Author(s): Dante

Poetry

Sean O'Brien's new translation of the "Inferno" is destined to become the standard English text for many years to come. It is the most fluent, grippingly readable version of Dante's poem yet, and - with all the consummate technical skill that is the hallmark of O'Brien' own poetry - manages the near-impossible task of preserving the subtle power and lyric nuance of the Italian original, while seeking out an entirely natural English music. No other version has so vividly expressed the horror, cruelty, beauty and outrageous imaginative flight of Dante's original vision. Praise for Sean O'Brien: "His work is elegiac and satirical, interested in history, politics and the imagination." - "Independent on Sunday." "A poet of unabashed political engagement, wit and humour." - "Guardian."