Product Description

The Tain Bo Cualinge, centrepiece of the eighth-century Ulster cycle of heroic tales, is Ireland's great epic. It tells the story of a great cattle-raid, the invasion of Ulster by the armies of Medb and Ailill, Queen and King of Connacht, and their allies, seeking to carry off the great Brown Bull of Cualige. The hero of the tale is Cuchulainn, the Hound of Ulster, who resists the invaders single-handed while Ulster's warriors lie sick.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #110178 in Books
• Published on: 2008-10-02
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Paperback
• 256 pages

Review
aCarsonas landmark translation, the first in forty years, brings this literary gem to life in a fresh, modern retelling that rivals Thomas Kinsellaas classic translation of 1969.a
a "Booklist aIn vivid prose Carson has harnessed . . . the taleas tremendous artistic power.aaIrish Voice

Dermot Healy
"Ciaran Carson has kept a diary that goes way back, even before writing was invented. His Tain is a true oral rendering, with the Northern blas adding an extra irreverent punch to the story, and old air of the bull. As poet and prose writer, he echoes all your imagination strains to hear, and somehow lets the epic pass before your eyes, and ears, as if for the first time, again."

The Guardian
'Carson's Tain, as natural in style as it is unflinching, is a translation of power, grace and resonance.'

Customer Reviews

An elemental, highly eloquent translation which roars with the raw power, magic and bardic ingenuity of the original.
An elemental, highly eloquent translation which clearly roars with the raw power, druidic magic and bardic ingenuity of the original. Ciaron Carson has brought the Ulster Cycle to imediate life. As we read we are there with the characters, we feel the timber and fibre of that day as though it were now, and the poetic eloquence at times astounds. Meanwhile the at times cycling, urgent rythm of the propulsive prose urges the reader effortlessly along not unlike fate itself to these most vital of ancestors.

A powerful story
As this is the only translation I've read of this tale, I may not be best placed to write a review.

I found this book fairly easy to read, especially in comparison to the texts that are available online. The endnotes were especially helpful, though I am not sure if some matters were left out as there were references to, say, the history of the bulls themselves, but nowhere in the book was this history related. Perhaps I missed it? I would also have apprecited an pronuncation guide to the names when listed in the endnotes. As I am not an Irish speaker, this would have been invaluable.

I did have some difficulty with the poetry[?] sections, as I could not make sense of them, but I imagine this is because of the difficulty in translating from Irish, with its propensity for double meanings.

Overall, a good introduction to the Táin Bó Cúailnge.

Bloody as Hell
Great stuff. Just goes to show what kind of trouble can start from arguments in the bedroom.