''The Lost Books of the Odyssey'' is a 2007 novel by Zachary Mason, republished in 2010. It is a reimagination of

Homer Homer (; grc, Ὅμηρος , ''Hómēros'') (born ) was a Greek poet who is credited as the author of the ''Iliad'' and the ''Odyssey'', two epic poems that are foundational works of ancient Greek literature. Homer is considered one of the ...

's ''

Odyssey The ''Odyssey'' (; grc, Ὀδύσσεια, Odýsseia, ) is one of two major ancient Greek epic poems attributed to Homer. It is one of the oldest extant works of literature still widely read by modern audiences. As with the ''Iliad'', th ...

''. Mason, who wrote the book while working full-time, won first prize and initial publication in a 2007 competition sponsored by Starcherone Books, an independent publisher in Buffalo, New York. The ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' (abbreviated as ''LA Times'') is a daily newspaper that started publishing in Los Angeles in 1881. Based in the LA-adjacent suburb of El Segundo since 2018, it is the sixth-largest newspaper by circulation in the U ...

'' reviewed the book, and it became a finalist in the New York Public Library's Young Lions Fiction competition in 2009. The book garnered additional positive reviews upon re-publication with Farrar, Straus, and Giroux. Jonathan Galassi, president of

Farrar, Straus and Giroux Farrar, Straus and Giroux (FSG) is an American book publishing company, founded in 1946 by Roger Williams Straus Jr. and John C. Farrar. FSG is known for publishing literary books, and its authors have won numerous awards, including Pulitzer ...

, noticed the book and worked with Mason to craft a second edition of the book, reducing its length and making other modifications to the content. The result was more widely reviewed to acclaim.

Plot

A series of short stories following the general theme of Odysseus, discussing fragments from the 'Iliad' and the 'Odyssey', changing narrator and subject on very regular occasion for a total of 44 fragments.

References

2007 American novels Farrar, Straus and Giroux books Self-published books 2007 debut novels Novels based on the Odyssey {{US-novel-stub