The Illiad

by Homer

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Genres: Classics, Greek Mythology, Fiction, Mythology, School, Audiobook, Poetry

469 pages, Paperback

Published January 1, 1967

About the author

Homer (Greek: Όμηρος born c. 8th century BC) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the Iliad and the Odyssey, two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the most revered and influential authors in history.
Homer's Iliad centers on a quarrel between King Agamemnon and the warrior Achilles during the last year of the Trojan War. The Odyssey chronicles the ten-year journey of Odysseus, king of Ithaca, back to his home after the fall of Troy. The poems are in Homeric Greek, also known as Epic Greek, a literary language which shows a mixture of features of the Ionic and Aeolic dialects from different centuries; the predominant influence is Eastern Ionic. Most researchers believe that the poems were originally transmitted orally. Despite being predominantly known for its tragic and serious themes, the Homeric poems also contain instances of comedy and laughter.
Homer's epic poems shaped aspects of ancient Greek culture and education, fostering ideals of heroism, glory, and honor. To Plato, Homer was simply the one who "has taught Greece" (τὴν Ἑλλάδα πεπαίδευκεν). In Dante Alighieri's Divine Comedy, Virgil refers to Homer as "Poet sovereign", king of all poets; in the preface to his translation of the Iliad, Alexander Pope acknowledges that Homer has always been considered the "greatest of poets". From antiquity to the present day, Homeric epics have inspired many famous works of literature, music, art, and film.
The question of by whom, when, where and under what circumstances the Iliad and Odyssey were composed continues to be debated. Scholars remain divided as to whether the two works are the product of a single author. It is thought that the poems were composed at some point around the late eighth or early seventh century BC. Many accounts of Homer's life circulated in classical antiquity; the most widespread account was that he was a blind bard from Ionia, a region of central coastal Anatolia in present-day Turkey. Modern scholars consider these accounts legendary.

French: Homère, Italian: Omero, Portuguese, Spanish: Homero.

Reviews

[Daniel Ray · Rating 4 out of 5]

I listened to the audiobook and thought the reader was excellent. He helped me get through it. It’s 18 hours long and full of unfamiliar and hard to pronounce names. It’s hard to follow. I liked the direct writing style. And I saw the movie Troy so I knew the basic story. It’s a work of fiction and not history as I thought. Four stars for its creativity and because it’s an ancient classic.

[John Gallagher · Rating 3 out of 5]

I want to read classic/influential books in chronological order to better understand references to past works and to get a sort of survey of Western thought. The Illiad is my starting point.

What surprised me most in this book was how, in a story over 3,000 years old, taking place on the other side of the world, the characters are not foreign but familiar. I expected a hostile, cruel world without mercy or "softness," but instead, it’s a deeply sympathetic book.

Not a soldier dies without their name being told to us and often the parents or a short backstory of the soldier’s life, which makes for some monotonous chapters but reminds us that these people, whose "limbs have been unstrung", have a significance greater than "Trojan soldier #42."

Grief is as much a driving force in the story as force is. A father grieving for his daughter brings the curse on the Greeks that kicks off the events, and a father grieving for his son brings Achilles to mercy and the book to a close. In between, we have horses weeping for their fallen riders, and each heroic figure sobbing for their friends at least once.

I particularly loved this passage:

“So speaking, glorious Hector reached out for his son, but the child turned away back to the breast of his fair-girdled nurse, screaming, and frightened at the aspect of his own father, in fear at the bronze and the crest with its horse-hair, as he saw it nodding dreadfully, he held it in his eyes. Then his beloved father laughed out, and his honored mother, and at once glorious Hector lifted from his head the helmet and laid it in all its shining upon the ground. Then taking up his dear son, he tossed him about in his arms, and kissed him.”

Seeing a man who just drove a spear through hundreds and gloried in their deaths then enter the other side of the gates and toss his son about in his arms lovingly surprised me. I expected a story about warriors, but Homer makes it a story about people in war. He removes the frightening helmets to show the fathers and sons beneath them, and that was the most surprising thing.

