Posts in Category: war

The Illiad of Homer

by Richmond Lattimore

Amazon.com: The Iliad of Homer: 8601417981696: Richmond Lattimore, Homer:  Books

It is an epic poem about Achilleus' anger. His anger was caused by Agamemnon, an Achaian leader, who dishonored Achilleus. Achilleus, the best Achaian warrior, got Zeus to help him to punish all the Achaians for dishonoring him by getting lots of casualties against the war with Trojans. Achilleus' godlike anger only ended when he shared grief with Priam, the Trojan king, over how the loss of his life would affect his father.

I find the Iliad interesting in that although Homer is Greek, he did not glorify one side over another, so he ended up telling a complete story of the humanity of characters. I do not like Achilleus since he just strikes me as someone who is egocentric and has anger issues. The rest of the character cast have not really changed, so their personalities are stagnant.

I would recommend it if you want something a little more challenging to read. You might also find media references of the Iliad since it very much affected Western literature.

Anna, 15

Rating:  

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The Tattooist of Auschwitz

by Heather Morris

The tattooist of Auschwitz : a novel

This book centered around the life of a Jewish male who had been brought to the concentration camps. After months (or a year) he laid his eyes on what he described as a beautiful woman. Although males weren't allowed to interact with women he didn't let the love he had developed for her go to waste. Eventually they got together and made it out of the camp.

Personally, I fell in love with this book. I could not stop reading it. Morris vividly described everything and made it feel as if I were there. This book brought me to tears and has to go down as one of the most emotional books I've read.

The book is a bit intense, if you're okay with that then it should be perfect. I picked this book up on a whim and it seems to have been one of the best decisions I've made. Although it isn't considered YA I definitely recommend this book.

Edith, 13

Rating:  

smiley Find at the library

Note: Only available in adult collection