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Homer-Haunted

The Many Afterlives of an Ancient Poet

Homer-Haunted cover

Homer-Haunted

The Many Afterlives of an Ancient Poet

Quantity
Pre-order. Available Jul 14 2026
$28.80 RRP $32.00 Website price saving $3.20 (10%)

Payment for this pre-order will be taken when the item becomes available

Description

'It's rich and beautiful and strange' Rory Stewart, The Rest Is Politics

'This is such a brilliantly told story of Homer-obsessives through the ages that, by the end, you're as hooked on Homer as they were' Frank Skinner

'Every page is an illuminating joy' A. N. Wilson

'An endlessly generous book' Daisy Hay

This is the story of how two ancient epics captured the world's imagination.

The siege of Troy and Odysseus' long voyage home have inspired many of our most thrilling and radical poets. Henry Power takes us on a surprising journey through the afterlives of these mysterious epics, and the search for the poet who created them.

Guiding us through the twists and turns of the Iliad and the Odyssey, Power travels to the places where Homer's stories have taken root – from the islands of Greece to the Scottish Highlands, the Devon coast to suburban Los Angeles – to trace the footsteps of the poets, politicians, lunatics, and lovers haunted by Homer's mythical heroes and monsters.

A dazzlingly original and deeply personal testament to the power of poetry, Homer-Haunted is an epic account of how our oldest stories have shaped the way we read, write, and think.

Table of Contents

Note on the Text
Introduction

1. Rebirth: George Chapman
2. Mosaic: Alexander Pope
3. Fragments: Ossian and James Macpherson
4. Discovery: John Keats
5. Fathers and Sons: Matthew Arnold
6. Small Things: Elizabeth Barrett Browning
7. Exile: H.D. (and Ezra Pound)
8. Theft by Finding: Christopher Logue
9. Pleasure-Seeking: Thom Gunn
10. Music: David Melnick
11. Empire: Derek Walcott
12. The Glorious Deeds of Men: Alice Oswald, Sasha Dugdale and A. E. Stallings

Afterword: Homer's Octopus
Glossary of Homeric Names
Acknowledgements
Extract Permissions
Further Reading and References
Index

Product details

Published Jul 14 2026
Format Hardback
Edition 1st
Pages 352
ISBN 9781399428156
Imprint Bloomsbury Continuum
Illustrations 14 black and white integrated illustrations
Dimensions 9 x 6 inches
Publisher Bloomsbury Publishing

About the contributors

Author

Henry Power

Henry Power studied Classics and English at Oxford…

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