Welcome and Introductions

[Aloha]

Hi Kris! Thank you for the invite. I’m in the middle of rereading/flipping through the Fagels translation as accompaniment to Joyce’s Ulysses.

[Kris]

Aloha wrote: "Hi Kris! Thank you for the invite. I’m in the middle of rereading/flipping through the Fagels translation as accompaniment to Joyce’s Ulysses."

Hooray, Aloha! So glad you're here. I saw that you were looking at The Odyssey and Ulysses, so I was hoping you'd join the read. BTW, we have a discussion thread for people who want to compare the two -- https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/...

[Dustincecil]

Just ordered my copy... yaaaaas!

[Kris]

Dustincecil wrote: "Just ordered my copy... yaaaaas!"

Great! So happy you're joining us. :)

[Kristen]

Thank you for the invite, Kris! I'm sure I will greatly appreciate reading this with a group and will gain much more in the process than through a solo read. I'm also glad for the introduction to a fine new translation!

[Tamara]

Kris, I heard about this and was so excited to join. My background is in literature and gender. I am co-moderator of the Classics and Western Canon group.

My eldest son bought me a copy of the Wilson translation as soon as it came out. He does things like that for me :) I have read the Fagles and the Fitzgerald several times. I am so looking forward to reading the Wilson translation because I think it will be a different experience. And reading it with this group will make the experience even more rewarding.

Thank you for doing this.

[Kris]

Kristen wrote: "Thank you for the invite, Kris! I'm sure I will greatly appreciate reading this with a group and will gain much more in the process than through a solo read. I'm also glad for the introduction to a..."

Welcome, Kristen -- I'm so glad you accepted the invitation! I'm also excited about the perspectives, knowledge, and insights all the group members are bringing to this read.

[Kris]

Tamara wrote: "Kris, I heard about this and was so excited to join. My background is in literature and gender. I am co-moderator of the Classics and Western Canon group.

My eldest son bought me a copy of the Wil..."

Many welcomes, Tamara. It's wonderful to have you join us. You're well positioned to share insights on how Wilson's translation compares to Fagles' and Fitzgerald's. And kudos to your son for buying you the Wilson translation!

[Marcus]

Hi Kris,
I read the translation by E V Rieu as an undergraduate studying Ancient History and archaeology, but more recently have enjoyed the version by Robert Fagles even more. My main interest these days is about the way we have depicted Homer's story in our art, be it on Greek and Roman pottery or in more contemporary illustrations to our books. I recently acquired a copy of T E Lawrence's translation and the wonderful illustrations that went with it. As a side line to this love of the ways we have illustrated the epic, I have become fascinated by the various illustrations to the parts of the story that are now missing from our versions of both the Odyssey and the Iliad.

I'm keen to enjoy another translation of The Odyssey, but I do hope that I can get my hands on a copy before you start. All outlets around the world seem to be out of stock at the moment.

Best regards
Marcus

[Kris]

Marcus wrote: "Hi Kris,
I read the translation by E V Rieu as an undergraduate studying Ancient History and archaeology, but more recently have enjoyed the version by Robert Fagles even more. My main interest the..."

Marcus, welcome to the group! It's wonderful to have you join us. Your focus on how the story has been represented by artists aligns with one of our discussion threads, so I hope you'll share some of your discoveries and thoughts with us there, as well as elsewhere on the group site. https://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/... Re. the group read of Wilson's translation, it will begin in March 2018, so I'm hoping that the publisher is able to catch up with demand by then! Let me know if you continue to have difficulty.

[Praveen]

Thanks for the invite Kris ! I don't really know what to do in a GR group..But here I wish to see joining it as an opportunity to understand Homer's Odyssey through the eyes of many wonderful intellectuals in this group :) Delighted and will be waiting for the action !

[Kris]

Praveen wrote: "Thanks for the invite Kris ! I don't really know what to do in a GR group..But here I wish to see joining it as an opportunity to understand Homer's Odyssey through the eyes of many wonderful intel..."

I'm so glad you decided to accept the invitation. Praveen! People engage in groups in different ways. Some people participate quite actively in discussion threads about the book. Some also engage in supplemental reads and discussions. And some lurk or read and post at their own pace. Any approach that feels comfortable to you will be great. Welcome!

[Stephanie]

Thanks for inviting me, Kris! I'm definitely down to read this translation

[Kris]

Stephanie wrote: "Thanks for inviting me, Kris! I'm definitely down to read this translation"

Thanks so much for joining us, Stephanie!

[Lily]

I'm really looking forward to reading this translation and the conversation it will inspire. Thanks for the invitation, Kathleen.

[Kris]

Welcome, Lisa -- I'm looking forward to reading along with you.

