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4.01 AVERAGE
4.01 AVERAGE
This was an interesting journey into historical fiction. The life of Cicero, his contemporaries and most interesting, the form of government during the Roman Empire. If you like this time period this is a good one.
medium-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Character
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
Yes
I have been looking at this title at bookshops and libraries and carefully avoiding it - my mistaken impression that it was part of the historical novel series by Robert Graves!! Sometime a month ago I picked up Fatherland by Robert Harris and was hooked.
Imperium gripped me from beginning to end - Cicero may be to historians, philosophers but was a stranger to me. His character and the politics of republican Rome are fascinating in that the essence of the interplay between power, influence and money is till the same in today's democracies.
A "must" read.
Imperium gripped me from beginning to end - Cicero may be to historians, philosophers but was a stranger to me. His character and the politics of republican Rome are fascinating in that the essence of the interplay between power, influence and money is till the same in today's democracies.
A "must" read.
An exciting tale of Cicero’s rise to fame as a Consul in the Roman Republic recounted by his slave and personal secretary Tiro. We probably owe the records of Cicero’s innumerable speeches to the latter’s invention of shorthand with which he took down the words of public speakers. I am not familiar enough with the history of the period to be able to distinguish where Harris departs from known facts, although obviously many of the more personal incidents and perhaps even some of the motivations are imagined. But this is done seamlessly and the result is a gripping novel which whets one’s appetite for the sequels.
challenging
funny
informative
tense
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
Plot
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
adventurous
fast-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
No
Loveable characters:
No
Diverse cast of characters:
Yes
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
Waiting is not great, but catchy plot.
This book is perfectly fine but I found that if any sort of distraction came along I’d be swayed, the book forgotten. There’s nothing wrong with it, the voice of Tiro about the events that led to Cicero’s consulship is affable and endearing but at a time when contemporary politics and in particular women/gender issues so horrifically pointed the slight digs to indicate different times just grated. I will probably read the next book, Lustrum, but I’m not in any great rush
If you dig ancient Rome, this is a slightly wonkish look at the mechanics of Roman politics and the legal system using stories from the real Cicero. A good read, full of technical detail that is well explained. Not TOO technical, but probably not for everyone. The book copy makes it seem like the most amazing thing that has ever been written about Rome, or anything at all for that matter. I respectfully submit that it is not, exactly, that.
An excellent book, it covers the rise of Cicero in the last century BC. Harris re creates the feel of Rome very well. Add to it the presence of historical greats such as Caesar, Pompey and Crassus it's a fascinating history lesson too. The best of Harris's work.
I keep discovering these gaping holes in my education. Before listening to the audio version of Robert Harris’s Imperium, my total knowledge of Cicero had been something along the lines of “famous old Roman guy in a toga”. In Imperium, Harris tells the fascinating story of the great Cicero, told by his slave secretary Tiro.
The audio version was read by actor Simon Jones. Jones’s delivery made me feel like I was sitting in on a secret political strategy meeting of Cicero and his supporters.
It is striking how history repeats itself. Tiro’s descriptions of political demagogues, populist land reform schemes, and even a trumped up war against pirates to increase executive political powers are proof of what Cicero said more than 2000 years ago: “History is the witness that testifies to the passing of time; it illumines reality, vitalizes memory, provides guidance in daily life and brings us tidings of antiquity.”
The audio version was read by actor Simon Jones. Jones’s delivery made me feel like I was sitting in on a secret political strategy meeting of Cicero and his supporters.
It is striking how history repeats itself. Tiro’s descriptions of political demagogues, populist land reform schemes, and even a trumped up war against pirates to increase executive political powers are proof of what Cicero said more than 2000 years ago: “History is the witness that testifies to the passing of time; it illumines reality, vitalizes memory, provides guidance in daily life and brings us tidings of antiquity.”