Leucippe and Clitophon, written in the second century CE, is exceptional among the ancient romances in being a first-person narrative: the adventures of the young couple are recounted by the hero himself. Achilles Tatius style is notable for descriptive detail and for his engaging digressions.

Achilles Tatius' Leucippe and Clitophon is the most bizarre and risque of the five "Greek novels" of idealized love between boy and girl that survive from the time of the Roman empire. Stretching the capacity of the genre to its limits, Achilles' narrative covers adultery, violence, disembowelment, pederasty, virginity-testing, and a conveniently happy ending. Ingenious and sophisticated in conception, Leucippe and Clitophon is at once subtle, stylish, moving, brash, tasteless, and obscene. This new translation aims to capture Achilles' writing in all its exuberant variety.
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