THE VOYAGE OF ARGO

Reading this epic poem aloud is an ambitious undertaking, and Dietz, having narrated many adventure tales for Recorded Books, is up to the job. Apollonius, chief librarian of the famed library at Alexandria, wrote this piece in the third century B.C., employing many conventions of that period's Greek epics: long lists of heros, their accomplishments and their genealogy. He also told the tale as if he had been aboard the Argo. Dietz reads in a relaxed storytelling style, which minimizes the tedium of the lists and draws the listener into the action. The story of Jason and Medea is as fresh as any modern tale of love and treachery. The combination of a good translation and Dietz's able performance brings 2,300-year-old poetry to a new audience. Bravo! L.R.S. ©AudioFile, Portland, Maine [Published: SEPT 95]