Jason and the Argonauts

by Apollonios of Rhodes Narrated by David Timson

Overview

Under the order of King Pelias, Jason embarks on a perilous journey to steal the Golden Fleece from the Land of Colchis. Far from heroic, Jason is the typical everyman. He is given to intense bouts of nervousness and anxiety, and is saved on more than one occasion by the sorceress Medea, Jason's love interest, and his band of heroes: Castor and Pollux, Heracles, the musician Orpheus and the flying brothers Zetes and Calais. They encounter clashing rocks at the Bosphorus; an all-female parliament at Lemnos, where the women have slaughtered the men; harpies who plague the prophet Phineas; King Amycus, a champion boxer; an army of men who spring from the ground; and, of course, the never-sleeping dragon who guards the Golden Fleece. Often compared with Homer's Iliad and Odyssey, Jason and the Argonauts is the only poem from the Hellenistic period and was hugely influential on later literature, especially the Roman poetry of Virgil and Ovid.

Editorial Reviews

JULY 2019 - AudioFile

David Timson brings his great gifts of creativity, sensitivity to language, and dramatic flair to his narration of THE ARGONAUTICA—but it’s all a bit too much. Perhaps to prop up this lesser epic, more a scholarly gazetteer of Mediterranean myth and geography than a dramatic quest, he tries rather too hard to inject drama or emotion by putting a thrill in his voice or emphasizing particular words or phrases. At times, the effort to grab the listener’s attention seems mannered and can grow distracting and tiresome. Still, when the poem cooperates, Timson carries the listener along, and his clear and expressive interpretation of the text should ultimately serve anyone seeking it in this format. W.M. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine

JULY 2019 - AudioFile

David Timson brings his great gifts of creativity, sensitivity to language, and dramatic flair to his narration of THE ARGONAUTICA—but it’s all a bit too much. Perhaps to prop up this lesser epic, more a scholarly gazetteer of Mediterranean myth and geography than a dramatic quest, he tries rather too hard to inject drama or emotion by putting a thrill in his voice or emphasizing particular words or phrases. At times, the effort to grab the listener’s attention seems mannered and can grow distracting and tiresome. Still, when the poem cooperates, Timson carries the listener along, and his clear and expressive interpretation of the text should ultimately serve anyone seeking it in this format. W.M. © AudioFile 2019, Portland, Maine

Product Details

BN ID:	2940174937604
Publisher:	Naxos Audiobooks
Publication date:	03/12/2019
Edition description:	Unabridged

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