The Iliad

The Fitzgerald Translation

By: Homer, Robert Fitzgerald - translator

Narrated by: Dan Stevens

Length: 13 hrs and 59 mins

Publisher's summary

Since it was first published more than forty years ago, Robert Fitzgerald’s prizewinning translation of Homer’s battle epic has become a classic in its own right: a standard against which all other versions of The Iliad are compared. This definitive translation of Homer’s epic is timeless in its authority and always fresh in its vivid rendering of the preeminent war story of the Western world.

In keeping with the oral tradition of the time, Dan Stevens’s extraordinary narration makes this epic tale come alive. The listener becomes totally immersed in the adventure and drama of the story - this is the way The Iliad was meant to be experienced.

Also included on the program is a portion of the poem read in ancient Greek so that listeners may experience the lyricism and music of the original language.

©2004 Farrar, Staus, and Giroux (P)2014 Macmillan Audio

Perfect Narration

If you feel guilty because you never read The Iliad and all of your friends have, you should listen to this narration. He is a great narrator. I even listened with interest to the endless list of all of the warriors that were brought into battle.

Great performance

It's been many years since I have read The Iliad. I really enjoyed listening and remembering the first time I read it.

A Perfect Rendition

For Fagles' fans, Fitzgerald's translation is almost as poetically beautiful as Fagles. Narrated by Dan Stevens it is perfect. It brings all of the drama of The Illiad to life. I found myself with tears and smiling as the book ended, as I felt as much a part of the conflict as the Trojans and Achaeans. Listening to Stevens was better than my own reading of the book.

Best translation and performance

This is my third translational reading, after Richmond Lattimore, and I prefer this one so far. The reason being is it’s ease of reading and smoothness of writing. For the person coming to THE ILLIAD for the first time or who wants to read it for the appreciation of it feeling he has read the greatest work of literature, this is the translation for you. Also, I can’t emphasize this any stronger: read the work while listening to this audible performance. Dan Stevens’ performance is excellent, the best I have heard—with a pleasant voice, a commanding dramatic command of the characters and command of the names of the characters.

Great voice acting and translation

Enjoyed the voice acting. Translation was modern but retained elegant prose. First time venturing into this subject so am glad I did this version.

great performance.

the performance made this all the more interesting. I've no other translation to compare it to, but it seems to be a reasonable translation.

Simply a Classic

There is a reason why this story has withstood the test of time; it's simply a classic. It does tend to get confusing when listing all of the character names and their backstories, but the battle scenes are excellent! I was disappointed at where the book ended, was hoping it would cover a certain important event, but was left out. Overall, it was a fun "read".

Fantastic narration by Dan Stevens!

The Iliad is great but in this edition Dan Stevens narration makes it even better!

Breathtaking

There couldn't be a better audio version of the Iliad. Fitzgerald's translation is the best and that is what they use. The narration is what takes this over the top. It is riveting. It adds a whole new dimension to the work. It is worthy of Homer. I'm sure I will listen to this many times.

Excellent translation and amazingly talented narration!

The Robert Fitzgerald translation is lucid and powerful while the narration by Dan Stevens is truly remarkable — running seamlessly and powerfully a range of distinctly differentiated characters, events, and challenging Greek and Trojan terms and names while performing as the ultimate storyteller. Homer (or whoever was the original author) was clearly a genius. Now, on to Homer’s Odyssey with the same translator and, for sure, the same narrator.