Homer’s monumental epic set at the end of the Trojan War explores love heroism and the
intricate relationship between gods and mortals—now in a beautiful clothbound hardcover edition
designed by Coralie Bickford-Smith. The Iliad is the first and the greatest literary
achievement of Greek civilization—the cornerstone of Western culture and an epic poem without
rival in world literature. The story centers on the critical events in the last year of the
Trojan War which lead to Achilleus’s killing of Hektor and the fall of Troy. But Homer's theme
is not simply war or heroism. With compassion and humanity he presents a universal and tragic
view of the world: human life lived under the shadow of suffering and death set against a vast
and largely unpitying divine background. This edition presents Penguin Classics founder E. V.
Rieu’s lively translation of Homer’s great epic. Penguin Classics is the leading publisher of
classic literature in the English-speaking world representing a global bookshelf of the best
works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide
authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and
contemporary authors as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
