Beowulf, a Scandinavian warrior, fights a monster named Grendel, then Grendel’s mother, and finally, years later, a fire-breathing dragon. Winning great honor, he eventually became a king, the bulwark of his people.

An ancient and renowned tale, over 1,000 years old, Beowulf was initially written in Anglo-Saxon, or Old English. This translation is regarded as one of the finest—poetic, epic, and gripping. About one hundred pages, it’s a quick read and hard to put down.

The unknown author provides a glimpse into the ancient heroic age of the Germanic peoples, who migrated to England and Denmark. They lived by the warrior code and sought glory through warfare.

J.R.R. Tolkien, the author of The Lord of the Rings, translated Beowulf in his 30s and went on to teach it for decades, writing a commentary, which I plan to review.

In this version, you can see the Old English on the left-facing pages; modern English is on the right.

Finally, after you read the epic, I recommend reading Seamus Heaney’s introduction.

What did you think about the story?