Scan barcode
davidreyno's review against another edition
informative
lighthearted
reflective
medium-paced
4.5
Always presents history in an interesting manner.
caitcoy's review against another edition
informative
reflective
slow-paced
4.5
Emperor of Rome is an in-depth look at the office of Emperor during Rome's imperial period, both at how the rulers perceived themselves and the expectations and perception of them by those in the larger Roman society. I read SPQR by Mary Beard earlier in the year and honestly Emperor of Rome is probably my favorite thing that I've picked up from her and one of the more valuable books on Rome that I've read.
Beard splits the book into sections concerning imperial power as seen via travel, dining, the structure of their palaces and the people who served directly under them. Instead of being a succession of names and dates, it's more focused on the common themes about the emperors and how the various emperors fit into that. As such, it's a lot more accessible of a survey and a lot more interesting (at least to me).
I would recommend this to those interested in Roman history (obviously) but maybe less well versed in the structure of Roman imperial power. I've generally been interested in Roman history for a long time and I found I learned a lot from it as someone who is curious but still not really an expert.
Beard splits the book into sections concerning imperial power as seen via travel, dining, the structure of their palaces and the people who served directly under them. Instead of being a succession of names and dates, it's more focused on the common themes about the emperors and how the various emperors fit into that. As such, it's a lot more accessible of a survey and a lot more interesting (at least to me).
I would recommend this to those interested in Roman history (obviously) but maybe less well versed in the structure of Roman imperial power. I've generally been interested in Roman history for a long time and I found I learned a lot from it as someone who is curious but still not really an expert.
teal2wine's review against another edition
informative
medium-paced
4.25
How I read this book was via audiobook. I absolutely loved that the author read it therefore I knew the pronunciations were correct and I felt like she was telling me all her research tidbits. And using her words, this book doesn't get into the emperor's heads to explain things, it just tells about items from their lives.
In summary, I truly recommend this book but only to be physically read. She refers to illustrations that aren't easily and quickly seen while listening to it.
In summary, I truly recommend this book but only to be physically read. She refers to illustrations that aren't easily and quickly seen while listening to it.