Beowulf

I cried at the end.

It took me three or four concentrated listens to get the story. Once I got comprehended the story, I cried.

It is a history lesson, a religious studies class, a morality tale, an allegory, etc. Beowulf is a story that I will never forget. ( )

Metal.

This poem is basically the source-code for EVERY fantasy RPG/story ever made. I see foreshadowing in this of everything from Smaug to the Elder Scrolls, not to mention the forerunning to the modern 'superhero/supervillain' clashes we see in our own era's literature.

A dense but essential read for any native speaker of English (take the time to read it; it is part of your tongue's heritage!) ( )

It still surprises me that I like this so much. I read it after a Tolkien splurge, and so perhaps was primed for this kind of epic and language. Heaney's translation is amazing; I would read it simply to be inspired by what's possible with the English language. ( )

Beowulf translated by Gummere.
I tend to like anything written in a different language style and this is no exception... however it can be really confusing at times. Who's talking or who's been talked about can switch without warning. There's 3 monster fights but they're all fairly short, most of the text is people making speeches. If your familiar with the Hobbit and Lord of the Rings it should really help with visualizing the story. Overall i still like it but its not a very smooth read, maybe a different version would be better. ( )

So probably 4.5 out of 5 stars. Billed as a “new translation” but is really a re-imagined telling as Headley take liberties and adds elements (as discussed in other published reviews) not in the original text.
But a bold and edgy retelling.
I like her starting point of an old guy at the end of the bar (I see Sam Elliot as The Stranger from The Big Lebowski) regaling others with his tale; but I don’t see such a cowboy adding feminist elements to his retelling.
And wow - such reactions- from one end of the spectrum castigating her from departing so far from the original text to the other end that this was just another White-retelling, culturally appropriating, transphobic, TERF-deaf work.
And though I thoroughly enjoy more traditional interpretations, I liked what Headley did here (though I wished at times she’d found some other substitutes for “Bro” {Man, Hey, even Dude} but recognize she was inserting this where “Hwaet” was used in the original text) ( )