Homer - The Iliad

"Maybe I'm being a bit critical on the first novel in history, but I found it 'repetitive, long and Hellish. No fun; excessive words'"


"Okay, so I'm aware that this is a widely beloved book with it's Homers, and it's oral tellings, and it's histories-DAAAWHAWWW

But it must be said. This book makes a habit of taking FOR-FREAKING-EVER to explain what could be said in like five seconds. Example? Heres one:
A bunch of freaking ships sail to troy!

There I've done it. I have finally taken the biggest dumb on Homer. For in the book, that sentence takes AN ENTIRE CHAPTER TO SAY!!! You could argue that it's poetry. And since I almost never go out of my way to read poetry AND I think Shakespeare is REALLY over rated, that point would at all be unjustified. You could also say that Homer was explaining all of the ships and who was on it. EXCEPT THAT NOBODY WOULD EVER GIVE A CRAP IF THIS BOOK WASN'T SO FRIGGIN' OLD!!!

Finally, you could argue that since I didn't finish the book, I have no right to criticize it. But, OOOH NO! I would sort of begin to agree with you If I was criticizing the plot or the continuity, and so on. But, I'm complaining about something that cannot be ignored. You can turn to any page in the story and see this problem. That is, the over stating of a simple idea. Many books fall for this. Even "Pendragon," one of my favorite franchises is guilty of doing this. Even I! Why just read this review and you'll see it!!! In fact, that's basically what writing is! One of the major goals of a writer is to create the illusion that there isn't any rambling going on, and this book fails on ALL accounts.

Oh man, I'm getting so worked up about this that I'm overusing the caps lock. Well, I think my point is made. I didn't like 'The Illiad.'"


"The ending was sucky! I mean it's a war story for pete's sake! And all that happened was that Priam went and begged Achilles for Hector's body, Achilles gave it to him and they buried Hector. I we didn't get to see the fall of Troy, the fall of Achilles or the Trojan horse (I really thought that I would see the Trojan horse. I mean this is the TROJAN war!). LAME!!"


"I thought I would like it since I just finished Percy Jackson and was digging the greek mythology and I love the movie Troy."


"The translation by Rouse while less poetic is more prosaic and a better read as much of the repetitious poem is edited out."


"I kept waiting for the Trojan horse to show up! Everybody has heard of the Trojan horse, so why isn't it in The Iliad? Now I know that The Iliad is about the anger of Achilles. But Achilles' heel and death do not occur in The Iliad either. There were probably many other ancient Greek epics that have been lost and are no longer known to us today. I think The Iliad was preserved because it was so uninteresting that later authors weren't tempted to rewrite it with later versions. That explains why the myths of the Trojan horse and Achilles' heel are based on later writings. They are more interesting plot ideas and may have preempted earlier myths that are now lost. (This is my idea and I may be the only person who believes it.
...
Why is the concept of avoiding death by not fighting so hard to understand? These guys think they're fated to die in battle. Why not rob (or delay) the fate of death and run the other direction?"


"I didn't really care for the Illiad, at least not the way I liked the Oddessy or even the Aneid."


"never like dungeons and dragons, thus didn't care for this one either."


"Supprisingly, there is no wooden horse ... In fact, Achilles doesn't even die in this edition. No, the book ends with Hector's funeral, and the ending is hasty."


"OK, I know I make myself look like a cretin when I give two stars to a foundational work in Western literature, but what can I say? Maybe I'm a dolt. I found this epic poem really LONG
...
I'm still bothered by a religiosity that appears to be obviously false. What do I mean by that? Say you are sitting there listening to this poem and they are talking about gods just popping up and acting in history, tangibly and observably; wouldn't you wonder what gives?
...
Obviously I know nothing about BC Greece, but they actually had athletic competitions at a funeral? Does it bother anyone else that between killing Hector and the famous scene with Priam at the end Achilles and his buddies stop to have wrestling matches and chariot races on the beech? Truly bizarre."


"This book was long. Not as long as some other books, but it felt longgg ... It didn't even cover the Trojan horse- really?"


"I'm almost positive this is the first novel I've ever read."


"more blood and guts than I would have thought possible in so old of a book."


"This was the first book I read in worldview and I really didn't like it. One of the reasons may be because it's for school. But the likely reason is because I am female. The book is a description of the war between the Trojans and the Greeks. The majority of it is descriptions of guts, brains, innards, and bones being smashed and strewn over the battlefield. There is not much of a plot and what little plot there is gets wiped away by the extreme graphic violence. So really it's a guys book and probably will not be enjoyed be normal girls."


"I can't believe I'm saying this ... but ...

The movie was better. Yeah, that Troy one with Brad Pitt. I'm intelligent, but"

NO I THINK YOU CAN STOP RIGHT ABOUT THERE


"Modernity has simply rendered some books irrelevant."