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Summary: A graceful translation that's a pleasure to read.
Review: When I turned 40 this summer I felt obligated to finally read this classic work. What a delightful surprise to discover how easily I was swept along by this timeless story. Although I cannot compare this with other versions, Fagles' translation was lyrical and moving. I even read the useful introduction with ease. Now I am going to start on The Iliad.
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Summary: Save me from The Odyssey!
Review: Although it may seem intriguing, this book can drive one to the brink of insanity. Forcrd to analyze this book eveyday while reading it, taking out the trash is a more perferred exercise. A warning: If you have the time to read about 300 pages of filth, then 20 of quality literature I would recomend The Odyssey!
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Summary: Odd I Say!
Review: Is there someone to blame Homer's Odyssey? Without doubts, The Odyssey isn't a infantile poem, it is ideological, political and historical. We have nothing to regret the poet 'bout the art; but about his thinking (obviously a defender of men's power over women and the kings over common people), our critical judgment must overcome. We might always criticize the translator, that's natural, translations always hurt the original piece-of-art, even more when changes the song of the poet. it's excusable, knowing that many more people may witness the greatness of The poet Homer, because THIS IS THE STORY OF A MAN, A MAN WHO WAS NEVER AT A LOSS...
Rating:
Summary: A classic
Review: Fantastic book to get away with. Try bringing it on a backpacking trip. The tale of Homer's trials and tribulations can be considered inspirational.
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Summary: Listen to it.
Review: It reads fine, but...It sounds fabulous. Fagles clearly translated with storytelling in mind. Not some olden-times, prissy, otherworldly telling, but a good, solid, sit around a fire and share stories telling. A delight to the ear in rhythm and clarity.
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Summary: Homer for the "average people" - finally!
Review: On camping weekends, we would often sit around a bonfire and tell each other stories, drawn out, about lives and loves. That's exactly how this tale was told, thousands of years ago, and finally we have a version that again makes it available to "normal folk". Instead of struggling through allusions and references that need three footnotes, an "average citizen", without a full English degree, can pop the cassette into his tape deck and hear the glory and fury of this classic tale. It was meant to be heard and absorbed and mulled over, not studied as a "period piece"! This translation fits the bill perfectly.
Rating: 
Summary: Fagles is not the translator to read
Review: Yes, the Odyssey is a magnificent book; I am shocked at the effusive praise for Fagles' translation, however. The best that can be said is that (a) his translation is not too different from those of his superiors, ie Lattimore and Fitzgerald and (b) he doesn't obscure Homer's timeless achievement too much. But there is a distinct whiff of what Nabokov called "poshlost" in Fagle's translation--a sort of suburban vulgarity, with its anacronisms (eg "Scot-free") and casual slang. The Fagle translation's instant reputation, will, I am sure, fade away quickly, just another fleeting illusion successfully created by the modern American media's hype machine. Read the Lattimore and Fitzgerald translations, both of which are available from Amazon.
Rating:
Summary: A classic, yet not quite up to par
Review: I REALLY wish I could say that I enjoyed this book, but I can't. I wouldn't reccomend this book to hardly anyone. Only read this book if you're a fan of intricate plots and long, oftentimes boring, narratives. When a character would start making a speach, often I would read and lose all intrest to the point where it just wasn't fun or stimulating. The plot is great, and the actual story is quite interesting, yet the way in which it is told is dull and drawn-out. If you want to read this, go ahead. But if you're not too interested, I wouldn't even take it off the shelf.
Rating:
Summary: A Beautiful Translation of Arguably the Best Epic Ever
Review: Robert Fagles has reproduced for us one of literature's finest stories. His prose is lucid and provides a contemporary spin on an ancient tale. As for the Odyssey, brace yourself for a formidable ride through adventure, love, war, faith, deception, and redemption. The Odyssey is at once action, romance, mystery, mythology, and thought-provoking. A must-read for cultural literacy's sake. You will genuinely find yourself gasping at Fagles' stunning and dripping prose, all the while engrossed in the plight of our hero, Odysseus.
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Summary: Audio Odyssey
Review: Fagles has done a superb job of modernifying Homer. Homer cries out to be recited and McKellan does a superb job with it. Just as in the original written text the only part that really dragged for me was the Underworld.
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