FARMINGTON — The Shiretown Bookers announce the exhibit, “To Sail Beyond the Sunset: The Influence of The Odyssey,” running March 15 to June 15 in its gallery at Mantor Library, 116 South St. 

The story of Odysseus’ homeward wanderings has stirred the adventurous imagination for nearly 3,000 years and has served as inspiration for many great poems, tales, novels, and movies. “Ulysses” by James Joyce, which follows the plot of “The Odyssey” through a day in Dublin in 1904, is widely acclaimed as the greatest novel of the 20th century.

Odysseus has wandered into other works as well. He appears in Dante, in Shakespeare, in Katzanzakis, in Robert Graves and Zachery Mason, and in the post-modern works of John Barth. Penelope has figured in a literature of her own, inspiring strong feminist work by Atwood, Leclerc and La Spina. 

The Shiretown Bookers is a group of book lovers and collectors who support the university library by fostering its relationship with the community. The group provides free exhibitions and lectures on bookish subjects throughout the year.

“Circe Transforms the Crew” – Pogány, 1918