Translation Of The Iliad reviews from Reddit
Summary
We analyzed 292 Reddit reviews across 15 subreddits and 58 posts to rank the best Translation Of The Iliad brands recommended by redditors, including communities like r/classics, r/books, r/suggestmeabook, r/GreekMythology, r/Hellenism. Top-rated brands include Robert Fagles (4.4/5), Richmond Lattimore (4.4/5), Emily Wilson (4.2/5).
Stats
Reviews292
Subreddits15
Posts58
Brands42
Products60
292 reviews from
and
By Brand
/By Product
#1
Robert Fagles
4.4
(58)
"I patron Fagles and the introduction by Bernard Knox alone is worth the price of admission."
"I am also a fan of the Robert Fagles translations"
"I will probably purchase Fagles’s translation after reading these replies."
"I agree with Fagles and Lattimore."
"Fagles"
"Fagle is the best IMO but some people find it too modern feeling"
"Fagles's and Wilson's are both well-respected and enjoyable."
"I liked Fagles’ and Wilson’s"
"I love Fagles’ edition because that opening line is everything."
"I really love my Fagles translations."
#2
Richmond Lattimore
4.4
(41)
"Lattimore is agreed to be the best for accuracy"
"I agree with Fagles and Lattimore."
"The Lattimore is the best overall, but Fagles might be the most enjoyable."
"Lattimer all day!"
"For fidelity and beauty -Richard Lattimore."
"Richmond Lattimore is probably the finest for all (the Tragedies, Iliad, and Odyssey)."
"I like Richmond Lattimore."
"Lattimore! Very accurate, and he successfully reproduces the six beat lines, unlike all others I know of."
"Richmond Lattimore’s is my favorite translation."
"Lattimore is great"
#3
Emily Wilson
4.2
(28)
"Emily Wilson's translation (it is the correct one 🤣 jk jk)"
"Emily Wilson for sure if you don’t mind piracy I downloaded an epub of her translation of the Odyssey and the Iliad"
"Honestly, I recommend Emily Watson’s translation of the Odyssey. She did her best to keep the translations as accurate as possible"
"I've been enjoying Emily Wilson's translations... The Audiobook of her Odyssey translation read by Clare Danes is enjoyable too."
"I’m reading the Emily Wilson translation and I’m having a really good time!"
"I like Emily Wilson’s translation. It’s very accessible and enjoyable to read."
"It’s really really good."
"I went to the bookstore and read a bunch of the first few pages and hers just hit the hardest for me. It has a flow and poetry to it that feels so raw."
"I would honestly say the new emily wilson translation"
"You are missing out not reading Wilson."
#4
The Iliad
4.0
(26)
"Just got my hands on Emily Wilson's translation from 2023 and it's my favorite so far."
"My absolute favorite is Samuel Butler."
"Richmond Lattimore was a joy to read."
"Caroline Alexander's translation is all the rave now."
"I think Anthony Verity’s prose translation is the most accessible and enjoyable to read."
"I really like Emily Wilson, especially if you’re getting kids interested."
"Fagles. Ive read excerpts of Emily Wilson’s new one, but not enough to say more than what I did read was better than Fagles."
"I’d go with Fagles, but I’ve not read Wilson’s."
"I like the Penguin Classic translation of the Iliad by EV Rieu."
"I recommend Caroline Alexander."
#5
Stanley Lombardo
4.7
(21)
"Stanley Lombardo is my favorite. Very readable but also retains the poetic, rhythmic, and lyrical nature of the original."
"I think his is the best."
"I support this, with a particular plug for Lombardo."
"Lombardo is awesome!!!! I recommend him for nearly all classics translations."
"Prefer Stanley Lomardo’s translations as he is a classicist and he’s translations are composed to be read orally like the originals."
"Stanley Lombardo’s in general because it was written to be performed out loud... Language is also accessible and contemporary."
"Nothing can match Lombardo for accessibility and sheer poetry."
"Second this one. I'm a big fan of the Lombardo translation."
"I liked Lombardo’s translation. It never felt old-timey and moved at a good pace."
"I second this recommendation. Have been using Lombardo’s ‘Iliad’ and ‘Odyssey’ in my (American) university classes for many years."
#6
Iliad
4.7
(18)
"Lombardo's was just always the clearest and best in my opinion."
"Robert Fagles is my all time fave!"
"For the Iliad, go Fagles. Brilliant introduction, too."
"Huge fan of Stanley Lombardo. It's the easiest to read."