I also loved the passage about Achilles’s shield—it shows that war is only one small part of a much larger world. I think there is symbolism in the idea that the mother gives the son an image/representation of the world that becomes a shield for the son against danger and enables him to succeed.

Overall, there were times where reading this book took a lot of effort. It wasn’t always a page-turner, and I had to look things up a lot in the beginning to figure out what was going on. But there were other times where the story was super captivating and moving. So overall, 7/10.

[Rain · Rating 3 out of 5]

okay so the thing about this particular translation: if you want a fun book to read for leisure in your spare time, this ain't it. however, if you approach it like a puzzle, it's a good time! takes a bit to figure out how to parse the language and get used to what is important to pay attention to vs. what long lists of names and violent deaths you can basically ignore, but i genuinely found reading it to be a fun experience, albeit kind of tricky, and there are both some really profound and some really funny bits in here
(of course, i am the kind of person who reads the iliad for fun, so. read this entire review through that lens)

[Katie Van · Rating 3 out of 5]

I got a bit confused with all the names and who belonged to which army. It's also crazy how the gods orchestrated things on a whim. But I've wanted to read The Illiad and Odyssey for several years now.
I sadly couldn't find it narrated by Dan Stevens, but the narration by Anthony Heald was also good.

[Benjamin Pillay · Rating 3 out of 5]

I probably would of dnf'ed this book if I wasn't reading it for school. This was torture. long and in my opinion boring. However I can see it was well written even if I did not enjoy it. So for that I am giving it 7/10.

[Amelie · Rating 1 out of 5]

This book was too long. I'll probably appreciate it more when I'm older but I am convinced that homer didn't exist and English teachers wrote the illiad themselves to give themselves an ideal book to fit every theme there is it literature (no hate to the English teacher it actually wasn't half that bad it was just loooooooong) 🤓

[bookieview · Rating 4 out of 5]

Difficult, it’s necessary to read the history of the Trojan war before reading the book otherwise one would not understand it.

However, it’s a literary masterpiece.

[kitay · Rating 4 out of 5]

Lattimore, without doubt, has a translation that makes a genuine effort to stay as close to the original work as possible. However: for those who are planning to read the Iliad for leisure and not for academic purposes, I will note that this is one of the more denser translations. I believe that Lattimore does a good job mimicking the claustrophobic nature of the poem that Homer makes.
I will say though, that much is lost in translation and I wish that there was more footnotes to help the reader understand the depth of Homer-- and just the sheer amount of craft and thought that went into the poem.

[Clint Lum · Rating 5 out of 5]

It is hard to rate the work less than 5 if for no other reason than it’s importance to the Western Tradition.

This is not to diminish the quality of the work, however. I am sure it is even more wonderful in the Greek. The Lattimore trans., however, it quite good.

What I will reflect on for some time after reading this is the nature of bitterness in human experience. Achilles is gripped by it for it entirety of the poem and it wreaks havoc on all around him. He simply has no conception of love covering a multitude of sins. Woe to us who wallow in our own anger and bitterness.

[Bridget Gmelch · Rating 4 out of 5]

He made his attempts to translate the gay out of it (as confirmed by my Greek Lit professor) but it was otherwise one of the better translations I’ve read.

[Kayla Greer · Rating 4 out of 5]

Love the story.


But don’t like how the translation got rid of the obvious gayness

[cern]

even if i had to read it for class idc i will still add it

[Hakan Peterson · Rating 2 out of 5]

more like the sillyad for how petty Achilles was

[Ryan Metz · Rating 3 out of 5]

The Iliad is a fascinating glimpse into the fiery conflicts of antiquity. Placed smack in the 10th year of the endlessly convoluted yet blisteringly simple affair that was the Trojan War, this epic poem focuses on a large ensemble cast of delightful, if not incredibly misogynistic and emotionally unstable psychopaths, as they spend a decade of their short ancient lives trying to kill each other and loot the corpses. Across its 24 installments, the Iliad excites with bloody battles and soap opera style interpersonal drama from gods and men alike, and then keeps exciting by repeating the same plot beats over, and over, and over, and over again.

