Purgatorio Book

To read Dante is to be triply overwhelmed: by his vast classical and biblical erudition, by the ingenuity and innovation of his narrative conception, by the constant allure of his diction. The cumulative effect is almost too much to take. This is where Stanley Lombardo comes in. As Virgil guided Dante himself, so Lombardo's lucent translations guide the English-language reader through the labyrinthine magnificence of the Divine Comedy -- Ma qui la morta poesi resurga , 'here let poetry rise from the dead', prays the narrator Dante: a wish richly fulfilled in Lombardo's renderings, whose unprepossessing dignity and clarity give an authentic sense of the enduring beauty of the Tuscan original. This new translation of the Purgatorio continues the project that was so splendidly launched by Lombardo's Inferno. As before, the translation itself is presented with the original text in facing pages, and is accompanied by clear-headed introductory material and helpful notes. And Hackett once again delights the eye with elegant layout and exquisite typeface. All in all, this central panel of Dante's immortal triptych is superlatively presented. -- John T Kirby, Professor of Classics, University of MiamiRead More