Random House New Releases - Poetry - Ancient, Classical & Medieval - Between May 25, 2012 and June 24, 2013.

The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri

2013-05-14T00:30:00-05:00

The Divine Comedy Inferno, Purgatorio, Paradiso
Written by Dante Alighieri

Trade Paperback, 640 pages | Vintage | Fiction - Classics; Poetry - Ancient, Classical & Medieval; Poetry - Epic | $15.00 | May 14, 2013 | 978-0-8041-6912-7 (0-8041-6912-8)

The complete Divine Comedy (Inferno, Purgatorio, Paradiso) in one volume from Vintage Classics. The greatest poem of the Middle Ages, in the standard Carlyle-Okey-Wickstead translation, with full notes.

Dante’s Divine Comedy relates the allegorical tale of the poet’s journey through the three realms of the dead. Accompanied through the Inferno and Purgatory by Virgil—author of the Roman epic the Aeniad—Dante encounters mythical, historical, and contemporaneous figures in their respective afterlives. Relying on classical (pagan) mythology and Christian imagery and theology, Dante imagines diverse vivid and inventive punishments for the various sinners he encounters, which have become part of the Western imagination.

Upon their approach to Paradise, which as a pagan, no matter how worthy, the Latin poet cannot enter, Virgil relinquishes his role as guide to Beatrice. Dante's chaste beloved then accompanies him along the ascent, as they encounter the blessed and the holy, and Dante arrives at a vision of the heavenly paradise.

The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri

2013-05-14T00:30:00-05:00

The Divine Comedy Inferno, Purgatorio, Paradiso
Written by Dante Alighieri

eBook, 656 pages | Vintage | Fiction - Classics; Poetry - Ancient, Classical & Medieval; Poetry - Epic | $9.99 | May 14, 2013 | 978-0-307-82373-1 (0-307-82373-3)

Dante’s Divine Comedy relates the allegorical tale of the poet’s journey through the three realms of the dead. Accompanied through the Inferno and Purgatory by Virgil--author of the Roman epic the Aeniad--Dante encounters mythical, historical, and contemporaneous figures in their respective afterlives. Relying on classical (pagan) mythology and Christian imagery and theology, Dante imagines diverse vivid and inventive punishments for the various sinners he encounters, which have become part of the Western imagination.

Upon their approach to Paradise, which as a pagan, no matter how worthy, the Latin poet cannot enter, Virgil relinquishes his role as guide to Beatrice. Dante's chaste beloved then accompanies him along the ascent, as they encounter the blessed and the holy, and Dante arrives at a vision of the heavenly paradise.

Red Doc> by Anne Carson

2013-03-05T00:30:00-05:00

Red Doc>
Written by Anne Carson

Some years ago I wrote a book about a boy named Geryon who was red and had wings and fell in love with Herakles. Recently I began to wonder what happened to them in later life. Red Doc> continues their adventures in a very different style and with changed names.

To live past the end of your myth is a perilous thing.

The Art of Love by David Malouf

2013-02-20T00:30:00-05:00

The Art of Love
Written by Ovid
Translated by James Michie
Introduction by David Malouf

In the first century a.d., Ovid, author of the groundbreaking epic poem Metamorphoses, came under severe criticism for The Art of Love, which playfully instructed women in the art of seduction and men in the skills essential for mastering the art of romantic conquest. In this remarkable translation, James Michie breathes new life into the notorious Roman’s mock-didactic elegy. In lyrical, irreverent English, he reveals love’s timeless dilemmas and Ovid’s enduring brilliance as both poet and cultural critic.

From the Trade Paperback edition.

Paradise by Gustave Dore

2013-02-06T00:30:00-05:00

Paradise
Written by Dante
Illustrated by Gustave Dore
Translated by Anthony Esolen

“If there is any justice in the world of books, [Esolen’s] will be the standard Dante . . . for some time to come.”–Robert Royal, Crisis

In this, the concluding volume of The Divine Comedy, Dante ascends from the devastation of the Inferno and the trials of Purgatory. Led by his beloved Beatrice, he enters Paradise, to profess his faith, hope, and love before the Heavenly court. Completed shortly before his death, Paradise is the volume that perhaps best expresses Dante’s spiritual philosophy about resurrection, redemption, and the nature of divinity. It also affords modern-day readers a clear window into late medieval perceptions about faith. A bilingual text, classic illustrations by Gustave Doré, an appendix that reproduces Dante’s key sources, and other features make this the definitive edition of Dante’s ultimate masterwork.

From the Trade Paperback edition.

Sky Above, Great Wind by Kazuaki Tanahashi

2012-10-09T00:30:00-05:00

Sky Above, Great Wind The Life and Poetry of Zen Master Ryokan
Written by Kazuaki Tanahashi

Ryokan (1758–1831) is, along with Dogen and Hakuin, one of the three giants of Zen in Japan. But unlike his two renowned colleagues, Ryokan was a societal dropout, living mostly as a hermit and a beggar. He was never head of a monastery or temple. He liked playing with children. He had no dharma heir. Even so, people recognized the depth of his realization, and he was sought out by people of all walks of life for the teaching to be experienced in just being around him. His poetry and art were wildly popular even in his lifetime. He is now regarded as one of the greatest poets of the Edo Period, along with Basho, Buson, and Issa. He was also a master artist-calligrapher with a very distinctive style, due mostly to his unique and irrepressible spirit, but also because he was so poor he didn’t usually have materials: his distinctive thin line was due to the fact that he often used twigs rather than the brushes he couldn’t afford. He was said to practice his brushwork with his fingers in the air when he didn’t have any paper. There are hilarious stories about how people tried to trick him into doing art for them, and about how he frustrated their attempts. As an old man, he fell in love with a young Zen nun who also became his student. His affection for her colors the mature poems of his late period. This collection contains more than 140 of Ryokan’s poems, with selections of his art, and of the very funny anecdotes about him.

Random House New Releases - Poetry - Ancient, Classical & Medieval - Between May 25, 2012 and June 24, 2013.

The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri

The Divine Comedy Inferno, Purgatorio, ParadisoWritten by Dante Alighieri

The Divine Comedy by Dante Alighieri

The Divine Comedy Inferno, Purgatorio, ParadisoWritten by Dante Alighieri

Red Doc> by Anne Carson

Red Doc> Written by Anne Carson

The Art of Love by David Malouf

The Art of Love Written by Ovid Translated by James Michie Introduction by David Malouf

Paradise by Gustave Dore

Paradise Written by Dante Illustrated by Gustave Dore Translated by Anthony Esolen

Sky Above, Great Wind by Kazuaki Tanahashi

Sky Above, Great Wind The Life and Poetry of Zen Master RyokanWritten by Kazuaki Tanahashi

The Divine Comedy Inferno, Purgatorio, Paradiso
Written by Dante Alighieri

The Divine Comedy Inferno, Purgatorio, Paradiso
Written by Dante Alighieri

Red Doc>
Written by Anne Carson

The Art of Love
Written by Ovid
Translated by James Michie
Introduction by David Malouf

Paradise
Written by Dante
Illustrated by Gustave Dore
Translated by Anthony Esolen

Sky Above, Great Wind The Life and Poetry of Zen Master Ryokan
Written by Kazuaki Tanahashi