While the eponymous country of Illium (country? Region? A big town? I’m still not clear as to what Troy is), a crew of Achaean kings, including the unflappably cool Odysseus and unflappably assholish Agamemnon, Trojan princes, several female plot devices, and seemingly every god in the pantheon are afforded some focus (this is a long sentence), the main through-line of the epic is carried by the legendary Achilles. A man so great Thomas Carlyle would think it on the nose, Achilles’ current mood decides the fates of all as he swings between states of murderous rage and fits of depression much to the dismay of his allies and enemies alike.

If repeated, detailed descriptions of spears glancing off one guys shield and into another dudes brains is your thing, or if scenes of male camaraderie that compel you to scribble “just kiss already” in the margins of your paperback sounds appealing, I’d recommend you check out this crazy, hilarious, thrilling, only mostly boring, tale.

[Mhollie · Rating 5 out of 5]

Narration was epic with Derek Jacobi and Maria Tucci. Felt like I was at an exceptional stage play. The information is so dense and the characters so many that I should probably listen to it a few more times to get the story right and the characters’ (mortals and Gods) machinations straight in my head. I think I need a family tree just to keep straight who screwed who (especially the God/God and God/mortal couplings), literally and figuratively, and who begat who. Those Greek Gods were some randy bastards!

Something important I should mention. This was translated to English in the 1990s and written into modern prose so it is easier to digest than earlier versions/translations. The Greek Gods names are used so there is no confusion like in earlier translations where Roman Gods names were used “to make it easier because Latin is more familiar to English speakers”. What a rubbish explanation for using Roman Gods names in Homer’s Iliad! So have no fear, this is a modern translation that should be digestible for all.

[Marie Louise · Rating 3 out of 5]

3 stjerner fordi jeg har kæmpet. Men det har været så VILDT at læse dette gamle værk. Jeg føler at jeg har fat i rødderne til hele den europæiske litteraturhistorie her, og selve scenerne og vendingerne har så meget genklang i mig. Det er noget fjernt nostalgisk over den måde jeg nu føler mig knyttet til oldgrækerne, som om vi er lidt de samme men bare adskilt af tid. Men nuvel, jeg elskede historien om Achilles og Patroklos så meget at jeg er nødt til at læse achilles sang nu. Men ellers var mange af de andre karakterer ikke super spændende for mig

[Miley Knotts · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was so much better than I thought it would be. The Greeks had really horrible morals, though. I mean, I knew that before, but dang. I’m not convinced that the Trojans were necessarily the bad guys. Hector was awesome, though I don’t think I would have been convinced by his mother’s argument either if I was him; she was really weird. Also, I found it hilarious that he just… started running. I hate Achilles. Hephaestus was cool.

[adriana jinez · Rating 3 out of 5]

I almost fell asleep in class every time we read this ngl

[selah rae · Rating 3 out of 5]

this book is fire as an audiobook, but being forced to read for a class. ugh 🙄

to long for a school book

[Finn Lewis · Rating 1 out of 5]

This was exactly as dull as i thought it would be- perhaps it was more interesting as a spoken story?

[Trent Turbyfill · Rating 5 out of 5]

Homer's Iliad is a pillar of human achievement upon which much of Western philosophy—and subsequently, civilization—rests. Reading this epic is not merely an encounter with history; it feels like an encounter with humanity itself. It is incredible how the ancient words of Homer (or, depending on whom you ask, generations of oral poets) speak so directly and potently to universal themes. Given its accuracy and profound influence, one must wonder: does The Iliad so precisely capture the human experience that its themes have transcended time and space to remain relevant today, or has its influence on Greek thought—and by extension Western philosophy—helped shape the very framework through which we now understand the human condition? Individually, either would be remarkable achievements, but I believe there is truth in both.

