The Divine Comedy cover art

The Divine Comedy

Penguin Classics

 Preview
LIMITED TIME OFFER

3 Months Free + £10 Audible voucher

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Get this deal
Offer ends on 5 July 2026 at 11:59 BST.
More purchase options

The Divine Comedy

By: Dante Alighieri, Robin Kirkpatrick - translator
Narrated by: Kristin Atherton, Jot Davies, Robin Kirkpatrick
Get this deal

£5.99/mo after 3 months. Offer ends on 5 July 2026 at 11:59 BST. Cancel monthly.

Buy Now for £14.51

Buy Now for £14.51

Brought to you by Penguin

The Divine Comedy describes Dante's descent into Hell with Virgil as a guide; his ascent of Mount Purgatory and encounter with his dead love, Beatrice; and finally, his arrival in Heaven. Examining questions of faith, desire and enlightenment, the poem is a brilliantly nuanced and moving allegory of human redemption. This major translation, described by Bernard O'Donoghue as 'likely to be the best modern version of Dante', is published here for the first time in a single volume.

(P) Penguin Audio 2020

 Ancient, Classical & Medieval Literature Death, Grief & Loss Epic European Poetry Themes & Styles World Literature Italy Funny
adbl_web_anon_alc_button_suppression_t1

Critic reviews

The perfect balance of tightness and colloquialism . . . Likely to be the best modern version of Dante (Bernard O'Donoghue)
Kirkpatrick brings a more nuanced sense of the Italian and a more mediated appreciation of the poem's construction than nearly all of his competitors
We gain much from Kirkpatrick's fidelity to syntax and nuance... His introduction...tells you, very readable indeed, pretty much all you need for a heightened appreciation of the work
All stars
Most relevant
Fascinating! will re-visit, probably many times
(and nine eight seven more words as requested optionally)

Now it makes sense!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
The greatest work of literature you can set your mind to. Take your time to thoroughly enjoy this, I would recommend reading Virgil and follow up with The Heart of Darkness by Joseph Condrad. Then if you still have an appetite delve in the Vietnam War, according to Francis Ford Coppola & Martin sheen (Apocalypse Now). This book is everywhere and referenced by everyone. As ubiquitous as Shakespeare. Even if you've never read the Divine Comedy you'll know the story and use Dante's language. 🙂

A classic

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Actors shout too much. This is a great and classic book and in parts it comes alive but we want actors to read a book intelligently not to dramatize it in a way that they're shouting at us.

Great book. Shouting actors

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Coming on Dante for the first time I am blown away. So many subsequent literary styles are shown up as pompous and stilted. Now to relisten.

Dante's constant freshness

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Worth listening to again or recommending to a friend especially the part titled inferno which after all is where we are all most likely to go

Marvelous

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews