Hesiod, who lived in Boetia in the late eighth century BC, is one of the oldest known, and possibly the oldest of Greek poets. His Theogony contains a systematic genealogy of the gods from the beginning of the world and an account of the struggles of the Titans. In contrast, Works and Days is a compendium of moral and practical advice on husbandry, and throws unique and fascinating light on archaic Greek society. As well as offering the earliest known sources for the myths of Pandora, Prometheus and the Golden Age, Hesiod's poetry provides a valuable account of the ethics and superstitions of the society in which he lived. Unlike Homer, Hesiod writes about himself and his family, and he stands out as the first personality in European literature. This new translation, by a leading expert on the Hesiodic poems combines accuracy with readability. It is accompanied by an introduction and explanatory notes.
The Theogony is a dry but okay read, "Works and Days" is just Hesiod talking about stuff he thinks he knows best as a way to give his brother advice (more like a lecture on life *sigh*), mixed with a huge load of sexism. Not that I don't expect that in ancient texts, but this was on a whole new level.
It's useful to study other (later) ancient texts and to an extend to see the zeitgeist of the time, but I struggled hard to get through this like 100-page text.