Together with its companion The Odyssey, The Iliad became the "Greek bible" from which the Ancient thinkers drew to develop the philosophical foundations that still resonate in modern thought. This makes The Iliad the primary source of all primary sources in the Western tradition. It would be difficult to overstate the sense of awe and significance that comes from experiencing this epic firsthand. You might expect that, with all the layers of interpretation from centuries of great thinkers, today's reader could only gain a sense of wonder around time and humanity (which, I would argue, is reason enough to make it a mandatory read). Yet, the core ideas remain as powerful and relevant to our lives today as they were nearly 3,000 years ago.

While delving into timeless themes such as heroism, honor, fate, and the fragility of human life, The Iliad investigates what is worth dying for. Below I will describe some of my favorite books of the epic that speak to these themes

Book 1: The Rage of Achilles
Rage. The first word of this epic and the defining characteristic of its hero, Achilles, from the opening to the final book. Book 1 serves as the catalyst for Achilles' wrath. The Greek king, Agamemnon, seizes Briseis, Achilles' wife, though more importantly (to the Greeks at the time), a spoil of war—a symbol of Achilles' honor and glory. This act illustrates the immense value the Greeks placed on glory, especially earned in battle. Taking Briseis is equivalent to stripping Achilles of the honor he gained from war.

Achilles, nearly god-like on the battlefield, protests, arguing that he contributed more to the Greek victory than even Agamemnon, yet receives no reward while lower-ranked soldiers benefit. Agamemnon, by taking Briseis, asserts his authority and makes it clear that even Greece’s greatest warrior is beneath him, showing that any defiance—even from their best soldier—will be met with punishment.

The sting of this insult is compounded by Achilles’ known fate, which forms the core of his internal conflict. He is destined to either die young in Troy with eternal glory or live a long, quiet life but be forgotten. The fact that we are still writing about Achilles thousands of years later reveals his eventual choice. But at this point in the epic, he is still fated to die, and not only is he being denied additional glory, his current honor is being taken from him.

In response, Achilles decides to withdraw from the fighting, letting hundreds—if not thousands—of Greeks die until this wrong is made right. This marks the first instance of Achilles behaving like a god, not only in his ability to alter major human affairs but in his indifference to human life in the pursuit of his own goals.

Book 9: The Embassy to Achilles
Agamemnon feels betrayed by Zeus, believing that he is not destined to see Troy fall. In desperation, he expresses a desire to return home if Achilles does not rejoin the fight. In an empowered speech to his soldiers, Agamemnon promises great riches to Achilles, offering treasure, wives—including his own daughter—and the return of Briseis, Achilles' wife, who had been taken from him. All Agamemnon asks in return is that Achilles fights for him and acknowledges that Agamemnon is the greater man. The latter is something Achilles could never accept. He tells Menelaus and Odysseus that he is seriously considering returning home and living out the quieter side of his fate.

This chapter marks a turning point in Achilles' character. The Greeks around him continue to try to appease him as if he were a god, but Achilles is now strongly contemplating abandoning this part of himself—the side defined by glory and heroism—in favor of a forgotten, peaceful life. He declares that no wealth is worth his life, and he would reject the offer even if it were twenty times as much. It seems Achilles might have followed through with his plan to leave, were it not for the persuasive words of Odysseus and the others.

As Achilles starts to drift away from his earlier self, Hector—the great Trojan warrior—begins to take on more of Achilles' characteristics, foreshadowing their eventual encounter and mutual downfall.

Book 16: Patroclus Fights and Dies
With Achilles still refusing to fight, Patroclus, his lifelong friend and a great warrior in his own right, senses the tide of war turning once again against the Greeks. Desperate, he tries to convince Achilles to rejoin the battle. Though Achilles remains resolute in his decision, they agree that Patroclus can lead a charge while wearing Achilles' armor. The sight of "Achilles" on the battlefield would rally the Greeks and strike fear into the Trojans.

However, as Patroclus steps into the fight, the potential for glory clouds his judgment (with some influence from the gods), and he pushes too far forward. Patroclus faces Hector, leading to his death. Hector strips Achilles' armor from Patroclus and claims it for himself, falling deeper into his imitation of Achilles—a role he will continue to embody until it ceases to be an imitation at all. Patroclus' death serves as a warning to Hector, showing him the fatal end of this destructive path. Patroclus even prophesies that Hector will meet the same fate, but these warnings fall on deaf ears, sealing Hector's doom.

