Product Description

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #397504 in Books
• Published on: 2003-10-12
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 240 pages

Amazon.com
George Steiner, praising Christopher Logue's brilliant reconstruction of Homer's work, writes that this book has the "mystery of a creative echo," that it is a "translation of genius." Some combination of a translation, an adaptation, and a new poem inspired from an old wellspring, War Music is violent, beautiful, hypnotic, and terrifying. This is Homer for the era of Stephen King and Quentin Tarentino.

From the Inside Flap
In his brilliant rendering of eight books of Homer's Iliad, Logue here retells some of the most evocative episodes of the war classic, including the death of Patroclus and Achilles's fateful return to battle, that sealed the doom of Troy. Compulsively readable, Logue's poetry flies off the page, and his compelling descriptions of the horrors of war have a surreal, dreamlike quality that has been compared to the films of Kurosawa. Retaining the great poem's story line but rewriting every incident, Logue brings the Trojan War to life for modern audiences.

About the Author
Christopher Logue is a poet who has also written screenplays and acted in several films. His works include All Day Permanent Red and Selected Poems. He lives in London.

Customer Reviews

The Trojan War Updated.
Christopher Logue's reinterpretation of Homer's Iliad is not only a masterful historic achievment; it is fine poetry in its own right. Not so much a translation as a re-imagining, War Music and its add-ons (All Day Permanent Red and Cold Calls) bring the great classic to life in a way his stuffier predecessors never managed. Sometimes tragic and sometimes comic, always vivid and never academic, these books are a must for lovers of ancient history, fine writing or just a terrific adventure story. Highly reccommended. Mungo MacCallum, Ocean Shores, Australia.

Best Iliad since Homer
In creating his own account of Homer's Iliad, Logue has in fact succeeded in creating very much his own poem. His War Music moves at a swift pace, at times enhanced by film script language, at times by witty similes to modern day phenomena, and always with a great sense of humour that leaves the gods and goddesses unrevered, while leaving the bitter earnest of war and all it entails intact. Superb effort, I sincerely hope the poet will manage to complete the series.

Best poetry.
This is just about the best, most beautiful, most powerful poetry I've ever read. I'd also suggest this book for reading and discussion groups, as it has so much to talk about in it, while being a pretty quick read. I've been told more than once that it is very difficult for non-native English speakers, however.