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Gilgamesh Retold (Carcanet Classics)

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Gilgamesh Retold (Carcanet Classics)

By: Jenny Lewis
Narrated by: Colin Still, Jenny Lewis
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About this listen

Jenny Lewis relocates Gilgamesh to its earlier, oral roots in a Sumerian society where men and women were more equal, the reigning deity of Gilgamesh’s city, Uruk, was female (Inanna), only women were allowed to brew beer and keep taverns and women had their own language - emesal. With this shift of emphasis, Lewis captures the powerful allure of the world’s oldest poem and gives it a fresh dynamic while creating a fast-paced narrative for a new generation of listeners.

©2018 Jenny Lewis (P)2019 Carcanet Press Ancient, Classical & Medieval Literature Epic Poetry Themes & Styles

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The poet brings an ancient story to life with a visceral, energising retelling. The characters are brought up to date and made vividly real.

Brilliant retelling of a classic

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A beautiful, dream-like and poetic translation and retelling of 'Gilgamesh'; the oldest epic poem in history. Read by Jenny Lewis with a tenderness and mystical lyricism that breathes life into these 4,000 year-old, fragmented stone tablets.

Dreams from the Dawn of Time

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Gilgamesh is not a story I knew particularly well before listening to this - and having listened to this version, I certainly have absorbed it more thoroughly than any previous attempt. My favourite aspect were the various end-notes and explanations, that helped the listener fully grok how it came about, the choices made and their intended meaning.

Although I have no doubt that the repetition used was akin to how the ancient version would have gone, it was in places too much to listen to - and I nearly skipped one chapter because of it - and the audio quality of the recording was not quite up to the normal high Audible levels. But overall I enjoyed this greatly and would recommend it to others who were interested in hearing Gilgamesh.

Interesting version, with helpful explanation

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