Book 17: Menelaus' Finest Hour
The armies clash over the body of Patroclus, but eventually, the Greeks manage to retrieve his body. Even after Hector dons Achilles' armor, the Trojans are forced to retreat.

There is something profoundly moving about witnessing the Greeks lay down their lives to protect the honor of their fallen comrade, Patroclus, even though he recklessly pushed beyond his limits in battle. The Greeks don't question whether defending Patroclus' body is worth the additional loss of life—it is a given. This moment beautifully reflects Greek cultural values surrounding war and glory. It also underscores the deep respect Achilles commands among the Greek warriors, as their efforts to recover Patroclus's body are undoubtedly driven by their recognition of his bond with Achilles. And all of this happens while Achilles himself has yet to step back onto the battlefield!

Much is revealed about Hector in this book as well. After putting on Achilles' armor, Hector sends his own armor back to Troy. This custom is typically observed when a soldier has fallen in battle, symbolizing that the "old" Hector is effectively dead—his transformation into an Achilles-like figure is complete. However, during the retreat, one of Hector’s comrades says to him, "Hector... in battle, all a sham! That empty glory of yours, a runner’s glory." On the surface, "runner" refers to the retreat, making it an insult to Hector's courage. But "swift runner" is also the most common epithet associated with Achilles, referring to his speed and efficiency in battle. Though the comrade would have been unaware of the deeper implication, this statement juxtaposes Hector with Achilles, exposing him as an imitation of a great warrior rather than the real thing.

Book 24: Achilles and Priam
The final and most important book of The Iliad sees Hector dead, slain by Achilles. Achilles finally reenters the war after the death of his close friend, Patroclus, and gives him an honorable burial. In contrast, Hector’s body is dragged behind Achilles’ chariot. Yet, because Hector honored the gods throughout his life, they intervene to protect his body from being mangled. Meanwhile, Priam, the Trojan king and Hector's father, is determined to give his son a proper burial. After a series of divine consultations, Priam—an old, frail man—decides to go to the Greek camp alone to confront Achilles.

Achilles, still consumed with grief for Patroclus, has not eaten in days. His attempt to desecrate Hector’s body is a reflection of his own self-destruction, as he lets his rage consume him physically and emotionally. Priam, risking his life, humbles himself before Achilles and begs for pity, the very man who murdered his son. He appeals to Achilles' sense of empathy, drawing a poignant comparison between himself and Achilles’ own father, who will soon lose his son as well. For the first time in the epic, Hector is compared not to the warrior Achilles but to the human Achilles—both are great warriors but also sons who will leave grieving fathers behind.

It is this deeply human comparison that finally quenches Achilles' infamous rage. Achilles lets go of his god-like fury and allows human-like pity and compassion to take hold. He agrees to halt the fighting and grants Priam the time he needs to bury Hector, wrapping the body himself in linen cloths, a gesture of humanity and respect.

The epic concludes with the line: “And so the Trojans buried Hector, breaker of horses.”

If it wasn’t already clear, this final book reveals that The Iliad is not really about the Trojan War. The war is merely a backdrop. After all, the epic begins in the middle of the war and ends still in the middle of it. The true story is about the triumph of humility, of pity, and ultimately of humanity. The fact that this epic has survived in its complete form for millennia is not an accident—it speaks to something uniquely human that continues to resonate. It is a story that I feel compelled to experience and reflect on, again and again.

Great video sources I used along with my reading!
Zachary May YouTube playlist: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZrGF...
Overly Sarcastic Productions: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=G3bn0...

[lexia ☆ · Rating 5 out of 5]

it was really fun to read (and sad). i like it more than the odyssey tbh

[Calvin Erickson · Rating 5 out of 5]

“5 stars
5 thumbs up
5 childre—“
—Lobster Bisque Man

[Sofia · Rating 2 out of 5]

This is literally the worst book to pick if you’re new to classics, Homer, or the English language, which I just so happened to be when I read this.