"You might have a look at Stanley Lombardo, which moves nicely."
"Fagles is best. Translated to modern English."
"The best one, in my opinion, is Robert Fagles' translation."
"I recently read Fagles and thought it was an amazing translation."
"Another vote for Fagles."
"I am really enjoying it. The verse is vigorous and yet still 'poetic' enough."
#7
Caroline Alexander
4.9
(14)
"The best Iliad is the Caroline Alexander translation. It is as faithful to the original as is possible in English."
"I second the Caroline Alexander translations. We use them in Classical Studies at my university."
"Iliad for me is Caroline Alexander."
"In my opinion Alexander is the most accurate when it comes to language."
"Caroline Alexander's is the most accurate rendering of "The Iliad" into English."
"Caroline Alexander and Peter Green also have excellent modern versions."
"The deeply unappreciated caroline alexander version, by far my favorite."
"If you can, order Caroline Alexander’s or Emily Wilson’s edition."
"I read Caroline Alexander's translation at the beginning of the year and thought it was perfect."
"I found it to be beautiful and about as faithful to the spirit and meter of the original."
#8
Fagles
4.3
(12)
"You want the Fagles translation. It's the best."
"FAGLES absolutely!!!"
"My personal favourite is Fagles. He does a very good job of keeping the flow alive in the meter."
"I'll go with Fagles now, I think!"
"Hey i got the fagles translation for the iliad and it's pretty good :) "
"For modern translations, try Fagles or Lombardo."
"Can’t really go wrong with Fagles or Lattimore."
"Robert Fagles tends to be my go to for classical works like 'The Iliad'."
"For a beginner probably Fagles."
"Robert Fagles' translation. He does a good job of balancing readability and art."
#9
Robert Fitzgerald
4.4
(11)
"The best modern English poems that have been created are the translations by Robert Fitzgerald"
"Fitzgerald is incredible"
"I loved the Fitzgerald translation."
"Robert Fitzgerald by far the best. Faegles is a very good translation as well."
"I preferred Robert Fitzgerald to Fagles."
"Fitzgerald is usually the one people pick up. Its often recommended due to its ease of reading."
"Roger Fitzgerald is nice for Homer. I read Lattimore first, but felt that Fitzgerald's iambic pentameter gave the work a faster-moving feel."
"I read Fitzgerald and Fagle too. I recall there being useful footnotes and such in my edition."
"I've read a few translations of the Odyssey, and I'm partial to Fitzgerald."
"I read the Fitzgerald translations in college, which were enjoyable."
#10
Lattimore
4.2
(6)
"I'll join the chorus: Lattimore all the way."
"Lattimore's verse translation is poetic and tries to recreate effects of the original hexameter."
"I love the Latimore, but it’s a little weirder than the others."
"My favourites are Lattimore, Fagles, Lombardo, and Mitchell."
"Lattimore is a solid balance between being poetic and readable."
"I think both Lattimore and Fagles win top spot."
#11
Alexander Pope
4.0
(5)
"I loved the poetic translation of the Iliad by Alexander Pope. It's a work of poetic art on its own."
"Alexander Pope if you wanna get funky."
"Pope's Illiad is great but hard to follow."
"I'm fondest of that of Pope. Many, myself included, regard it as even a masterpiece in its own right."
"If you want decent poetry, I have Pope's versions."
#12
E.V. Rieu
3.6
(5)
"Try E.V. Rieu. Both the Iliad and the Odyssey are great translations, if not 100% faithful to the poetic meters, as he has made both books to be read as stories and as accessible as possible."
"Studying the iliad for my a-levels and we use e.v rieu's translation (just the penguin classics one). bit easier to get through than lattimore imk"
"I believe E.V Rieu also did an Iliad version. So you could check that out."
"The Rieu is prose and like Fagles and the Loeb, zero meter."
"I favour E V Rieu's prose translation as I don't want to be distracted by someone's attempt to produce appropriate hexameters."
#13
Martin Hammond
4.3
(3)
"Martin Hammond – I rarely recommend anything else if it's accuracy and readability."
"If you'd prefer prose, I recommend Martin Hammond's translations."
"The Penguin’s Martin Hammond and another by Robert Fagles are very clear and readable prose versions"
#14
Ezra Pound
4.0
(3)
"Others prefer Fitzgerald."
"Fitzgerald is also in verse, but is likewise approachable."
"I enjoyed the Fitzgerald translation, which I recently finished."
#15
Fitzgerald
4.0
(3)
"I would describe Fitzgerald as a more accessible version of Lattimore."
