num_pages: 224
description: An army of Amazons sets out to conquer Greek heroes for the purpose of stocking their women's state with new female offspring. They blast into the midst of the Trojan War, confusing Greeks and Trojans alike and for a moment forcing those enemies into a terrified alliance. When Achilles, the pride and mainstay of the Greeks, and Penthesilea (Pen-te-sil-lay-uh), queen of the Amazons, meet, a chase begins,The like of which not even the wildest storms Set loose to thunder across the plain of heavenHave yet presented to the astonished world,and it is the queen who is hunting Achilles, to the uncomprehending horror of the Greeks. Thus begins a tragedy of love in a world governed by the rules of war, on which "the gods look down but from afar."For the first time, in this splendidly illustrated book, an English translation recreates the audaity, romance, and poetry of one of the strangest and most beautiful works of Western literature.
language: English
title: Penthesilea
titlecomplete: Penthesilea
genres: Fiction, Plays, Theatre, Drama, German Literature, School, Literature, Classics, 19th Century, Germany
ratings_count: 872
awards: awardedAt: 915177600000
name: Helen and Kurt Wolff Translator's Prize
category: Joel Agee
publisher: Harper