[Parker Durand · Rating 4 out of 5]

YES YES YES.


The Iliad and the Odyssey have long been on my list and I’m glad I’ve finally gotten to them.

They are DENSE. Although this book jumps around a lot and whole chapters consist of sometimes paragraphs back and forth of the same actions happening to different characters, the way it’s written feels difficult to process at times. I am just not as comfortable reading old books like this or Shakespeare. But as time went on I got more and more used to it, so much so I am super excited to continue to try and read more classics!

There’s so much to love in these books that I have withheld reading due to the barrier of translation.

The Illiad has incredible and really relevant themes of jealousy, war, arrogance and the consequences of it. Crazy to hear some very visceral descriptions of war in the times of the Greeks and Roman’s, I could only imagine the horror.

I have really surprised myself with how enamored I had quickly become with this first epic of Homer. I am super excited for the Odyssey and look forward to trying to read more of the classics.

[Chase Bruggeman · Rating 5 out of 5]

Composite: 28/33 (5 stars for being one of the oldest works of literature still read by modern audiences).

The Illiad was an epic poem written down in the 7th or 8th century B.C. and attributed to Homer. I could write about epithets or how Homer's historic warfare confusion actually lends authenticity to the Illiad. But you don't care about my list of translation suggestions addressed to Samuel Butler and I must give you what you came for (my lukewarm takes on a story written down almost three millennia ago). The Illiad was meant to be read aloud and this fact permeates the very narrative itself. The rhythm of the prose was essential to the orators for the same reason you can't recall a single sentence from the last textbook you read but have albums of song lyrics trapped inside your brain. The Illiad is 24 books long and would have taken roughly a day to recite aloud. Despite its length it does not contain the start of the war, nor the sacking of Troy (w/ the famous Trojan Horse) and therefore narratively is missing its introduction and its climax. I do not recommend reading this but have to admit that calling someone "the dread son of Kronos" is objectively cool. Below is my (unasked for) summaries of the books of the Illiad.

Book I: King Agamemnon acts a punk a** b**tch. Achilles puts himself in time-out.

Book II: Without Achilles, King Agamemnon immediately suggests they give up the siege of Troy. Odysseus, Nestor, and you are furious with the coward king.

Book III: Menelaus challenges Paris to single combat. Since Paris started this whole war when he kidnapped Helen (Menelaus's wife) we could have concluded the story here. After losing the single combat, Paris is saved from certain death by Deus Ex Machina Aphrodite.

Book IV: You can skip this one.

Book V: Athena empowers Diomedes to attack the Trojans. The gods function as plot devices to turn the tide of battle. Diomedes wounds Aeneas.

Book VI: Diomedes and Glaucus choose friendship over killing each other. Someone should tell the rest of the Greeks that this is an option. Hector returns within the city gates of Troy to sacrifice to Athena. He finds Paris hiding from the battle with Helen. Helen says she would rather throw herself from the walls of the city than be with Paris and Paris says he wasn't being a coward, he was, um, just resting you guys...

Book VII: Hector and Ajax fight to a draw in single combat. Antenor proposes Helen be returned to the Greeks thus ending the war, but Paris refuses because he is just the worst.

Book VIII: Zeus, lord of all the gods, forbids the gods from interfering in the Trojan War. Zeus then immediately interferes in the war by throwing lightning bolts at the Greeks.

Book IX: King Agamemnon calls for the Greeks to give up the siege, head back to their ships and return home. Diomedes and Nestor chide him for his cowardice and I wonder how this guy ever got put in charge in the first place. King Agamemnon shows some self awareness and attempts an apology to Achilles. Achilles refuses.

Book X: Reflecting on his bad decisions, King Agamemnon cannot sleep and decides to do his favorite thing - asking other people to do the hard work for him. Diomedes and Odysseus team up to spy on the enemy camp at night. This should read like a buddy cop adventure but it really doesn't.

Book XI: The Greek heroes get wounded as the Trojans begin pushing them back towards their ships. Nestor urges Patroclus (Achilles's "comrade") to fight in Achilles' armor.

