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4.02 AVERAGE
4.02 AVERAGE
slow-paced
informative
medium-paced
adventurous
challenging
informative
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
A spectacular look at Ancient Rome that bucks a lot of the trends in how that history is presented.
Beard is concerned with HOW we know what we know about the Romans, and so is interested in stripping away the myths and lurid rumours of political rivals and public imagination from what facts we can verify via historical and archaeological methods.
As a result, this book is not just a list of rulers and the ways in which each rose to power and then fell. She focuses on the everyday person as much as she does the governing powers, discussing changes in executive power and organization alongside bathroom graffiti and the bar culture of the masses.
I love how we are given a vivid picture of Roman society, its flaws, and its successes, so that the reader comes to see Ancient Rome not as a fantasy landscape of heroes and villains, but a real, living breathing place populated by relatable people. And even without resorting to the sensationalism of, say, Caligula’s excesses, she still captivates the reader with her approach to focusing on the reality as we can understand it. Some of it is funny, some horrifying, some brilliant, but it’s all grounded in her impeccable approach to history.
I had a fantastic time reading this. The photographs, colour plates, detailed bibliography, and historical timeline that are included all serve to enhance the reading experience rather than merely pad it out (like other books have a tendency to do).
Beard is concerned with HOW we know what we know about the Romans, and so is interested in stripping away the myths and lurid rumours of political rivals and public imagination from what facts we can verify via historical and archaeological methods.
As a result, this book is not just a list of rulers and the ways in which each rose to power and then fell. She focuses on the everyday person as much as she does the governing powers, discussing changes in executive power and organization alongside bathroom graffiti and the bar culture of the masses.
I love how we are given a vivid picture of Roman society, its flaws, and its successes, so that the reader comes to see Ancient Rome not as a fantasy landscape of heroes and villains, but a real, living breathing place populated by relatable people. And even without resorting to the sensationalism of, say, Caligula’s excesses, she still captivates the reader with her approach to focusing on the reality as we can understand it. Some of it is funny, some horrifying, some brilliant, but it’s all grounded in her impeccable approach to history.
I had a fantastic time reading this. The photographs, colour plates, detailed bibliography, and historical timeline that are included all serve to enhance the reading experience rather than merely pad it out (like other books have a tendency to do).
informative
reflective
medium-paced
challenging
informative
reflective
slow-paced
I really liked this book. It was well written, and gave me a different way to think about Ancient Rome.
A very interesting read and a nice summary of roman history. I hadn't had prior exposure to much formal roman history and I think she made a very nice throughline of three main stages of rome (pre-republic (almost pre-history), republic (including all the major conflicts I had heard of) and then the transition to the imperial phase. She does a great job of comparing the differences in these periods, both how we describe them but also how the Romans saw themselves which I think is the most interesting part. Just a fascinating period of human history.