OzVet

I recently finished Burton Raffel’s translation of Das Nibelungenlied, which was absolutely wonderful. His translation of the High Middle German is fantastic. The poem flows with a structure and rhythm and is almost hauntingly beautiful. The Yale Press review compares the story to both the Illiad and The Godfather. As well, I found many themes and elements reminiscent of the Arthurian legends– nobility and chivalry, romance and war, war caused by romance, joyous and fun parts, but at the same time incredibly dark and tragic.

This was one of the gems I found during the many hours shelving books at the Reg this summer. (One of the consequences of working in a library–you end up with more books to read than there are hours in the day). However, as the book is now horribly past due, I’m sticking it in the mail tomorrow to a friend in Chicago who has graciously offered to return it for me.

I was incredibly spoiled in Chicago by well-structured library late fees that greatly favored the borrower. KSU actually charges you if you don’t bother to return the books on time.