Dante Alighieri – Inferno
And now the first of two classics. Dante Alighieri transformed the literary world with his amazing poem The Divine Comedy. Split into three parts, the story follows Dante as he is led through Hell, Purgatory, and Heaven by the Roman poet Virgil. To say that this work is magnificent does not do it justice. This is one of those books that needs to be read by everyone at some point in their life. The visuals that are crafted are unbelievable and the subtle social, religious, and political commentaries are a delight.
However, the focus here is on the first of the three stories, Inferno, in which Dante traverses through the Nine Circles of Hell, ultimately meeting Satan, a monstrous beast encased in ice. The imagery that Dante conveys in his story is terrifying, inspiring directors and authors to try and match them but never reaching that level. What you read in here is more gruesome and dreadful than should ever be imagined. And this was written in the 14th century!
Trust me on this and read this book if you haven’t. It will change your view of literature entirely.
