So the poem is about that. It’s about the price of that status for some of the heroes. As you write, you first got to know it as a child through the character of Grendel’s mother.

The fantasy author Ayana Gray recommends gripping novels where the monsters are heroes, villains and everything in between.

Yiddish World How an indigenous hero inspired an epic poem in Yiddish For Indigenous People’s Day, read this translated excerpt of the poem “Hatuey” by the Cuban Yiddish author, Osher Penn.

The English poet John Milton grappled with this question in his famous epic, Paradise Lost, first published in 1667. And Alan Jacobs grapples with the meaning and legacy of Milton’s landmark poem in ...

Now known as the Epic of Gilgamesh, this work was totally new to scholars. Believed to have been composed around 1800 B.C., it is one of the world’s oldest great literary works.

He lives, teaches and writes in Puerto Rico. Accompanied by his cat, Pietri, he is currently working on the trans epic poem “Algarabía,” which will be published in 2025 by Graywolf Press.

Although Christopher Nolan’s adaptation of The Odyssey is one of 2026’s most exciting movies already, the Coen brothers beat ...

It is a stirring epic that chronicles the stories of countless heroes who have convened on the shores of Troy to achieve kleos —the ancient Greek word for “glory.” ...

Here's what we know about Christopher Nolan's "The Odyssey," described as "a mythic action epic" coming in 2026.