Selections from The Faerie Queene

by Edmund Spenser, John Moffatt (Read by)

This remarkable poem, dedicated to Queen Elizabeth I, was Spenser's finest achievement: the first epic poem in modern English, The Faerie Queene combines dramatic narratives of chivalrous adventure with exquisite and picturesque episodes of pageantry. At the same time, Spenser is expounding a deeply-felt allegory of the eternal struggle between Truth and Error...

Genres: Poetry

Audio CD

Published January 1, 2006

About the author

Edmund Spenser (c. 1552 - 1599) was an important English poet and Poet Laureate best known for The Faerie Queene, an epic poem celebrating, through fantastical allegory, the Tudor dynasty and Elizabeth I.

Though he is recognized as one of the premier craftsmen of Modern English verse in its infancy, Spenser is also a controversial figure due to his zeal for the destruction of Irish culture and colonisation of Ireland.

Reviews

[Rebekah · Rating 3 out of 5]

A bit hard to follow. This required a lot of concentration. I found the hints at astrology in the part form book 7 canto VII interesting, and I think the stories were good when I could follow them. Occasionally I lost them basically anything that would distract me from the flow.

As an epic poem it is made for recitation but also for folks who will follow all the allusions. Folk who know all the Greek and Roman gods and characters as we know our Star Trek and Star Wars references. These were easy to tangle up.

But interesting and ripe for future story.

[Laura · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF. I still want to read this but I couldn’t follow it listening. Will have to try again with an actual book. The narration on the audiobook was too monotone and I just lost track of what was going on.