generally enjoy an enthusiastic reader, however this was too much. the audio book sounds like a melodrama and has a whole lot of shouting. it was distracting. one star off on the story for being broken up into chapters that don't match the books of the story, very frustrating.