The Iliad

The Iliad has had a far-reaching impact on Western literature and culture, inspiring writers, artists and classical composers across the ages. Part of the Macmillan Collector’s Library; a series of stunning, clothbound, pocket sized classics with gold foiled edges and ribbon markers. These beautiful books make perfect gifts or a treat for any book lover. The edition is translated into prose by Andrew Lang, Walter Leaf and Ernest Myers, and features an introduction by author and classicist Natalie Haynes. Paris, a Trojan prince, having won Helen as his prize for judging a beauty contest between the goddesses Hera, Athena and Aphrodite, abducted her from Greek husband Menelaus and transported her to Troy. The Greeks, enraged by this audacity and devastated by the loss of the most beautiful woman in the world, set sail to Troy and began the long siege of the city. The Iliad narrates the events ten years into the war, describing the anger of Achilles which results in the death of Patroclus and Achilles’ mourning of him and avenging of his murder. Even though it was written more than 2,700 years ago, The Iliad remains both powerful and enthralling.