"I always assign the Fitzgerald translations of *Iliad* and *Odyssey* for my classes."
"I’d recommend Robert Fitzgerald’s translation."
#16
Peter Green
4.0
(3)
"I’m reading Peter Green right now. Somehow readable while trying to keep the poetry and phrasing/clause sequences somewhat loyal."
"I'm reading Peter Green's translation and I'm enjoying it so far."
"You should give Peter Green a chance, comes with informative and erudite footnotes."
#17
Samuel Butler
4.0
(3)
"I also like Butler whose prosaic style is just very charismatic and pleasant to read."
"I prefer prose translations. I like the Samuel Butler one, you can find it in Project Gutenberg"
"Https://librivox.org/the-iliad-by-homer-translated-by-samuel-butler/"
#18
W.H.D. Rouse
4.5
(2)
"If you are considering audio format, I recommend the prose version translated by WHD Rouse and narrated by Antony Heald."
"I liked the W.H.D. Rouse translation."
#19
Christopher Logue
4.0
(2)
"Chistopher Logue's translation of the Iliad - titled WAR MYSIC... It is also the most powerfully immediate Iliad that I've read in English"
"Christopher Logue's War Music. It's a kind of modernist retelling of the Iliad."
#20
Rieu
4.0
(2)
"I'd recommend Rieu's translation. It's prose rather than poetry and I find it best for taking notes."
"Seconding ev rieu, his translations of both the odyssey and illiad are pretty straight forward and pleasant to read."
#21
Anthony Verity
4.0
(2)
"It may prove useful to have the extra contextual information."
"I found the verity translation which I've used for uni really easy to read."
#22
Barry Powell
4.0
(2)
"I prefer Barry Powell, especially for a first-time reader. Very clear and plain spoken, with tons of pictures, maps, intros etc."
"Barry Powell's translation of the *Iliad* is quite faithful."
#23
Mitchell
3.5
(2)
"My current favourites are Mitchell, Lombardo, Green, and Wilson."
"Try Mitchell."
#24
Rodney Merrill
3.5
(2)
"Rodney Merrill's translations, which are relatively faithful, match the Greek text line for line, and use a strict dactylic hexameter in English."
"I think I'll try Rodney Merrill's translation of the Iliad."
#25
Allan Mandelbaum
5.0
(1)
"The best Odyssey translations are the Allan Mandelbaum and the Albert Cook."
#26
Albert Cook
5.0
(1)
"The best Odyssey translations are the Allan Mandelbaum and the Albert Cook."
#27
John Prendergast
5.0
(1)
"If you prefer a very literal version AND a one enjoyable to read, there is none better than the new translation by John Prendergast."
#28
Loeb Classical Library
5.0
(1)
"It's effectively the standard series for all undergrad studies."
#29
Audra McDonald
5.0
(1)
"Audra McDonald reads the Iliad... Audra McDonald is sublime"
#30
Derek Walcott
5.0
(1)
"I recommend Nobel winner Derek Walcott's Omeros, as a modern (1990) epic poem loosely based on Homer's Iliad."
#31
Robert Graves
4.0
(1)
"Robert Graves did a translation called The Anger of Achilles. Penguin Classics publishes it. It's mostly prose, but every so often he switches to poetry."
#32
A.T. Murray
4.0
(1)
"My favourite translations are A.T Murray's Odyssey"
#33
William Cowper
4.0
(1)
"I’m partial to William Cowper."
#34
David Ferry
4.0
(1)
"David Ferry's new translation of the Aeneid -- I haven't read it yet, but based on his Gilgamesh, Ferry does a brilliant job."
#35
Richard Lattimore
4.0
(1)
"I recently received positive reviews of Richard Latimore's translation."
#36
D.H. Rieu
4.0
(1)
"The D.H. Rieu translations were excellent IMHO."
#37
E. V. Rieu
4.0
(1)
"I like E. V. Rieu's translation, even if it's a bit too traditional."
#38
Walter Hammond
4.0
(1)
"My go-to translation of the Iliad is the Hammond translation... it's very good!"
#39
Ennis Rees
4.0
(1)
"I have the Ennis Rees version, which I picked out for its readability."
#40
Harvard Classics
4.0
(1)
"I'm reading the Harvard Classics version... and I'm enjoying it so far."
#41
Homer
3.0
(1)
"I'd recommend asking your tutor"
#42
Chapman
2.0
(1)
"Avoid Chapman, Pope, and Dryden, which others have recommended."
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