
The Iliad
The Stephen Mitchell Translation
Failed to add items
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
$0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Buy for $19.14
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
-
Narrated by:
-
Alfred Molina
About this listen
Tolstoy called The Iliad a miracle; Goethe said it always thrust him into a state of astonishment.
Homer's story is thrilling, and his Greek is perhaps the most beautiful poetry ever sung or written. But until now, even the best English translations haven't been able to recreate the energy and simplicity, the speed, grace, and pulsing rhythm of the original.
In Stephen Mitchell's The Iliad, the epic story resounds again across 2,700 years, as if the lifeblood of its heroes Achilles and Patroclus, Hector, and Priam flows in every word. And we are there with them, amid the horror and ecstasy of war, carried along by a poetry that lifts even the most devastating human events into the realm of the beautiful.
Mitchell's The Iliad is the first translation based on the work of the preeminent Homeric scholar Martin L. West, whose edition of the original Greek identifies many passages that were added after The Iliad was first written down, to the detriment of the music and the story. Omitting these hundreds of interpolated lines restores a dramatically sharper, leaner text. In addition, Mitchell's illuminating introduction opens the epic still further to our understanding and appreciation. Now, thanks to Stephen Mitchell's scholarship and the power of his language, the ancient story of The Iliad comes to moving, vivid new life.
©2011 Stephen Mitchell (P)2011 Blackstone Audio, Inc.Listeners also enjoyed...
-
Homer Box Set: Iliad & Odyssey
- By: Homer, W. H. D. Rouse - translator
- Narrated by: Anthony Heald
- Length: 25 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey are unquestionably two of the greatest epic masterpieces in Western literature. Though more than 2,700 years old, their stories of brave heroics, capricious gods, and towering human emotions are vividly timeless. The Iliad can justly be called the world’s greatest war epic. The terrible and long-drawn-out siege of Troy remains one of the classic campaigns. The Odyssey chronicles the many trials and adventures Odysseus must pass through on his long journey home from the Trojan wars to his beloved wife.
-
-
Oddball Translation
- By Joel Jenkins on 05-11-17
By: Homer, and others
-
Gilgamesh
- A New English Version
- By: Stephen Mitchell - translator
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 4 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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.
-
-
A defense of this "translation"
- By George on 07-16-08
-
The Gospel According to Jesus
- A New Translation and Guide to His Essential Teachings for Believers and Unbelievers
- By: Stephen Mitchell
- Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell
- Length: 3 hrs and 4 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This translation of the life and teachings of Jesus creates an image of not only a great spiritual teacher, but of a real person. Eminent author and translator Stephen Mitchell's approach to the Gospels has been widely praised for its depth, clarity, and radiance. This is a stunning work for believers and non-believers alike.
-
-
Christians may want to avoid...
- By J M on 04-07-18
By: Stephen Mitchell
-
Tao Te Ching
- A New English Version
- By: Stephen Mitchell, Lao Tzu
- Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell
- Length: 1 hr and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 81 brief chapters, Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching, or Book of the Way, provides advice that imparts balance and perspective, as well as a serene and generous spirit. It teaches us how to work for the good with the effortless skill that comes from being in accord with the Tao: the basic principle of the universe.
-
-
Wonderful translation and reading, but...
- By Jason on 08-12-13
By: Stephen Mitchell, and others
-
The Book of Job
- By: Stephen Mitchell - translator
- Narrated by: Peter Coyote
- Length: 1 hr and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Perhaps no other Biblical tale penetrates so deeply into the everyday travails of the common person as The Book of Job. It tells the story of a righteous man beset by torment and misfortune through no fault of his own. This parable of bad things happening to a good person addresses the eternal question of why we are here, and why we suffer. This translation is by Stephen Mitchell.
-
-
Phenominal !!!