[Sean]

Thanks for the invitation, Kris! These reading groups are always so insightful, so I'm looking forward to learning something new about the story and this particular translation.

[Kris]

Sean wrote: "Thanks for the invitation, Kris! These reading groups are always so insightful, so I'm looking forward to learning something new about the story and this particular translation."

I'm so glad you accepted it, Sean! It's great to have you join us.

[Cindy]

Thanks for the invitation, Kris! I used to teach this to my high-school freshmen (parts of it, anyway--we didn't have time to consume the whole thing). My last reading was the Fitzgerald version, but that has been about five years ago, so I'm ready to revisit it. It will be a great experience to read it with this illustrious group!

[Kris]

Hi Cindy, and thanks so much for joining us! I'm very interested in your reaction to Wilson's translation.

[Elena]

Wilson's introduction is brilliant. I'll wait to read the text with the group. Gregory Hays's Dec. 10 review in the NYT was quite helpful, "A Complicated Man," for sure. Thank you so very much for including me. 2018 will be an interesting, if complicated year....

[Kris]

Elena wrote: "Wilson's introduction is brilliant. I'll wait to read the text with the group. Gregory Hays's Dec. 10 review in the NYT was quite helpful, "A Complicated Man," for sure. Thank you so very much for ..."

I'm so glad you're joining us, Elena!

[Katy]

Thanks to Kathleen for pointing out this group to me. Looks to be interesting.

I'm Kathy and excited to read this book.

[Richard]

Elena wrote: "Wilson's introduction is brilliant. I'll wait to read the text with the group. Gregory Hays's Dec. 10 review in the NYT was quite helpful, "A Complicated Man," for sure. Thank you so very much for ..."

^^^What she said.

I am chomping at the bit to get to the rest of the book.

[Lily]

Kris wrote: "Re. the group read of Wilson's translation, it will begin in March 2018, so I'm hoping that the publisher is able to catch up with demand by then! Let me know if you continue to have difficulty...."

I've not seen a date for availability of a paperback version. Does anyone here know if one has been announced, and, if so, what it is?

[Kris]

Lily wrote: "I've not seen a date for availability of a paperback version. Does anyone here know if one has been announced, and, if so, what it is?

Hi Lily. I haven't seen an announcement yet for a paperback edition. I checked the publisher's website, which also indicated that they are out of stock for the hardcover edition, and expect to have more books in stock in about 20 days, although some other retailers seem to have copies available, sometimes for $12 or so off the retail price. (And, of course, there's an ebook edition too.) I'll keep an eye out for news about the paperback edition and will let you know whenever I hear anything.

[Kris]

Richard wrote: "Elena wrote: "Wilson's introduction is brilliant. I'll wait to read the text with the group. Gregory Hays's Dec. 10 review in the NYT was quite helpful, "A Complicated Man," for sure.
^^What she said.

I am chomping at the bit to get to the rest of the book. "

I know -- March feels very far away!

[Kris]

Katy wrote: "Thanks to Kathleen for pointing out this group to me. Looks to be interesting.

I'm Kathy and excited to read this book."

Welcome -- it's great to have you join us. And thanks to Kathleen for letting you know about the group!

[Tamara]

Katy wrote: "Thanks to Kathleen for pointing out this group to me. Looks to be interesting.

I'm Kathy and excited to read this book."

Welcome aboard! It's nice to see another familiar face here.

[Lily]

Kris wrote: "Hi Lily. I haven't seen an announcement yet for a paperback edition...."

Thanks, Kris. I've held off on ordering a hardcover, although I do enjoy having pages and paper in hand for reading epics like the Odyssey. All my other owned hard copies of Homer are paperback and shelf space is precious. Since an ebook version is available, I haven't worried yet about ordering. Obviously, ebook is a lot more convenient for capturing quotations for use in discussions. Still, I am not above owning both.

[Kris]

I may see if I can find out anything from Norton about proposed release date for the paperback. Not sure how/whether the excellent sales of the hardcover will affect that decision. And if I see Emily Wilson at a meeting on campus, I can always ask her!

[Marcelita]

Oh Kris, in September we visited Athens, Delphi, and the island of Hydra.
Robert brought Emily Wilson's translation. Curious...we read aloud the opening lines from Robert Fagles' and compared it to Wilson's. We were all stunned. ;)

I also heard Daniel Mendelsohn discuss his book with Rebecca Mead. It's a beautifully scripted interview.
Listen to it here...highly recommended!
https://livestream.com/nypl/events/76...
https://www.nypl.org/events/programs/...

Thank you for remembering me!

[Kris]

What a wonderful experience, Marcelita! I wish we could take a group field trip and you could lead us through your footsteps. Thanks as well for the Mendelsohn links. I'm very happy you've joined the group!

