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4.15 AVERAGE
4.15 AVERAGE
Whew that was long! I really enjoyed the first half. The second half was interesting too, but not as much fun since it tells of her decline. “There is nothing new under the sun except what has been forgotten.” Political theater and propaganda were alive and well in the days of Cleopatra as they are today.
challenging
informative
slow-paced
Plot or Character Driven:
A mix
Strong character development:
Yes
Loveable characters:
Complicated
Diverse cast of characters:
No
Flaws of characters a main focus:
No
I enjoyed Margaret George's book on Helen of Troy better than I did this one on Cleopatra. I found that I like the beginning of the book when Cleopatra was young and continuing on through her relationship with Caesar. Following Caesar's death, I found that Cleopatra became a whining character and I was counting the number of pages until she would finally end both mine and her torment with her well-known death by the bite of an asp. Would I read this book again, most likely not; but, I would still recommend Margaret George as a writer and I look forward to her upcoming book on Elizabeth I.
There were many interesting parts of this book, but it was very difficult to get through the last 500 pages. It felt like it took me years to read.
I really enjoyed this book. It's huge at over 900 pages but I found it engaging all the way until the end. There were a few slow parts and it was hard to keep track of time throughout the book as it often skipped a few years. I can't say that I knew very much about Cleopatra before this book and her love affairs with Caesar and Marc Antony.
I read Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff last year, and ever since then I have had a fascination, almost a reverence, for the woman that was Cleopatra. The Memoirs of Cleopatra had been on my radar for quite some time, but due to its 1,000+ page count, I was always a little hesitant to pick it up. What if it’s not good? What if the powerful tale of Cleopatra is degenerated into some smutty romance story? (This is unfortunately very common in the historical fiction genre). I finally found a copy at a used bookstore in Newport Beach, and I decided to invest five of my dollars and buy it. I was not disappointed!
The Memoirs of Cleopatra draws out the ideas, legends, and myths about Cleopatra to create a mostly realistic, substantial character. Whenever I was in history class, I would always imagine what historical figures would have been like. Not in an idealized way, but in a realistic, sometimes nitty gritty way. George helped me do that with Cleopatra by giving her a voice and giving her true human emotions. Much of what we know about Cleopatra is conjecture, legend, or Shakespearian. George draws on these sources but also takes liberties of her own in order to humanize the woman who was the ruler of Egypt. I’m writing this review a few months after having completed this book, so my memory is a bit foggy on specifics, but I remember the story being interesting the whole way through. Sure, there were some slow parts, but it was never unbearable.
George embellished on events that may (or may not) have happened during the course of Cleopatra’s life, and she did it with historical accuracy to the best of her ability. I could actually imagine myself walking the streets of Alexandria, attending Cleopatra’s famed boat party in Tarsus, and witnessing Marc Antony’s fall into ruin. Historical fiction walks a fine line. There are some books that are mundane but accurate, and there are some that simply use a “historical” setting for an unrealistic romance plot. George walks that fine line with grace and depicts Cleopatra as a believable human being, not the infamous seductress that common culture often says she is. And that was a refreshing breath of air.
The Memoirs of Cleopatra draws out the ideas, legends, and myths about Cleopatra to create a mostly realistic, substantial character. Whenever I was in history class, I would always imagine what historical figures would have been like. Not in an idealized way, but in a realistic, sometimes nitty gritty way. George helped me do that with Cleopatra by giving her a voice and giving her true human emotions. Much of what we know about Cleopatra is conjecture, legend, or Shakespearian. George draws on these sources but also takes liberties of her own in order to humanize the woman who was the ruler of Egypt. I’m writing this review a few months after having completed this book, so my memory is a bit foggy on specifics, but I remember the story being interesting the whole way through. Sure, there were some slow parts, but it was never unbearable.
George embellished on events that may (or may not) have happened during the course of Cleopatra’s life, and she did it with historical accuracy to the best of her ability. I could actually imagine myself walking the streets of Alexandria, attending Cleopatra’s famed boat party in Tarsus, and witnessing Marc Antony’s fall into ruin. Historical fiction walks a fine line. There are some books that are mundane but accurate, and there are some that simply use a “historical” setting for an unrealistic romance plot. George walks that fine line with grace and depicts Cleopatra as a believable human being, not the infamous seductress that common culture often says she is. And that was a refreshing breath of air.
I love anything regarding Cleopatra and Rome and this book was no exception. Even with the length of the book I still wanted to read a thousand more pages when I was done. I rarely re-read books, but this will surely be one of them!
Great book. It provides fantastic - albeit fictional - insight into Cleopatra's life, based on what little we have of her. It covers her entire life, as written by her during, I think, the last year of her life while fighting Octavian, up until she kills herself. The descriptions are wonderful, but the pacing was a bit off for me. George flies through her first twenty years of life, covering them in two hundred pages, then slows down and describes every touch and letter between Cleopatra and Caesar and later Cleopatra and Antony. Towards the end it started to pick up again, which makes sense, since they were in the middle of a war. The writing is highly enjoyable as well, I love George's other books, too, so that was no surprise.
Rich, full engaging story about one of history's notorious characters Also, I loved the depiction of Antony and Caesar. I thought Cleopatra could have been a bit more fun though...
Interesting novel of Cleopatra, drags in certain places, but makes the ancient world come alive.