Gilgamesh

Stephen Mitchell
3.75
114,200 ratings 7,515 reviews
This brilliant new treatment of the world's oldest epic is a literary event on par with Seamus Heaney's wildly popular Beowulf translation. Esteemed translator and best-selling author Stephen Mitchell energizes a heroic tale so old it predates Homer's Iliad by more than a millennium. In the ancient city of Uruk, the tyrannical King Gilgamesh tramples citizens "like a wild bull". The gods send an untamed man named Enkidu to control the ruthless king, but after fighting, Enkidu and Gilgamesh become great friends and embark on a series of adventures. They kill fearsome creatures before Enkidu succumbs to disease, leaving Gilgamesh despondent and alone. Eventually, Gilgamesh moves forward, and his quest becomes a soul-searching journey of self-discovery. Mitchell's treatment of this extraordinary work is the finest yet, surpassing previous versions in its preservation of the wisdom and beauty of the original. ©2004 Stephen Mitchell (P)2004 Recorded Books LLC
Genres: ClassicsPoetryFictionMythologyFantasyLiteratureSchoolEpicAncientReligion
277 Pages

Community Reviews:

5 star
31272 (27%)
4 star
37899 (33%)
3 star
32814 (29%)
2 star
9548 (8%)
1 star
2667 (2%)

Readers also enjoyed

Other books by Stephen Mitchell