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A review by savage_book_review
Adventures in Time: Alexander the Great by Dominic Sandbrook
adventurous
emotional
informative
lighthearted
medium-paced
4.0
I've literally been waiting for a whole year to have this book arrive at the library for me to borrow as they only have 1 copy in the whole system! Another of Dominic Sandbrook's 'Adventures in Time' series, I was particularly interested to read this one as my knowledge of Alexander the Great is very limited, and I've always found that learning about a new subject is always made easier if you start with a children's book. It's why I'm a huge advocate of books like this and the Horrible Histories series even for adults - they're great primers so you can understand the basics, before getting bogged down in more scholarly tomes.
In this instance, the author hasn't gone down the route of telling the story through the eyes of various real life characters who were there, I guess because there are such limited primary sources it would have essential been fiction. However, this is a very well written narrative history, presenting the factual history in an almost 'novelisation' format. It's got a great balance between the objective factual events and the more fictionalised scenes which portray those events, and certainy kept me engaged! I can see this absolutely appealing to its target demographic; just enough battles and blood to satisfy a younger reader's curiosities, without being overly graphic, and yet still clear and concise in its storytelling.
Clearly, there are elements of Alexander's story which have been toned down or omitted to suit the target audience, so it's definitely not a comprehensive history. However, it is a very good overview of his movements and his famed conquering of large swathes of territory. But, while it does give some insight into the man as well as the myth, I was slightly disappointed that the author didn't explore Alexander's character more. For example, while two of his wives do make an appearance (plus a brief hint of a dalliance withe the Queen of the Amazons), there is absolutely no hint that Alexander may have also had male partners. I do think this is a shame; I'm not saying it needs to be explicit, but there should be nothing wrong with stating the fact that same-sex relationships were accepted and understood more than 2000 years ago.
One of the podcasts I enjoy, 'The Ancients', has a presenter who is an expert on Alexander, but where I haven't known the history I've always been a bit confused when he discusses the topic. However, having read this, some of his comments now make a little more sense! Thinking I might need to go back and re-listen tona couple of old episodes to see if I can follow them better now I have this entry-level knowledge. I have tried listening to the author's podcast, 'The Rest is History', but unfortunately I found it incredibly dull - when you've got me falling asleep whole you're talking about the Tudors, then something is definitely wrong! But his books so far have generally been far more engaging and interesting, and I really wish he'd bring some of this energy to his work aimed at the grown ups!
Was it worth waiting a whole year for? Probably not, but I am glad I've read it and it would be one I'd point others to if they want to dip their toe into the world of this historical behemoth.
In this instance, the author hasn't gone down the route of telling the story through the eyes of various real life characters who were there, I guess because there are such limited primary sources it would have essential been fiction. However, this is a very well written narrative history, presenting the factual history in an almost 'novelisation' format. It's got a great balance between the objective factual events and the more fictionalised scenes which portray those events, and certainy kept me engaged! I can see this absolutely appealing to its target demographic; just enough battles and blood to satisfy a younger reader's curiosities, without being overly graphic, and yet still clear and concise in its storytelling.
Clearly, there are elements of Alexander's story which have been toned down or omitted to suit the target audience, so it's definitely not a comprehensive history. However, it is a very good overview of his movements and his famed conquering of large swathes of territory. But, while it does give some insight into the man as well as the myth, I was slightly disappointed that the author didn't explore Alexander's character more. For example, while two of his wives do make an appearance (plus a brief hint of a dalliance withe the Queen of the Amazons), there is absolutely no hint that Alexander may have also had male partners. I do think this is a shame; I'm not saying it needs to be explicit, but there should be nothing wrong with stating the fact that same-sex relationships were accepted and understood more than 2000 years ago.
One of the podcasts I enjoy, 'The Ancients', has a presenter who is an expert on Alexander, but where I haven't known the history I've always been a bit confused when he discusses the topic. However, having read this, some of his comments now make a little more sense! Thinking I might need to go back and re-listen tona couple of old episodes to see if I can follow them better now I have this entry-level knowledge. I have tried listening to the author's podcast, 'The Rest is History', but unfortunately I found it incredibly dull - when you've got me falling asleep whole you're talking about the Tudors, then something is definitely wrong! But his books so far have generally been far more engaging and interesting, and I really wish he'd bring some of this energy to his work aimed at the grown ups!
Was it worth waiting a whole year for? Probably not, but I am glad I've read it and it would be one I'd point others to if they want to dip their toe into the world of this historical behemoth.
Content Warnings
Moderate: Violence and War
Minor: Animal cruelty, Animal death, Death, Gore, Incest, Torture, Blood, Death of parent, Murder, Pregnancy, Cultural appropriation, Colonisation, Injury/Injury detail, and Classism