{"product_id":"the-first-poems-in-english-penguin-classics-9780140433784","title":"The First Poems in English Penguin Classics","description":"\u003cb\u003eBook Synopsis\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eA collection of the finest and earliest poems composed in English, from tales of battle to love songs\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eThis selection of the earliest poems in English comprises works from an age in which verse was not written down, but recited aloud and remembered. Heroic poems celebrate courage, loyalty and strength, in excerpts from \u003ci\u003eBeowulf\u003c\/i\u003e and in\u003ci\u003e The Battle of Brunanburgh\u003c\/i\u003e, depicting King Athelstan’s defeat of his northern enemies in 937 AD, while\u003ci\u003e The Wanderer\u003c\/i\u003e and \u003ci\u003eThe Seafarer\u003c\/i\u003e reflect on exile, loss and destiny.\u003ci\u003e The Gnomic Verses\u003c\/i\u003e are proverbs on the natural order of life, and the \u003ci\u003eExeter Riddles\u003c\/i\u003e are witty linguistic puzzles. Love elegies include emotional speeches from an abandoned wife and separated lovers, and devotional poems include a vision of Christ’s cross in\u003ci\u003e The Dream of the Rood\u003c\/i\u003e, and Caedmon’s \u003ci\u003eHymn\u003c\/i\u003e, perhaps the oldest poem in English, speaking in praise of God.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003eFor more than seventy years, Penguin h\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eTrade Review\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003eMichael Alexander is much the best translator from Old English. His Penguin \u003ci\u003eBeowulf\u003c\/i\u003e is much to be recommended, but so too is the volume entitled \u003ci\u003eThe First Poems in English\u003c\/i\u003e -- A.N. Wilson","brand":"Penguin Books Ltd","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":49524430963031,"sku":"9780140433784","price":11.69,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0817\/1739\/5799\/files\/9780140433784.jpg?v=1731856747","url":"https:\/\/bookcurl.com\/products\/the-first-poems-in-english-penguin-classics-9780140433784","provider":"Book Curl","version":"1.0","type":"link"}