My Book of Translations of Martial Is Out Now
 

My book of translations of 503 Latin epigrams of the poet Martial has just become available. I was told that it would not be published until December, but I have just received my own advance copies, and it is now available from the University of Wisconsin Press, Amazon, Barnes & Noble, etc. The translations are in rhyme and meter, and there is an introduction by a classical historian, my own preface, explanatory notes, and an index. The book does not include the original Latin. Though I would have liked to have a bilingual text, that would have increased the price significantly, and it is already a bit pricey for a paperback (close to $30). I suspect that the high price is partly due to its being published by a university press and partly due to its being aimed at the college textbook market. Whether it will actually be used for classes remains to be seen, but I think it is equally suited to ordinary readers who are interested in Latin satirical poetry. Here is a link to the listing on Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Selected-Epigr.../dp/0299301745

I do want to warn anyone who is considering reading it that Martial's poetry is often obscene. I have tried to be highly accurate both in the tone and in the content of my translations, so four-letter words abound. I also want to mention that the book got its start right here on Eratosphere, when Mike Juster, on the Translation board, challenged writers to try translating a four-line epigram by Martial. I had so much fun doing it that I kept trying a few more and eventually realized that I was hooked. It's been over ten years since then, but I haven't regretted the time it has taken to bring the book to completion. If anything, it was hard to stop. Martial wrote over 1500 epigrams, and they are very entertaining (if you enjoy bawdy humor).

Susan

Congratulations, Susan -- you've had quite a year, to say the least, what with The Whetstone Misses the Knife and now this. Your cap is filled with feathers. :)

Best,

Ed

Terrific, Susan!
Congratulations.

Marvelous -- 500 Martial epigrams! I've been looking forward to this for a long time. Congratulations!

Wow! Excellently well done. Martial's one of my all time favorites. This is great news. Congrats!

Huge congrats, Susan! So many good things....

Charlotte

It would be good to have a couple of pages available to see on the Amazon page if that can be arranged. Sex sells so a few bawdy ones would be great.
I watched your YouTube but my router is on strike so could only see the first two poems, I was interested to hear a villanelle read aloud. For me it was a revelation as I always find the form on the page too intrusive but recited it was a completely new experience, very interesting.
All the best with the book, I must say it is a pity it does not have the Latin
originals alongside the translations, to hell with the expense, I want to pretend I am back there in Rome being pagan.
all the best
Ross

Thanks, everyone, for your encouragement and support.

Ross, I am not sure that I should make more poems available without the permission of the press, but I will mention that some poems had been published previously online. Here are a couple of links. There were five poems in Lucid Rhythms and two in Transference. Admittedly, these aren't the raciest of the epigrams, but I actually had a lot of trouble finding any journal that wanted to publish those.

http://www.lucidrhythms.com/2011-1/McLean_Susan.htm

http://scholarworks.wmich.edu/transf.../vol1/iss1/26/

Susan

Congrats! I too dig Martial, and wish it could have been bilingual.

Exciting news, Susan! Kudos to you again!