The Epic of Gilgamesh is regarded of one of the earliest surviving notable literature in the world. It was inscribed in Akkadian on stone tablets, which were rediscovered in Nineveh, Iraq in 1853.
Best Book on the History of Gilgamesh
The Buried Book: The Loss and Rediscovery of the Great Epic of Gilgamesh
By David Damrosch
Professor David Damrosch of Columbia University traces the history of the stone tablet in vivid detail from its creation in 1200 BCE, loss in 600 BCE, to its discipher after its rediscovery by Austen Henry Layard in 1853.
Best Book on the Literary Reception of Gilgamesh
Gilgamesh among Us: Modern Encounters with the Ancient Epic
by Theodore Ziolkowski
Theodore Ziolkowski traces the literary reception of Gilgamesh by the world after its rediscovery in 1853, from the initial reception (1884-1935), popularization (1959-1978), contemporization (1979-1999) to Gilgamesh in the Twenty-First century.
For the best translation of Gilgamesh, please see this article.