Robert Fagles's stunning modern-verse translation-available at last in our black-spine classics line A Penguin Classic The Odyssey is literature's grandest evocation of everyman's journey through life. In the myths and legends that are retold here, renowned translator Robert Fagles has captured the energy and poetry of Homer's original in a bold, contemporary idiom and given us an Odyssey to read aloud, to savor, and to treasure for its sheer lyrical mastery. This is an Odyssey to delight both the classicist and the general reader, and to captivate a new generation of Homer's students. For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.
T. E. Lawrence Books
This author gained fame for his adventurous tales, deeply infused with a fascination for the history and culture of the Middle East. His works are characterized by vivid landscape descriptions and compelling portrayals of human destinies amidst dramatic historical events. He enriches his texts with detailed insights into Arab customs and traditions, offering readers a unique perspective on the clash of cultures. His writing is known for its epic scope and intimate focus on individuals.







Profiles the enigmatic soldier, statesman, and man of letters, offering a wealth of letters that shed light on his role in the Arab revolt, his sexuality, and his retreat into obscurity
The Diary Kept by T. E. Lawrence While Travelling in Arabia During 1911
- 96 pages
- 4 hours of reading
Presented here with 13 key photographs and letters to his mother, the diary shows the young T.E. Lawrence developing a strong respect for the Arab people and already involved in Arabian politics.
Revolt in the Desert : The Abridged Edition of Seven Pillars of Wisdom
- 326 pages
- 12 hours of reading
T.E. Lawrence, also known as "Lawrence of Arabia," wrote Seven Pillars of Wisdom: A Triumph from his memories of serving as a liaison officer with rebel forces during the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Turks (1916-1918). Possessed of a brilliant military mind and an unmatched knowledge of the region and the Arab people, Lawrence led the revolt alongside the charismatic Faisal I, sounding the death knell for the Ottoman Empire and paving the way for a new colonial power in the region: the British. Writing from memory after his original manuscript and detailed notes were lost, Lawrence was able to privately publish a polished version of his autobiograhpical account in 1922. It is from this edition that he created the abridged version in 1927 which would become a best-seller, titling it Revolt in the Desert. This important historic work vividly portrays one of the most turbulent periods in the history of the Middle East while offering rich insight into one of Britain's esteemed national heroes.
Seven Pillars of Wisdom
- 704 pages
- 25 hours of reading
With an Introduction by Angus Calder.As Angus Calder states in his introduction to this edition, Seven Pillars of Wisdom is one of the major statements about the fighting experience of the First World War'. Lawrence's younger brothers, Frank and Will, had been killed on the Western Front in 1915. Seven Pillars of Wisdom, written between 1919 and 1926, tells of the vastly different campaign against the Turks in the Middle East - one which encompasses gross acts of cruelty and revenge and ends in a welter of stink and corpses in the disgusting 'hospital' in Damascus.Seven Pillars of Wisdom is no Boys Own Paper tale of Imperial triumph, but a complex work of high literary aspiration which stands in the tradition of Melville and Dostoevsky, and alongside the writings of Yeats, Eliot and Joyce..
In the desert sands of southern Jordan lies a once-hidden conflict landscape along the Hejaz Railway. Built at the beginning of the twentieth-century, this narrow-gauge 1,320 km track stretched from Damascus to Medina and served to facilitate participation in the annual Muslim Hajj to Mecca. The discovery and archaeological investigation of an unknown landscape of insurgency and counter-insurgency along this route tells a different story of the origins of modern guerrilla warfare, the exploits of T. E. Lawrence, Emir Feisal, and Bedouin warriors, and the dramatic events of the Arab Revolt of 1916-18. Ten years of research in this prehistoric terrain has revealed sites lost for almost 100 years: vast campsites occupied by railway builders; Ottoman Turkish machine-gun redoubts; Rolls Royce Armoured Car raiding camps; an ephemeral Royal Air Force desert aerodrome; as well as the actual site of the Hallat Ammar railway ambush. This unique and richly illustrated account from Nicholas Saunders tells, in intimate detail, the story of a seminal episode of the First World War and the reshaping of the Middle East that followed.
Secret Despatches from Arabia
And Other Writings
27 Articles
- 64 pages
- 3 hours of reading
This classic set of military leadership guidelines was penned by T.E. Lawrence during his deployment to the Arabian Peninsula in 1916, amid World War I. Tasked with supporting the Arab Revolt against the Ottoman Empire, Lawrence achieved remarkable success alongside Arab revolutionaries, and his experiences became legendary. To preserve his insights, British command urged him to document his tactics and teachings, resulting in a collection that has become essential reading for military leaders. The 100th anniversary edition includes a new introduction by foreign policy expert John Hulsman and an afterword by CBS News President David Rhodes, highlighting the articles' enduring relevance. Lawrence's deployment marked the West's first modern military engagement in the Middle East, offering invaluable lessons that resonate with contemporary conflicts, particularly in Iraq and Afghanistan. His concise articles, while rooted in battlefield strategy, also provide significant insights applicable to management, leadership, and business, proving their timelessness and adaptability across various fields.



