The War That Killed Achilles: The True Story of Homer's Iliad and the Trojan War

( 20 )
Pick Up In Store

Pick Up in Store

Reserve and pick up in 60 minutes at your local store

Hardcover
$5.38
BN.com price
$27.00 List Price (Save 80%)
NOOK Book (eBook)
$12.99
BN.com price

Available on NOOK devices and apps

  • Nook Devices
  • NOOK
  • NOOK Color
  • NOOK Tablet
  • Tablet/Phone
  • NOOK for iPad
  • NOOK for iPhone
  • NOOK for Android
  • NOOK for Android (Tablet)
  • NOOK Kids for iPad
  • PC/Mac
  • NOOK Study
  • NOOK for PC
  • NOOK for Mac

Want a NOOK? Explore Now

This digital version does not exactly match the hardcover displayed here.

Overview

"Spectacular and constantly surprising."
-Ken Burns

Written with the authority of a scholar and the vigor of a bestselling narrative historian, The War That Killed Achilles is a superb and utterly timely presentation of one of the timeless stories of Western civilization. As she did in The Endurance and The Bounty, New York Times bestselling author Caroline Alexander has taken apart a narrative we think we know and put it back together in a way that lets us see its true power. In the process, she reveals the intended theme of Homer's masterwork-the tragic lessons of war and its enduring devastation.

... See more details below
Note: This is a bargain book and quantities are limited. Bargain books are new but may have slight markings from the publisher and/or stickers showing their discounted price. More about bargain books

More About This Book

Overview

"Spectacular and constantly surprising."
-Ken Burns

Written with the authority of a scholar and the vigor of a bestselling narrative historian, The War That Killed Achilles is a superb and utterly timely presentation of one of the timeless stories of Western civilization. As she did in The Endurance and The Bounty, New York Times bestselling author Caroline Alexander has taken apart a narrative we think we know and put it back together in a way that lets us see its true power. In the process, she reveals the intended theme of Homer's masterwork-the tragic lessons of war and its enduring devastation.

Editorial Reviews

From Barnes & Noble
Whether we regard them as pure myth or history creatively reshaped, the events of the Trojan War are part of our cultural heritage; but don't think for one moment that Homer's epic Iliad attempts to recount the ebb and flow of that ten-year conflict. Instead, as Caroline Alexander demonstrates in this book, Homer approached the field of battle and death through the moral dilemma of one man and, by doing so, raised the most essential questions about human behavior. Piercing insights about a literary classic.
Dwight Garner
Caroline Alexander's new book, The War That Killed Achilles, is not a new translation of "The Iliad"…but an attempt at a fresh reading of it, one that focuses almost solely on what this martial epic has to say about the conduct and meaning of war…[Alexander] pursues her thesis relentlessly, and brings to its pursuit many of her gifts as a narrative historian.
—The New York Times
More Reviews (2) Fewer Reviews
Steve Coates
Alexander is best known as the author of The Bounty and The Endurance, well-received books about sea voyages that took place long after the Achaeans set out to avenge Helen. But she is also a trained classicist, and The War That Killed Achilles suggests a joyful re-embrace of an early love. In its bones and sinews, the book is a nobly bold, even rousing, venture, a read-through of the Iliad, from beginning to end, always with a sharp eye to half a century of revealing scholarship, by great Hellenists like Gregory Nagy, Jasper Griffin, M. L. West and many others. The book's best ideas won't be new to readers versed in this work, but it would be hard to find a faster, livelier, more compact introduction to such a great range of recent Iliadic explorations.
—The New York Times Book Review
Library Journal
Alexander, a professional writer who has been published in Granta, The New Yorker, and National Geographic, holds a Ph.D. in classics from Columbia University. Her new book explores her deep fascination with Homer's Iliad. Essentially, she offers an extended discussion of the plot, elaborating and contextualizing it by reference to extant fragments from other epics and other ancient texts and archaeological and historical evidence. She also relates the resonances of The Iliad in the modern world, from Muhammad Ali's refusal to serve in the Vietnam War to the account of an American war widow responding to the death of her husband in Iraq. VERDICT Alexander's book is vigorous and deeply learned yet unpedantic. Highly recommended to general readers interested in a full appreciation of the power and the enduring relevance of The Iliad.—T.L. Cooksey, Armstrong Atlantic State Univ., Savannah, GA\

Product Details

  • ISBN-13: 9780594256205
  • Publisher: Penguin Group (USA)
  • Publication date: 10/15/2009
  • Pages: 320
  • Sales rank: 37,803
  • Product dimensions: 6.20 (w) x 9.10 (h) x 1.30 (d)

Meet the Author

 Caroline Alexander has written for The New Yorker, Granta, Condé Nast Traveler, Smithsonian, Outside, and National Geographic and is the author of four previous books.

