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The Divine Comedy: Inferno; Purgatorio; Paradiso (Everyman's Library)
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Manufacturer: Everyman's Library
Author: Dante Alighieri
Publisher: Everyman's Library
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Our Price: $16.32
You Save: $ 7.68 ( 32% )
Usually ships in 24 hours
Manufacturer: Everyman's Library
Author: Dante Alighieri
Publisher: Everyman's Library
Average Customer Rating:
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The Divine Comedy: Inferno; Purgatorio; Paradiso (Everyman's Library) Description
Binding: Hardcover
Dewey Decimal Number: 851.1
EAN: 9780679433132
ISBN: 0679433139
Label: Everyman's Library
Manufacturer: Everyman's Library
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 798
Publication Date: 1995-08-01
Publisher: Everyman's Library
Product Release Date: 1995-08-01
Studio: Everyman's Library
Dewey Decimal Number: 851.1
EAN: 9780679433132
ISBN: 0679433139
Label: Everyman's Library
Manufacturer: Everyman's Library
Number Of Items: 1
Book Pages: 798
Publication Date: 1995-08-01
Publisher: Everyman's Library
Product Release Date: 1995-08-01
Studio: Everyman's Library
Editorial Review of The Divine Comedy: Inferno; Purgatorio; Paradiso (Everyman's Library)
(Book Jacket Status: Jacketed)
The Divine Comedy begins in a shadowed forest on Good Friday in the year 1300. It proceeds on a journey that, in its intense recreation of the depths and the heights of human experience, has become the key with which Western civilization has sought to unlock the mystery of its own identity.
Allen Mandelbaum’s astonishingly Dantean translation, which captures so much of the life of the original, renders whole for us the masterpiece of that genius whom our greatest poets have recognized as a central model for all poets.
This Everyman’s edition–containing in one volume all three cantos, Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso–includes an introduction by Nobel Prize—winning poet Eugenio Montale, a chronology, notes, and a bibliography. Also included are forty-two drawings selected from Botticelli's marvelous late-fifteenth-century series of illustrations.
The Divine Comedy begins in a shadowed forest on Good Friday in the year 1300. It proceeds on a journey that, in its intense recreation of the depths and the heights of human experience, has become the key with which Western civilization has sought to unlock the mystery of its own identity.
Allen Mandelbaum’s astonishingly Dantean translation, which captures so much of the life of the original, renders whole for us the masterpiece of that genius whom our greatest poets have recognized as a central model for all poets.
This Everyman’s edition–containing in one volume all three cantos, Inferno, Purgatorio, and Paradiso–includes an introduction by Nobel Prize—winning poet Eugenio Montale, a chronology, notes, and a bibliography. Also included are forty-two drawings selected from Botticelli's marvelous late-fifteenth-century series of illustrations.
Customer Reviews of The Divine Comedy: Inferno; Purgatorio; Paradiso (Everyman's Library)
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Excellent Translation
Review: The introduction by a modern poet rambles on and is not worth reading, however the stories by Dante are excellent and have been translated without losing any of the original meaning. Notes in the back make it easy to follow this 400 year old story.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "The Divine Comedy"
Review: Vigil, a legendary poet, saves Dante from sins and takes him to Hell in "The Divine Comedy." With Virgil as his guide, Dante witnesses horrors and endless despair. People in Hell are punished according to their sin, and the farther down they are, the worse the punishment is. Being and endless poem, the book doesn't always make sense, but in the end it turned out okay.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Very Nice!
Review: Clean, well bound book with ribbon bookmark. It was a perfect gift, my son loved it.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Fine Introduction to Dante's World
Review: The Everyman's Library edition of Dante's Divine Comedy in an English translation makes this classic text accessible to students, interested readers, and literary researchers. In a convenient size, the volume contains not only the entire text in translation, but an excellent introduction by an Italian Nobel-prize winner, as well as very useful notes. Dante's journey through hell, purgatory, and heaven is steeped in the philosophy, theology, and social history of medieval Italy, yet there is much to learn from his grasp of the human condition. Any modern-day reader can appreciate its poetic substance; the effort to understand Dante's world is rewarded by the richness of description, insight, and transcendence in this artful and epic masterpiece. The Everyman's edition belongs on the bookshelf of all those who consider themselves to be well educated.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: The Best Single Volume Available Today
Review: First. The Divine Comedy is an ur-text: one of the select few that have been passed down through centuries, almost millenia, to create a foundation on which is built our Western literary tradition.
Second. Allen Mandelbaum's translation is excellent. It has the readability of prose but stays lyrical. It does not strain itself to be lyrical, though, as I think Ciardi's translation does too often.
Third. The notes are fantastic. Dante constantly alludes to the Greek mythology and his contemporary Italy. Without the excellent notes it can be very difficult to interpret what point the author is trying to make. Most importantly, the notes make reference to the original work on which Dante based the allusion. If you have a copy of Ovid's Metamorphoses or Virgil's Aeneid you can easily cross-reference and get more out of the Divine Comedy than you would otherise. (Mandelbaum's translations of Metamorphoses and Aeneid are also great and recommended, though not as nicely packaged as this work.)
Finally, and my Main Point. This is physically the nicest single volume of the Divine Comedy you can buy new today.
The dust jacket is very attractive. But if you're like me you take off the jacket immediately and read it without. Under the jacket you'll find a very handsome cover and spine, as you do with all Everyman's Library editions. This volume will not only look good on your shelf, but it should last through many readings and be a very nice to hand down to a child or grandchild someday.