[Guy]

Kris - Thank you for the invite! - I have been less than present on GR lately. Busy - However, this intrigues me. I am also in the midst of Les Mis and the Chernow Grant Bio - I will make my best effort.

[Kris]

Welcome, Guy -- it's great to have you join us!

[Carrie]

Thank you so much for the invitation, Kris! I received my hoped-for copy for Christmas and am eager to read with the group.

[Kris]

That's great, Carrie! So glad you're joining us.

[Lyn]

Our copy arrived from Blackwells today. Hooray!

[Kris]

Lyn wrote: "Our copy arrived from Blackwells today. Hooray!"

That's wonderful, Lyn!

[Biblio]

* eagerly pulls up a cozy floor pillow * This is such a lovely idea for a group! Last year, I just freshly read The Iliad (Lattimore) and Joyce's Ulysses. No words can express how much joy I feel to know there's other nerdy translation folks out there!

[Kris]

Oh yes, Biblio, you've struck the mother lode of nerdy translation folks! It's wonderful to have you here with us. We've just started some pre-reads before the main read of Wilson's translation of The Odyssey in March -- a read of The Iliad and a few reads to compare different translations of The Odyssey. If there are additional discussion threads you'd like to add, please let me know. And warm welcome!

[Karen]

Hello - thanks to Kris for the invitation; I'll just tumble into the conversation.. Stephen Mitchell's translation of The Iliad was the only copy that I could immediately lay hands upon and that has led to other interesting reading about the history of Homeric translation. https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/20...

I am ordering the Fagles, as well. I plan to venture into Mary Beard and Jane Harrison in the following months. Reading through the discussion threads now, once again, thanks for having me.

[Kris]

Hi Karen, and welcome -- I'm so glad you're joining us! I'll be interested to hear what you think of Mitchell's translation of The Iliad. I have it on my mountain of Homer translations, but haven't had a chance to read it yet. I'm hoping to start reading Mary Beard and Jane Harrison a little later this month.

[Rebecca]

Thank you, Kris, for the invitation. I just received a notification tonight that you will be starting to read Odyssey on February 1, 2018. I found a Kindle version. This is the first time I've joined a group on Goodreads. Looking forward to the adventure. Cheers, Rebecca

https://www.amazon.ca/Odyssey-Homer-e...

[Tamara]

Rebecca wrote: "Thank you, Kris, for the invitation. I just received a notification tonight that you will be starting to read Odyssey on February 1, 2018. I found a Kindle version. This is the first time I've join..."

Welcome to the group, Rebecca.
I think many of us received the notification that we will be starting the Wilson translation of the Odyssey on February 1. It's a mistake--maybe some sort of goodreads glitch.
We won't be starting the Wilson translation until March 1 according to the schedule Kris set up. Meanwhile, feel free to jump in on any of the other threads where there is plenty of lively discussion going on about the Iliad and some great references on the classics.

[Kris]

Rebecca wrote: "Thank you, Kris, for the invitation. I just received a notification tonight that you will be starting to read Odyssey on February 1, 2018. I found a Kindle version. This is the first time I've join..."

Hi Rebecca, and welcome! So glad you're joining us! (And thanks Tamara for welcoming her.) As Tamara mentioned, the main read of Emily Wilson's translation of The Odyssey will begin on March 1. I'm hoping to get a schedule posted soon to help people to plan. In the interim, as Tamara mentioned, please enjoy exploring. We also have some optional reads underway, including of The Iliad, in case you want to jump in -- feel free!

[Rebecca]

Tamara wrote: "Rebecca wrote: "Thank you, Kris, for the invitation. I just received a notification tonight that you will be starting to read Odyssey on February 1, 2018. I found a Kindle version. This is the firs..."

Thank you for the warm welcome Tamara! Looking forward to the adventure! Cheers, Rebecca

[Rebecca]

Kris wrote: "Rebecca wrote: "Thank you, Kris, for the invitation. I just received a notification tonight that you will be starting to read Odyssey on February 1, 2018. I found a Kindle version. This is the firs..."

I am excited about the journey ahead. Life is the very best when shared with kindred spirits. Cheers, Rebecca

[Historygirl]

I am excited to participate. I have neglected the classics, but it is never too late, and a group structure will help. I last did Year of Reading Proust with Kris and others—it was transformative. Now you will gently pry me from my modernist and modern historical studies. Can’t wait.

[Kris]

Historygirl wrote: "I am excited to participate. I have neglected the classics, but it is never too late, and a group structure will help. I last did Year of Reading Proust with Kris and others—it was transformative. ..."

It's wonderful to see you here, Historygirl -- and I am so happy you're joining in the group read. Warm welcome!