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  • The Greek Myths

  • By: Robert Graves
  • Narrated by: Matt Bates
  • Length: 19 hrs and 55 mins
  • 3.8 out of 5 stars (171 ratings)
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The Greek Myths cover art

The Greek Myths

By: Robert Graves
Narrated by: Matt Bates
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Summary

Including many of the greatest stories ever told - the labours of Hercules, the voyage of the Argonauts, Theseus and the minotaur, Midas and his golden touch, the Trojan War and Odysseus's journey home - Robert Graves's superb and comprehensive retelling of the Greek myths for a modern audience has been regarded for over fifty years as the definitive version.

With a novelist's skill and a poet's eye, Graves draws on the entire canon of ancient literature, bringing together all the elements of every myth into one epic and unforgettable story. Ideal for the first-time reader, it is equally valuable for anyone seeking an authoritative and detailed account of the gods, heroes and extraordinary events that provide the bedrock of Western literature. The result is a classic among classics, a treasure trove of extraordinary tales and a masterful work of literature in its own right.

Robert von Ranke Graves (24 July 1895 – 7 December 1985) was an English poet and novelist, scholar, translator and writer of antiquity, specialising in Classical Greece and Rome. During his long life he produced more than 140 works. Graves's translations and innovative analysis and interpretations of the Greek myths, the memoir of his early life, Good-bye to all That, and his speculative study of poetic inspiration, The White Goddess, have never been out of print. Graves earned his living by writing popular historical novels, including I, Claudius (for which he was awarded the James Tait Black Memorial Prize), King Jesus, The Golden Fleece and Count Belisarius. He was elected Professor of Poetry at Oxford in 1961 and made an honorary fellow of St John’s College, Oxford, in 1971.

©1955 Robert Graves (P)2013 Audible Ltd

What listeners say about The Greek Myths

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  • Overall
    4 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Where are the notes ?

The most important part of Graves's version of the Greek Myths is missing! The translation itself is excellent but it is the interpretation which makes it stand out despite the current view of classical scholarship that the interpretation is flawed. Graves's extensive footnotes were what I was looking forward to hearing in an unabridged recording of the book, and I am so disappointed that they are not included.

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90 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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Greek Mythology

Brilliant. Well read. Covered all the myths that could be told and then some. Not a beginner's book. Try Fry's Mythos instead.

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52 people found this helpful

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    2 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Just doesn't work as an audiobook

I have the original work in two volumes and I found it an engaging read. This doesn't seem to apply to the Audiobook version IMHO. chapters are too short and disjointed. Needs significantly more adaptation to make it work properly.

I may have been spoiled by Stephen Fry's "Heroes" which was truly wonderful to listen to on the train or plane

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20 people found this helpful

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    1 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars

Dry, muddled and rushed. No notes or analysis.

This book is meant to have some hefty analysis of the myths and their contexts/relevance which chapter one does with the apple giving and its linkage to biblical myths. However, this has none of that.

Worse, the book is a hodgepodge of myths told at max speed. Zeus's mother told him off, he threatened to rape her, she became a snake, he became a snake and followed through. Bam - next story! (Not quite that succinct but not far off.)

Many chapter are actually collections of stories about a character but are mostly 3-6 minutes long in total (as in all the stories combined).

I know Greek mythology is not codified or linear but this is just not a good book for anyone but an expert and all the experts seem to reject it

I'll try Heroes, Gods and Monsters of the Greek Myths instead.

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13 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    3 out of 5 stars

Where are these notes I’m supposed to get

Ok, very dry. Very disappointed that the notes didn’t appear & no information as to how I get them

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9 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    4 out of 5 stars

Disappointing - a real missed opportunity

A crucial component of Robert Graves text is his notes on each myth, laying out his interpretations and conjectures about early Hellenic society. These are entirely omitted, leaving a simple collection of myths, which while nicely written are only a shadow of Graves's work.

The narration is clear and not unpleasant, but rather flat. It is easy to tune and miss some of the rather rapid development of the histories in each myth.

It is a shame there is no titled navigation of the work, so individual myths are hard to track down when you want to refresh the memory, as there are a lot of callbacks to previous myths in the text.

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5 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

fascinating overview

It's great to have a deeper understanding of the things which have entered common usage without understanding of the history and context.
This is very well delivered and, because the chapters are short, can be listened to in long sessions or very brief periods.

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3 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    1 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Nooooo. Learn how to pronounce correctly. 😡

If only the narrator used correct pronunciation of Greek names. What finally did it for me was the pronunciation of reconnoitre (pronounced recon oyter) not recon oytra...and many many more mispronunciations.

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2 people found this helpful

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    5 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

interesting

I've always been fascinated by Greek myths and found this very interesting. Would highly recommend.

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2 people found this helpful

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    3 out of 5 stars
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    5 out of 5 stars

Great story, but some issues

The chapter headings are absent, and also out of step, so it is impossible to choose a specific myth. There are some errors in the recording where several minutes are repeated. There is even an instance where the narrator repeats some fluffed lines, which is obviously an editorial error. The myths themselves are glorious, and well told, Just ignore the author’s speculation about battles between moon and sun worshippers, which is complete nonsense.

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1 person found this helpful