"Beowulf: A New Translation" by Maria Dahvana Headley (BR)

[Sarah, The Unsettled]

Hello! I'm sorry - this post is a day late! This is a buddy read thread for Beowulf: A New Translation by Maria Dahvana Headley. It's pretty short so it shouldn't take too long.

Please tag spoilers using < spoiler> and < /spoiler> (with no spaces) and be sure to mark where you are in the book with each tag.

Anyone who has already read it is also welcome to join in with their thoughts!

[Gabi]

Oh, thanks a lot for the reminder, Sarah! I completely forgot about this one. I will squeeze it into my current reads.

[Sarah, The Unsettled]

Gabi wrote: "Oh, thanks a lot for the reminder, Sarah! I completely forgot about this one. I will squeeze it into my current reads."

I'm glad your joining in Gabi! I think it will go quickly so hopefully not too much of a strain on anyone's reading schedule.

[HeyT]

I really enjoyed this and the introduction was great about laying out her relationship with the poem and her work.

[Melanie, the neutral party]

I have the audio, but have not started it yet.

[Sarah, The Unsettled]

So I read the introduction and found it very insightful. I think it was long winded but I like knowing the thought process behind it.

At 20%:
(view spoiler)[I know she is modernizing the poem, but I am continuously thrown off by the Christian references and God. I’m not sure Odin would have been an improvement since it sort of defeats what I think the purpose of her translation is, but it definitely makes me pause when I come across it. (hide spoiler)]

[Gabi]

Now I've read the introduction as well. I liked following her thoughts, especially since my Beowulf knowledge still doesn't go further than the wikipedia summary.
Now I'm curious for the text, bro.

[Sarah, The Unsettled]

Gabi wrote: "Now I've read the introduction as well. I liked following her thoughts, especially since my Beowulf knowledge still doesn't go further than the wikipedia summary.
Now I'm curious for the text, bro."

LOL! The language is an interesting mix of old and new for sure.

[Sarah, The Unsettled]

Also wanted to add- some of the dialogue almost has me envisioning this as a play which is kind of neat.

[Gabi]

I'm 17% in and I'm cheering at how readable it is. This prose lives!

[Midiain]

Decided to read this too. A friend recommended it so highly as feminist literature that I was curious. I was also wary because I already own three translations and I don't particularly like Seamus Heaney's version.

This has a poetry slam feel to the language and cadence that I definitely like. I'm wondering how well it's going to hold up though since the slang is so bound to this particular time.

[Gabi]

It certainly won't hold up as well but it will be a wonderful contemporary document.

[Gabi]

Sarah wrote: "Also wanted to add- some of the dialogue almost has me envisioning this as a play which is kind of neat."

Yes, definitely.

[Gabi]

Nearly half way. I'm loving this so much! I would have never thought that a mix of 'old language' and modern vernacular would be for me. But what she did here is just great. I'm finding myself to reading it half aloud to feel the rhythm.

[Sarah, The Unsettled]

I agree Gabi! I’m only about 33% in, but I definitely feel the rhythm of it while I’m reading. I wonder if there is an audio version.

[Gabi]

An audioversion would be fantastic (with the right narrator, of course)


... just checked - there is an audioversion, but the sample didn't ring true to me. I would have wanted a more vibrant voice.

[Sarah, The Unsettled]

Bummer. Oh well you never know - sometimes they make new audio versions. I’d love to hear the author read it herself.