A work of immense influence that has inspired writers from the ancient Greeks to modernists like T.S. Eliot, Homer's epic poetry, The Iliad, is translated by Robert Fagles with an introduction and notes by Bernard Knox in the Penguin Classics series.

One of the great achievements of Western literature, The Iliad of Homer narrates the story of the darkest period of the Trojan War. At the center of the story is Achilles, the greatest warrior-champion of the Greeks, and his refusal to fight after being humiliated by his leader, Agamemnon. However, when the Trojan Hector kills Achilles' close friend, Patroclus, Achilles returns to war to take revenge - although he knows this will ensure his early death. Interwoven with this tragic sequence of events are moving descriptions of the ebb and flow of battle, the domestic world within the besieged city of Troy, and the conflicts among the gods on Olympus as they argue about the fate of mortals.

Seven Greek cities claim the honor of being Homer's birthplace (circa 8th-7th century B.C.), the poet to whom the composition of The Iliad and The Odyssey is attributed. The Iliad is the oldest surviving work of Western literature, but the identity - or even the existence - of Homer remains a mystery, as no reliable biographical information has survived.

If you enjoyed The Iliad, you might also be interested in The Odyssey, also available in the Penguin Classics series.

‘An astonishing work’
Peter Levi

‘Simple and direct, gracious, most of all swift... leading the reader with an irresistible flow. [Fagles’ edition] is full of humanity’
Oliver Taplin, The New York Times Book Review

‘Robert Fagles has given us an Iliad to read aloud: breathtaking, rhythmic, and full of power’
Jasper Griffin, Oxford University

Pages: 704, Dimensions: 13x13cm