Beowulf

The poem is presented here in a dual-text format with a new translation by multi-award-winning translator J.G. Nichols. The translator has mostly used Anglo-Saxon words to preserve the original flair of the book. This edition is fully annotated. Of unknown date, and surviving in a tenth-century manuscript, Beowulf is the tale of a young Geatish hero and his struggle with three deadly foes, beginning with the dread monster Grendel, who has been devouring warriors in the hall of the Danish King in their sleep. The most important Old English poem, and the first known major poem written in a European vernacular, Beowulf is a unique and compelling mix of sixth-century historical events, Christian commentary, Germanic myth and Anglo-Saxon culture.

Review

The whole thing is sombre, tragic, sinister, curiously real. --J.R.R. Tolkien

About the Author

The author was an anonymous Anglo-Saxon poet, referred to by scholars as the "Beowulf poet".