Rubaiyat of Omar Khayyam »

One of the best-known, most often-quoted English classics. Edward FitzGerald's free translation of skeptical, hedonistic verse attributed to Omar Khayyám (1048–1122), Persian mathematician, astronomer and philosopher. Explanation of Persian names and unfamiliar terms.

Booknews

Fitzgerald compulsively revised his translation of the "Rub<'a>iy<'a>t," resulting in four published editions, all of which are presented here with their original prefaces and notes, along with all extant versions of FitzGerald's translation. Decker supplies biographical and textual introductions that make use of FitzGerald's correspondence to seek motives for his revisions, the aim being to to unearth a full record of the poem's textual evolution, to provide an interpretive context, and to illuminate the complex process of revision. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.