Homer's The Iliad and The Odyssey The stories of the Trojan War and Helen of Troy, Patroclus and Achilles, the Sirens and the Cyclops are embedded in western culture, yet readers are often unaware that they were made famous by two epic poems, the Iliad and the Odyssey, and one blind poet: Homer. In this lyrical and graceful book, Alberto Manguel delights in the original poems and celebrates their presence through history.