[jively]

I actually have a few original sets of this collection (second edition), and then a few later prints of both Iliad and Odyssey (A set from ~1730, and another from the 1770s, the latter binding is lovely, early copies tend to be in worse condition unless you have chunks of cash to spend).

IMHO the Iliad is far more fun than the Odyssey regardless of translation, it also features much better in the wider Hellenic corpus as a reference point if you like to see how it influences wider classic drama.

I became a little obsessed with him for a while because he became a millionaire in his time by essentially inventing DLC: His courtly friends would buy each volume of the books in advance, so he generated a solid stream of revenue so long as he hit his deadlines. For a poet that's good going.

His Greek wasn't particularly good, so it's suggested that quite a few people helped him, which makes the translation itself inaccurate, but there's no denying his poetic flair.

If you're looking for classic Pope I'd say look at the Rape of the Lock (which most folks read in school), and some of his satires - like Dante though they require some historical knowledge because he was very much a satirist and political commentator and used poetry as a means of expression rather tyhan art.

Bonus fact: did you know he invented the insult "namby pamby", it's derived from a nickname he came up with for one of his literary and courtly rivals.