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A review by darwin8u
Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina by Robert Graves
5.0
“Most men—it is my experience—are neither virtuous nor scoundrels, good-hearted nor bad-hearted. They are a little of one thing and a little of the other and nothing for any length of time: ignoble mediocrities.”
― Robert Graves, Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina
I, Claudius and [b:Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina|52251|Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina (Claudius, #2)|Robert Graves|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388464559s/52251.jpg|4232163] are two of the greatest novels of historical fiction EVER. Probably the only writers who come close to Grave's mastery of history and literature are (in no particular order): Gore Vidal ([b:Lincoln|8716|Lincoln|Gore Vidal|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1403185993s/8716.jpg|658163], [b:Burr|8722|Burr|Gore Vidal|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1403176864s/8722.jpg|1702196], etc), Hilary Mantel ([b:Wolf Hall|6101138|Wolf Hall (Thomas Cromwell, #1)|Hilary Mantel|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1336576165s/6101138.jpg|6278354], [b:Bring Up the Bodies|13507212|Bring Up the Bodies (Thomas Cromwell, #2)|Hilary Mantel|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1330649655s/13507212.jpg|14512257]) and Norman Mailer ([b:The Executioner's Song|12468|The Executioner's Song|Norman Mailer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1325755176s/12468.jpg|838965], [b:Harlot's Ghost|381365|Harlot's Ghost|Norman Mailer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1415621572s/381365.jpg|2409551]), John Williams ([b:Augustus|89231|Augustus|John Williams|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320557188s/89231.jpg|86120]).
Obviously, Shakespeare is the master of historical fiction/drama but he is so obviously the deified king of historical fiction that the Shakespearian 'sun needs no inscription to distinguish him from darkness'.
Grave's duology must be intimidating to a historian of Imperial Rome. The personality of Claudius has been so deeply set by Graves that I'm not sure any tweaking by modern historians will be able to fool with Grave's fool.
The Genius of 'I, Claudius' and 'Glaudius the God' is derived from Graves' ability to create such an amazingly rich and deep literary character. The closest I've come across in recent times is Hilary Mantel's Thomas Cromwell. Historical fiction like this are rare and seem to grow more amazing with each year. I rarely reread novels, and these Claudius novels might prove to be two exceptions to that rule.
― Robert Graves, Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina
I, Claudius and [b:Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina|52251|Claudius the God and His Wife Messalina (Claudius, #2)|Robert Graves|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1388464559s/52251.jpg|4232163] are two of the greatest novels of historical fiction EVER. Probably the only writers who come close to Grave's mastery of history and literature are (in no particular order): Gore Vidal ([b:Lincoln|8716|Lincoln|Gore Vidal|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1403185993s/8716.jpg|658163], [b:Burr|8722|Burr|Gore Vidal|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1403176864s/8722.jpg|1702196], etc), Hilary Mantel ([b:Wolf Hall|6101138|Wolf Hall (Thomas Cromwell, #1)|Hilary Mantel|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1336576165s/6101138.jpg|6278354], [b:Bring Up the Bodies|13507212|Bring Up the Bodies (Thomas Cromwell, #2)|Hilary Mantel|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1330649655s/13507212.jpg|14512257]) and Norman Mailer ([b:The Executioner's Song|12468|The Executioner's Song|Norman Mailer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1325755176s/12468.jpg|838965], [b:Harlot's Ghost|381365|Harlot's Ghost|Norman Mailer|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1415621572s/381365.jpg|2409551]), John Williams ([b:Augustus|89231|Augustus|John Williams|https://images.gr-assets.com/books/1320557188s/89231.jpg|86120]).
Obviously, Shakespeare is the master of historical fiction/drama but he is so obviously the deified king of historical fiction that the Shakespearian 'sun needs no inscription to distinguish him from darkness'.
Grave's duology must be intimidating to a historian of Imperial Rome. The personality of Claudius has been so deeply set by Graves that I'm not sure any tweaking by modern historians will be able to fool with Grave's fool.
The Genius of 'I, Claudius' and 'Glaudius the God' is derived from Graves' ability to create such an amazingly rich and deep literary character. The closest I've come across in recent times is Hilary Mantel's Thomas Cromwell. Historical fiction like this are rare and seem to grow more amazing with each year. I rarely reread novels, and these Claudius novels might prove to be two exceptions to that rule.