Table of Contents

Map: Landscape of the Trojan War

The Things They Carried 1

Chain of Command 16

Terms of Engagement 39

Enemy Lines 64

Land of My Fathers 83

In God We Trust 106

Man Down 123

No Hostages 149

The Death of Hektor 174

Everlasting Glory 192

Acknowledgments 227

Notes 229

Selected Further Reading 273

Index 279

Customer Reviews

Average Rating 4.5
( 20 )

Rating Distribution

5 Star

(12)

4 Star

(3)

3 Star

(4)

2 Star

(1)

1 Star

(0)

Your Rating:

Review Guidelines
Add Recommendations
Your Name: Create a Pen Name or Leave Anonymously

Barnes & Noble.com Review Rules

Our reader reviews allow you to share your comments on titles you liked, or didn't, with others. By submitting an online review, you are representing to Barnes & Noble.com that all information contained in your review is original and accurate in all respects, and that the submission of such content by you and the posting of such content by Barnes & Noble.com does not and will not violate the rights of any third party. Please follow the rules below to help ensure that your review can be posted.

Reviews by Our Customers Under the Age of 13

We highly value and respect everyone's opinion concerning the titles we offer. However, we cannot allow persons under the age of 13 to have accounts at BN.com or to post customer reviews. Please see our Terms of Use for more details.

What to exclude from your review:

Please do not write about reviews, commentary, or information posted on the product page. If you see any errors in the information on the product page, please send us an email.

Reviews should not contain any of the following:

  • - HTML tags, profanity, obscenities, vulgarities, or comments that defame anyone
  • - Time-sensitive information such as tour dates, signings, lectures, etc.
  • - Single-word reviews. Other people will read your review to discover why you liked or didn't like the title. Be descriptive.
  • - Comments focusing on the author or that may ruin the ending for others
  • - Phone numbers, addresses, URLs
  • - Pricing and availability information or alternative ordering information
  • - Advertisements or commercial solicitation

Reminder:

  • - By submitting a review, you grant to Barnes & Noble.com and its sublicensees the royalty-free, perpetual, irrevocable right and license to use the review in accordance with the Barnes & Noble.com Terms of Use.
  • - Barnes & Noble.com reserves the right not to post any review -- particularly those that do not follow the terms and conditions of these Rules. Barnes & Noble.com also reserves the right to remove any review at any time without notice.
  • - See Terms of Use for other conditions and disclaimers.
Search for Products You'd Like to Recommend

Recommend other products that relate to your review. Just search for them below and share!

Create a Pen Name

Your Pen Name is your unique identiy on BN.com. It will appear on the reviews you write and other website activities. Your Pen Name cannot be edited, changed or deleted once submitted.

Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously

We're sorry, but penname is already taken.

Please select one of the following:
Your Pen Name can be any combination of alphanumeric characters (plus - and _), and must be at least two characters long.

Continue Anonymously

penname is available!

By visiting the BN.com website or marking a purchase on BN.com, a User is deemed to have accepted the Terms of Use.

Continue Anonymously

Welcome, penname

You have successfully created your Pen Name. Start enjoying the benefits of the BN.com Community today.

See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 21 Customer Reviews

  • Anonymous

    Posted February 13, 2010

    A Guide to the Birds of East Africa

    This is a wonderful story. The characters get into your heart.

    1 out of 2 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted December 12, 2009

    I Also Recommend:

    9780743457903 9780375404030

    This is a book that puts the Trojan war into perspective. It also opens up the reader to the majesty of the bronze age poetry with sufficent anotation to give an appreciation of what Homer alludes to.

    I enjoyed this book. Ms. Alexander's words were a canvas of the Trojan War, giving life to its characters, and letting you into its setting in time.
    The main focus of the book, Achilles, is allowed to emerge from Homers work, and be given the respect that was taken from him in earlier interpretations of works from the Trojan War. The recent movies which have used the Trojan War as a backdrop would have been more vibrant and less stiff if they used this book as a reference for the characters inner workings.
    Finally, it is a well written book. It is for the intelligent reader, one who can savor the sentences as they come from the pages, and guide the reader to the fields of Ilium.

    1 out of 1 people found this review helpful.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted July 1, 2011

    more from this reviewer

    Simply Superb.

    Skillfully and carefully written, a pleasure to read.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted February 24, 2011

    more from this reviewer

    Nice introduction to Illiad and interesting details.

    I've read about 100 pages so far and it is very interesting. I've read the Illiad maybe four times and I have it on CD which is also fun. I never bothered to look into it other than looking on the wikipedia. The oral history theories and other war epics and the uniqueness of the Illiad are stimulating to read more on it. Thank you.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Posted December 7, 2010

    highest recommendation

    This book hardly needs any more glowing reviews, but I can't resist joining the long line of those who praise it to the skies. It makes the Iliad completely comprehensible and gripping.

    Was this review helpful? Yes  NoThank you for your feedback.   Report this reviewThank you, this review has been flagged.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 21, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted May 23, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted December 29, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted December 26, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted February 9, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 19, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 25, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted June 28, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 12, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted August 1, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted December 9, 2009

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted July 21, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted January 17, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted April 4, 2011

    No text was provided for this review.

  • Anonymous

    Posted December 1, 2010

    No text was provided for this review.

See All Sort by: Showing 1 – 20 of 21 Customer Reviews
If you find inappropriate content, please report it to Barnes & Noble
Why is this product inappropriate?
Comments (optional)
500 character limit