Book XII: Led by Hector, the Trojans break through the Greek defense and they flee towards their ships. Darkness signals the end of battle each day and I long for the simpler times when the lack of sunlight stopped humans from relentlessly killing each other.

Book XIII: Poseidon adopts several disguises to help the Greeks. This seems to be normal behavior by the gods. The battle is fought to a stalemate.

Book XIV: Queen of the gods Hera borrows Aphrodite's clothing to seduce her husband Zeus so as to distract him away from helping the Trojans. This plan works and is hard evidence that humans having been telling each other insane stories for thousands of years. The Greeks push the Trojans back.

Book XV: Zeus discovers he has been tricked by Hera (and Poseidon, and Ares, and Athena, and Apollo, and...) and tells the gods to stop interfering because only he is allowed to do that you guys. Patroclus tries to convince Achilles to join the fight.

Book XVI: Achilles still will not fight but allows Patroclus to borrow his armor and fight on his behalf. Led by Patroclus, the Greeks fight the Trojans all the way back to the city gates. The god Apollo paralyzes Patroclus's limbs thus leading to his death at the hands of Hector and proving once and for all that nobody listens to Zeus.

Book XVII: The Greeks and Trojans play hot potato with the corpse of Patroclus and Achilles's cell phone is on silent.

Book XVIII: Achilles is told of the death of his friend (and let's be real: lover) Patroclus and takes himself out of time out. Side note: it is never explicitly stated that Achilles is immortal except for his heel. In fact, Achilles talks about how he is fated to die constantly. This must have been a Hollywood invention. Hephaestus forges new armor for Achilles.

Book XIX: With his new armor, Achilles readies for war. His talking horse, Xanthus warns him of his upcoming death. This isn't a big deal and the talking horse is never mentioned again.

Book XX: Zeus informs the gods that they are now free to take part in the conflict (because they were like 100% totally listening to him before). Poseidon saves Aeneas from Achilles (what? he has to found Rome you guys) and Apollo saves Hector from Achilles. Rightfully infuriated, Achilles kills many Trojans.

Book XXI: Achilles clogs up the river Scamander with corpses. Achilles apologizes to the river but the river is unhappy being filled with dead people and attacks Achilles. Achilles fights the river, and is saved by *checks notes* Hera telling Hephaestus to scorch the river with fiery blasts. I am as confused as you are. Athena beats up Ares, and Hera grabs Artemis's arms and like a school yard bully plays "stop hitting yourself" with her. The Trojans, save for Hector, hide behind the walls of Troy.

Book XXII: Hector makes his final stand against Achilles outside the gates of Troy. He is killed by Achilles and the city mourns the loss of its staunchest defender.

Book XXIII: We interrupt the siege of Troy for some chariot racing!

Book XXIV: King Priam of Troy asks for the body of his son Hector to be returned to him (and to no longer be dragged through the dirt behind Achilles' chariot). Achilles grants this request and an 11 day stoppage of fighting so that the Trojans might have a funeral for Hector.

[onionfrog · Rating 4 out of 5]

I personally read Samuel Butlers translation (greek Latin) and surprisingly, a rather nice book (poem). As a huge greek mythology nerd, this certainly quenched my thirst (even when I had no clue what was happening for the first half of it and it took me months to get through). Started annotating it because it genuinely made me laugh if you don't take it too seriously.
Something else of note is that because the translation, many of the gods (among other things) have changed names, so that definitely contributed to the confusion. Athena is (Pallas) Minerva, Zeus is Jove, Hera is Juno... There are also just a bunch of names overall (googling it shows there's over a thousand mentioned soo).
I recommend it I suppose? It is definitely a journey so good luck.
Oh and Achilles definitely loves Patroclus (ahem dearest comrade AHEM).

[TheSelfieOfDorianGray · Rating 4 out of 5]

How about let’s just kill Paris and let Priam live in peace? Jesus!!

[ellaaa · Rating 5 out of 5]

okay slay 600 pages of the illiad i read the (emily norton translation) I HEART HECTOR!

[Matias Mourao · Rating 5 out of 5]

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