World History
I just finished reading Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome. I am not a big fiction fan but I do read the occasional historical fiction or fantasy novel. I do not always like them. However, I found this book by Richard Harris to be excellent.
The book tells the story of Cicero in his early days in the Senate from 79 B.C. to 64 B.C. It highlights many of the actions of his rise to prominence in Rome including a good account of his successful prosecution of the former governor of Sicily, Verres. The book ends with Cicero's election as a Consul so there is plenty of room for a sequel.
The story is written from the point of view of Cicero' slave Tiro who himself is noted in history. He is credited with inventing shorthand so he could keep up with Cicero's frenzied dictations and speeches. Tiro also wrote a well regarded biography of Cicero which has been lost to history but is cited by other ancient historians.
Harris does try to make parallels between the days of the late Roman Republic and today without actually mentioning modern events. He writes in language which makes Pompey's successful passage of laws to have himself made sole military commander to fight the pirate menace seem to parallel the Bush Administration's laws and arguments to fight modern terrorism. The comparison of the two events separated by thousands of years is weak but will probably please those who think any historical event which can be made to conform to their current political views is "good history" and any historical analogy that disagrees with them is "bad history". Fortunately, Harris allows the reader to make this connection on his or her own and does not try to push this aspect of the book to far.
The book is obviously well researched. The details regarding Cicero's prosecutorial fact finding trip to Sicily and the trial of Verres show a great deal of scholarly searching on the part of Harris to write an accurate account. This is a short read (only 305 page) with a very readable author so I would recommend this book to ancient history fans.
- Medicus: A Novel Of The Roman Empire
I recently finished reading the book Medicus: A Novel of the Roman Empire. It was written by Ruth Downie. Although I do not read a lot of historical fiction, I decided to give this book a try. And, I am happy to report, I liked it a lot. Here is Publisher's...
- Three New Books On Roman History
I was very excited when I came back home from the university today. Three books from two book clubs had arrived in the mail. All deal with Roman history. The World History Blog posts about all kinds of history but I realize I tend to keep coming back...
- Julius Caesar, War Criminal?
I have just finished reading Chronicle of the Roman Republic by Philip Matyszak. This tome looks like a coffee table book. I am sure many treat it this way. However, I went beyond the pictures and enjoyed it. Matyszak uses biography to inform the reader...
- Feminae Romanae: The Women Of Ancient Rome
Feminae Romanae: The Women of Ancient Rome - A history of women in ancient Rome from the Graeco-Etruscan period to the fall of the Empire. Sections cover multiple periods, graphics and biographies of famous Roman women. The link titled "Republican Women"...
- The Heart Of Change: Julius Caesar And The End Of The Roman Republic
The Heart of Change: Julius Caesar and the End of the Roman Republic. This is an essay that looks at the organizational change theory of Kotter and Cohen (2002) and applies it to the actions of Julius Caesar as he brought about the end of the Roman Republic....
World History
Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome
I just finished reading Imperium: A Novel of Ancient Rome. I am not a big fiction fan but I do read the occasional historical fiction or fantasy novel. I do not always like them. However, I found this book by Richard Harris to be excellent.The book tells the story of Cicero in his early days in the Senate from 79 B.C. to 64 B.C. It highlights many of the actions of his rise to prominence in Rome including a good account of his successful prosecution of the former governor of Sicily, Verres. The book ends with Cicero's election as a Consul so there is plenty of room for a sequel.
The story is written from the point of view of Cicero' slave Tiro who himself is noted in history. He is credited with inventing shorthand so he could keep up with Cicero's frenzied dictations and speeches. Tiro also wrote a well regarded biography of Cicero which has been lost to history but is cited by other ancient historians.
Harris does try to make parallels between the days of the late Roman Republic and today without actually mentioning modern events. He writes in language which makes Pompey's successful passage of laws to have himself made sole military commander to fight the pirate menace seem to parallel the Bush Administration's laws and arguments to fight modern terrorism. The comparison of the two events separated by thousands of years is weak but will probably please those who think any historical event which can be made to conform to their current political views is "good history" and any historical analogy that disagrees with them is "bad history". Fortunately, Harris allows the reader to make this connection on his or her own and does not try to push this aspect of the book to far.
The book is obviously well researched. The details regarding Cicero's prosecutorial fact finding trip to Sicily and the trial of Verres show a great deal of scholarly searching on the part of Harris to write an accurate account. This is a short read (only 305 page) with a very readable author so I would recommend this book to ancient history fans.
- Medicus: A Novel Of The Roman Empire
I recently finished reading the book Medicus: A Novel of the Roman Empire. It was written by Ruth Downie. Although I do not read a lot of historical fiction, I decided to give this book a try. And, I am happy to report, I liked it a lot. Here is Publisher's...
- Three New Books On Roman History
I was very excited when I came back home from the university today. Three books from two book clubs had arrived in the mail. All deal with Roman history. The World History Blog posts about all kinds of history but I realize I tend to keep coming back...
- Julius Caesar, War Criminal?
I have just finished reading Chronicle of the Roman Republic by Philip Matyszak. This tome looks like a coffee table book. I am sure many treat it this way. However, I went beyond the pictures and enjoyed it. Matyszak uses biography to inform the reader...
- Feminae Romanae: The Women Of Ancient Rome
Feminae Romanae: The Women of Ancient Rome - A history of women in ancient Rome from the Graeco-Etruscan period to the fall of the Empire. Sections cover multiple periods, graphics and biographies of famous Roman women. The link titled "Republican Women"...
- The Heart Of Change: Julius Caesar And The End Of The Roman Republic
The Heart of Change: Julius Caesar and the End of the Roman Republic. This is an essay that looks at the organizational change theory of Kotter and Cohen (2002) and applies it to the actions of Julius Caesar as he brought about the end of the Roman Republic....