The Divine Comedy

Came in perfect condition, Thank you so much!!

I’ve tried reading The Divine Comedy before but didn’t get that far. I couldn’t even remember which translation it was.Late 2018 I decided it’s about time to revisit this classic so I did a little research. It winds up like most translated classics that the search for a translation involves more reading and research than the actual work. This applies to some of the books in this year’s reading list such as Homer’s Iliad and Odyssey, Tolstoy’s War And Peace And Anna Karenina, Dumas’ Count of Monte Cristo, Hugo’s Les Miserables, Dostoevsky’s, etc etc.I decided on the Dorothy L Sayers translation for two reasons: She stuck to the terza rima format used by Dante AND she uses archaic language (thou, thine, tee). Unfortunately, the DLS translation was so rich it was difficult to digest. Her version is definitely not a beginner’s Commedia. If anybody would ask me if hers is a version to start Dante, I would suggest reading an accessible translation (such as Ciardi) and come back to DLS which is what eventually happened in my case.I couldn’t finish the DLS and decided to read the Allen Mandelbaum translation instead. As of this time, I’ve finally finished The Inferno. The brilliant thing was after reading a canto from Mandelbaum, I would read the same canto by Ciardi which for me makes for a flat translation. Then when I read DLS, then I realize how brilliant Ms Sayers work is!Now this is not a review of DLS. I found Mandelbaum’s translation poetic and flows better. Ciardi’s advantage is the rhyming scheme but it’s too direct and informal for me (not to offend Ciardi fans but I will probably read his version some day).This edition for the Everyman’s Library is highly recommended. The construction of these books are amazing. Paper and print are high quality. Size is perfect for a hardbound book. These are an affordable way to collect and build a library. Will definitely buy other works from The Everymans Library! I bought a used copy so the dust jacket has a tear along the spine area but I’m not deducting any star because the rest of the book is intact.

Great deal for what I paid. At some parts in book there is a summary rather than actual material, but it doesn't happen frequently. There are annotations at the bottom of a page where necessary, but I wish they would be more extensive like the durling-martinez translation.

Beyond the fact that Amazon says I purchased the Mandelbaum translation, I couldn't find it in the cloud. Tried syncing, power down and up, no dice. When I did a search there it was...except it's Longfellow's translation.

Our son hates to read, but he wanted this book to compare it to a video game, "Inferno", or something like that. He is enjoying reading the book. I read part, but he absconded with it, so now I'll have to wait until he's finished.

This  The Divine Comedy (Everyman's Library Classics)  is the book that I should have ordered, not the disgraceful edition  The Divine Comedy: Inferno; Purgatorio; Paradiso  which I posted a warning about. This is a beautifully-translated, well-printed example of classically good book-making. And you can get it right now from Amazon UK! The Divine Comedy (Everyman's Library Classics)The Divine Comedy: Inferno; Purgatorio; Paradiso