- By Kirill on 08-10-04
-
Joseph and the Way of Forgiveness
- A Story About Letting Go
- By: Stephen Mitchell
- Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell
- Length: 4 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Stephen Mitchell’s gift is to breathe new life into ancient classics. In Joseph and the Way of Forgiveness, he offers us his riveting novelistic version of the biblical tale in which Jacob’s favorite son is sold into slavery and eventually becomes viceroy of Egypt. Tolstoy called it the most beautiful story in the world. What’s new here is the lyrical, witty, vivid prose, informed by a wisdom that brings fresh insight to this foundational legend of betrayal and all-embracing forgiveness.
-
-
Zen Master Joseph in Egypt
- By Darwin8u on 02-06-20
By: Stephen Mitchell
-
Homer Box Set: Iliad & Odyssey
- By: Homer, W. H. D. Rouse - translator
- Narrated by: Anthony Heald
- Length: 25 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey are unquestionably two of the greatest epic masterpieces in Western literature. Though more than 2,700 years old, their stories of brave heroics, capricious gods, and towering human emotions are vividly timeless. The Iliad can justly be called the world’s greatest war epic. The terrible and long-drawn-out siege of Troy remains one of the classic campaigns. The Odyssey chronicles the many trials and adventures Odysseus must pass through on his long journey home from the Trojan wars to his beloved wife.
-
-
Oddball Translation
- By Joel Jenkins on 05-11-17
By: Homer, and others
-
Gilgamesh
- A New English Version
- By: Stephen Mitchell - translator
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 4 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
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.
-
-
A defense of this "translation"
- By George on 07-16-08
-
The Gospel According to Jesus
- A New Translation and Guide to His Essential Teachings for Believers and Unbelievers
- By: Stephen Mitchell
- Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell
- Length: 3 hrs and 4 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This translation of the life and teachings of Jesus creates an image of not only a great spiritual teacher, but of a real person. Eminent author and translator Stephen Mitchell's approach to the Gospels has been widely praised for its depth, clarity, and radiance. This is a stunning work for believers and non-believers alike.
-
-
Christians may want to avoid...
- By J M on 04-07-18
By: Stephen Mitchell
-
Tao Te Ching
- A New English Version
- By: Stephen Mitchell, Lao Tzu
- Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell
- Length: 1 hr and 41 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 81 brief chapters, Lao Tzu's Tao Te Ching, or Book of the Way, provides advice that imparts balance and perspective, as well as a serene and generous spirit. It teaches us how to work for the good with the effortless skill that comes from being in accord with the Tao: the basic principle of the universe.
-
-
Wonderful translation and reading, but...
- By Jason on 08-12-13
By: Stephen Mitchell, and others
-
The Book of Job
- By: Stephen Mitchell - translator
- Narrated by: Peter Coyote
- Length: 1 hr and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Perhaps no other Biblical tale penetrates so deeply into the everyday travails of the common person as The Book of Job. It tells the story of a righteous man beset by torment and misfortune through no fault of his own. This parable of bad things happening to a good person addresses the eternal question of why we are here, and why we suffer. This translation is by Stephen Mitchell.
-
-
Phenominal !!!
- By Kirill on 08-10-04
-
Joseph and the Way of Forgiveness
- A Story About Letting Go
- By: Stephen Mitchell
- Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell
- Length: 4 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Stephen Mitchell’s gift is to breathe new life into ancient classics. In Joseph and the Way of Forgiveness, he offers us his riveting novelistic version of the biblical tale in which Jacob’s favorite son is sold into slavery and eventually becomes viceroy of Egypt. Tolstoy called it the most beautiful story in the world. What’s new here is the lyrical, witty, vivid prose, informed by a wisdom that brings fresh insight to this foundational legend of betrayal and all-embracing forgiveness.
-
-
Zen Master Joseph in Egypt
- By Darwin8u on 02-06-20
By: Stephen Mitchell
-
Bhagavad Gita
- A New Translation
- By: Stephen Mitchell
- Narrated by: Stephen Mitchell
- Length: 2 hrs and 57 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Stephen Mitchell brings to life his acclaimed translation of these most famous and revered Hindu scriptures - the timeless story of the paths of knowledge, devotion, action, and meditation.
