Beowulf [Paperback]

[Heaney] has made a masterpiece out of a masterpiece.Accomplishes what before now had seemed impossible: a faithful rendering that is simultaneously an original and gripping poem in its own right.How did he do it? How did Seamus Heaney fashion verses, singularly handsome verses that not only capture the somber grandeur and mythic vigor of the Anglo-Saxon original, but also reflect the rhythm and timbre of the English we speak today.... This newborn translation makes accessible to everyone the first supremely great poem to be written in the English language.Magnificent, breathtaking.... Heaney has created something imperishable and great that is stainlessstainless, because its force as poetry makes it untouchable by the claw of literalism: it lives singly, as an English language poem.Excellent . . . has the virtue of being both dignified and sophisticated, making previous versions look slightly flowery and antique by comparison. His intelligence, fine ear and obvious love of the poem bring