The physical dimensions are perfect. Some volumes of the complete Divine Comedy I have seen are just unwieldly; they are too tall or too thick to comfortably read while kicking back in a chair or lounging in bed. This also has a perfect heft. It feels like you are holding and reading an important work.
The paper is very nice. Just thick enough, it easily turns without fear of tearing while not being too heavy to be cumbersome. It won't fall to pieces in five year's time either. (Unfortunately, the current printing of Mandelbaum's translation of Virgil's Aeneid by Bantam Classics is a mass-market paperback and already rotting on the shelf.)
Most importantly, the text is very readable. A very friendly typeface is used. It is put on the paper with modern methods - not as a facsimile of a photo of an old metal type pressing as so many classics appear. And a professional actually spent time on the layout. Too many classics are thrown together cheaply. The people at Everyman's Library do a consistently great job at this. By contrast, old Penguin Classics volumes are terrible to read because the type, press, and layout are poorly done and painful to read. (To be fair Penguin Classics has gotten much better recently. In particular their "Deluxe Editions" are very nice. I have the "Deluxe Edition" of Odyssey, Iliad, and Candide and recommend them.)
Summary. After growing tired of the genre fiction that filled my leisure reading, I began reading the classics. This book was one of the first I picked up and it has completely spoiled me. Everyman's Library sets the bar against which all other printings of the classics must be compared.
If you are looking for the best single volume of Dante's Divine Comedy, this is it. It will make a handsome addition to your library and you will easily be able to say you have actually read it too.
Review Summary: Excellent Translation
Review: The introduction by a modern poet rambles on and is not worth reading, however the stories by Dante are excellent and have been translated without losing any of the original meaning. Notes in the back make it easy to follow this 400 year old story.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: "The Divine Comedy"
Review: Vigil, a legendary poet, saves Dante from sins and takes him to Hell in "The Divine Comedy." With Virgil as his guide, Dante witnesses horrors and endless despair. People in Hell are punished according to their sin, and the farther down they are, the worse the punishment is. Being and endless poem, the book doesn't always make sense, but in the end it turned out okay.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Very Nice!
Review: Clean, well bound book with ribbon bookmark. It was a perfect gift, my son loved it.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: Fine Introduction to Dante's World
Review: The Everyman's Library edition of Dante's Divine Comedy in an English translation makes this classic text accessible to students, interested readers, and literary researchers. In a convenient size, the volume contains not only the entire text in translation, but an excellent introduction by an Italian Nobel-prize winner, as well as very useful notes. Dante's journey through hell, purgatory, and heaven is steeped in the philosophy, theology, and social history of medieval Italy, yet there is much to learn from his grasp of the human condition. Any modern-day reader can appreciate its poetic substance; the effort to understand Dante's world is rewarded by the richness of description, insight, and transcendence in this artful and epic masterpiece. The Everyman's edition belongs on the bookshelf of all those who consider themselves to be well educated.
Customer Rating:
Review Summary: The Best Single Volume Available Today
Review: First. The Divine Comedy is an ur-text: one of the select few that have been passed down through centuries, almost millenia, to create a foundation on which is built our Western literary tradition.
Second. Allen Mandelbaum's translation is excellent. It has the readability of prose but stays lyrical. It does not strain itself to be lyrical, though, as I think Ciardi's translation does too often.
Third. The notes are fantastic. Dante constantly alludes to the Greek mythology and his contemporary Italy. Without the excellent notes it can be very difficult to interpret what point the author is trying to make. Most importantly, the notes make reference to the original work on which Dante based the allusion. If you have a copy of Ovid's Metamorphoses or Virgil's Aeneid you can easily cross-reference and get more out of the Divine Comedy than you would otherise. (Mandelbaum's translations of Metamorphoses and Aeneid are also great and recommended, though not as nicely packaged as this work.)
Finally, and my Main Point. This is physically the nicest single volume of the Divine Comedy you can buy new today.
The dust jacket is very attractive. But if you're like me you take off the jacket immediately and read it without. Under the jacket you'll find a very handsome cover and spine, as you do with all Everyman's Library editions. This volume will not only look good on your shelf, but it should last through many readings and be a very nice to hand down to a child or grandchild someday.
The physical dimensions are perfect. Some volumes of the complete Divine Comedy I have seen are just unwieldly; they are too tall or too thick to comfortably read while kicking back in a chair or lounging in bed. This also has a perfect heft. It feels like you are holding and reading an important work.
The paper is very nice. Just thick enough, it easily turns without fear of tearing while not being too heavy to be cumbersome. It won't fall to pieces in five year's time either. (Unfortunately, the current printing of Mandelbaum's translation of Virgil's Aeneid by Bantam Classics is a mass-market paperback and already rotting on the shelf.)
Most importantly, the text is very readable. A very friendly typeface is used. It is put on the paper with modern methods - not as a facsimile of a photo of an old metal type pressing as so many classics appear. And a professional actually spent time on the layout. Too many classics are thrown together cheaply. The people at Everyman's Library do a consistently great job at this. By contrast, old Penguin Classics volumes are terrible to read because the type, press, and layout are poorly done and painful to read. (To be fair Penguin Classics has gotten much better recently. In particular their "Deluxe Editions" are very nice. I have the "Deluxe Edition" of Odyssey, Iliad, and Candide and recommend them.)
Summary. After growing tired of the genre fiction that filled my leisure reading, I began reading the classics. This book was one of the first I picked up and it has completely spoiled me. Everyman's Library sets the bar against which all other printings of the classics must be compared.
If you are looking for the best single volume of Dante's Divine Comedy, this is it. It will make a handsome addition to your library and you will easily be able to say you have actually read it too.