-
-
I am Review, shatterer of words
- By Darwin8u on 05-04-19
By: Stephen Mitchell
-
Cosmos
- A Personal Voyage
- By: Carl Sagan
- Narrated by: LeVar Burton, Seth MacFarlane, Neil deGrasse Tyson, and others
- Length: 14 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Cosmos is one of the bestselling science books of all time. In clear-eyed prose, Sagan reveals a jewel-like blue world inhabited by a life form that is just beginning to discover its own identity and to venture into the vast ocean of space.
-
-
Over-acting voice actors
- By John on 11-09-17
By: Carl Sagan
-
Asian Journals
- India and Japan (The Collected Works of Joseph Campbell)
- By: Joseph Campbell
- Narrated by: Fred Stella
- Length: 26 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
At the beginning of his career, Joseph Campbell developed a lasting fascination with the cultures of the Far East, and explorations of Buddhist and Hindu philosophy later became recurring motifs in his vast body of work. However, Campbell had to wait until middle age to visit the lands that inspired him so deeply. In 1954, he took a sabbatical from his teaching position and embarked on a year-long voyage through India, Thailand, Cambodia, Burma, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and finally Japan.
-
-
What a journey!
- By Anonymous User on 08-11-18
By: Joseph Campbell
-
Living Buddha, Living Christ
- By: Thich Nhat Hanh
- Narrated by: Ben Kingsley
- Length: 2 hrs and 16 mins
- Abridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
World-renowned thinker and scholar Thich Nhat Hanh, considered by many to be a "Living Buddah," explores the spiritual crossroads where the traditions of Christianity and Buddhism meet. Living Buddha, Living Christ reawakens our understanding of both religions and the connections between them.
-
-
Beautiful
- By Jennifer Weatherbee on 04-18-15
By: Thich Nhat Hanh
-
Elric of Melniboné
- Volume 1: Elric of Melnibone, The Fortress of the Pearl, The Sailor on the Seas of Fate, and The Weird of the White Wolf
- By: Michael Moorcock, Neil Gaiman - Foreword
- Narrated by: Samuel Roukin
- Length: 24 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
It is one of the most well-known and well-loved fantasy epics of the twentieth century: the story of Elric, emperor of the dying kingdom of Melniboné. For a hundred centuries the Melnibonéans have ruled from the Dragon Isle of Imrryr. Now, after years of corruption and decadence, Elric’s amoral cousin Prince Yyrkoon, the brother of his beloved Cymoril, sets his eyes on the Ruby Throne. Elric must face his treacherous cousin not as a warrior but as a sorcerer king once again in league with the ancient gods of Melniboné, the Chaos Lords, and thus sealing his inexorable fate.
-
-
Skip the first chapter, it's not Moorcock.
- By Ted C. on 02-17-22
By: Michael Moorcock, and others
-
Gates of Fire
- An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae
- By: Steven Pressfield
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 14 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Gates of Fire puts you at the side of valiant Spartan warriors in 480 BC for the bloody, climactic battle at Thermopylae. There, a few hundred of Sparta’s finest sacrificed their lives to hold back the invading Persian millions. The time they bought enabled the Greeks to rally - saving, according to ancient historian Herodotus, “Western democracy and freedom from perishing in the cradle.” How did the Spartans accomplish this superhuman feat? This is what the King of Persia hopes to learn from the sole Spartan survivor.
-
-
Hard to read
- By Mike From Mesa on 01-28-13
What listeners say about The Iliad
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jenalee Paige
- 06-25-23
Best Translation
I love this translation of The Iliad. I love Stephen Mitchell’s translation and the introduction he provides to help understand this epic story. I especially like his rational for Helen of Troy not being physically with Paris. This perspective adds more interest and bewilderment to why the way took place. Stephen Mitchell provides so many other great points of perspective too in his introduction. I highly recommend this translation for this piece of literature.
Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
You voted on this review!
You reported this review!