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Spoilers What Book Are You Reading?

Scepticalscribe

Scepticalscribe

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yaxomoxay said:
Augustus - The Life of Rome’s First Emperor (2006) by Anthony Everitt.

My interest in studying Roman History is not a secret on this forum. Everitt’s biography of Octavian (aka Augustus) reveals itself as one great addition to my shelves. I devoured this book.

Everitt does not shy away from examining the huge shadow that Julius Caesar casts on Rome’s first emperor. Everything in Octavian’s life is somewhat linked to Rome’s dictator; even the fact that later in Octavian’s life the month of Sextilis was renamed to Avguvstvs (August) the same way that Quintilis was renamed Ivlivs (July) after Julius Caesar is a symbolic continuous thread. And yes, Augustus had to keep separate himself from his adoptive father.

This book lays out not only the political structure (and intrigue) and the military actions (Anthony and Cleopatra, anyone?), but it also shows us Octavian, the man. A political genius, he could be merciful as he could be terrifying (he once sacrificed 300 people). Skilled in public administration and very religious, he could barely keep his family together. Loyal to his friends, especially Agrippa, he expected the same loyalty and anyone that betrayed him paid a dear price.

In addition to the biographical part, Everitt describes Roman customs very well. From sexual promiscuity (which is not how it’s commonly portrayed), to gladiator fights (which weren’t actually a slaughterhouse as often believed), the author is able to show us life in Rome without being pedantic.

This book has for me only one negative: the first chapter. Similarly to the last chapter of “How to Think Like a Roman Emperor,” Robertson’s semi-biography of Marcus Aurelius, the events narrated are virtually all fictional. It’s just the author wanting to share his dream vision of the last moments of Augustus life. I know why the author does it: it gives us a very romantic and visual description. What I don’t like is that unless you read the notes, you won’t know. It’s written almost as factual, and a reader either has to deduce the fiction through prior knowledge or by reading the notes at the end of the book.

Ultimately I highly recommend this book to whoever wants to understand the world of Rome, and to whoever wants to understand today’s events.

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Okay: Thank you. I have now ordered it from my library, and I note from their catalogue that he has apparently written several other works on Rome.
 
Huntn

Huntn

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May 5, 2008
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The Misty Mountains
yaxomoxay said:
Augustus - The Life of Rome’s First Emperor (2006) by Anthony Everitt.

My interest in studying Roman History is not a secret on this forum. Everitt’s biography of Octavian (aka Augustus) reveals itself as one great addition to my shelves. I devoured this book.

Everitt does not shy away from examining the huge shadow that Julius Caesar casts on Rome’s first emperor. Everything in Octavian’s life is somewhat linked to Rome’s dictator; even the fact that later in Octavian’s life the month of Sextilis was renamed to Avguvstvs (August) the same way that Quintilis was renamed Ivlivs (July) after Julius Caesar is a symbolic continuous thread. And yes, Augustus had to keep separate himself from his adoptive father.

This book lays out not only the political structure (and intrigue) and the military actions (Anthony and Cleopatra, anyone?), but it also shows us Octavian, the man. A political genius, he could be merciful as he could be terrifying (he once sacrificed 300 people). Skilled in public administration and very religious, he could barely keep his family together. Loyal to his friends, especially Agrippa, he expected the same loyalty and anyone that betrayed him paid a dear price.

In addition to the biographical part, Everitt describes Roman customs very well. From sexual promiscuity (which is not how it’s commonly portrayed), to gladiator fights (which weren’t actually a slaughterhouse as often believed), the author is able to show us life in Rome without being pedantic.

This book has for me only one negative: the first chapter. Similarly to the last chapter of “How to Think Like a Roman Emperor,” Robertson’s semi-biography of Marcus Aurelius, the events narrated are virtually all fictional. It’s just the author wanting to share his dream vision of the last moments of Augustus life. I know why the author does it: it gives us a very romantic and visual description. What I don’t like is that unless you read the notes, you won’t know. It’s written almost as factual, and a reader either has to deduce the fiction through prior knowledge or by reading the notes at the end of the book.

Ultimately I highly recommend this book to whoever wants to understand the world of Rome, and to whoever wants to understand today’s events.

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I take it you watched HBO’s Rome. How does that compare, although it is centered on the time of Julius Caesar. :)
 
yaxomoxay

yaxomoxay

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Scepticalscribe said:
Sounds absolutely fascinating.

Must see if I can lay hands on it (for Roman history is one of those topics I never tire of reading about, especially if the work in question is well written, well researched and not just interesting - all Roman histoyr is interesting - but absorbing and fascinating).
Click to expand...

Scepticalscribe said:
Okay: Thank you. I have now ordered it from my library, and I note from their catalogue that he has apparently written several other works on Rome.
Click to expand...

I can tell you that I liked it that much that I immediately ordered his book on Cicero, which I am going to start tonight after the adrenaline from the final finally settles down. Yes, Roman history is incredibly interesting, can’t get bored with it.
 
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yaxomoxay

yaxomoxay

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Huntn said:
I take it you watched HBO’s Rome. How does that compare, although it is centered on the time of Julius Caesar. :)
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Yes, I am slowly rewatching it. I think that it does its job very well. Obviously many parts are romanticized, and many elements are changed (example, Octavian was not in Rome when Caesar was assassinated, and it took him months to start his political rise to power), however the dynamics are spot on.
 
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Scepticalscribe

Scepticalscribe

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yaxomoxay said:
I can tell you that I liked it that much that I immediately ordered his book on Cicero, which I am going to start tonight after the adrenaline from the final finally settles down. Yes, Roman history is incredibly interesting, can’t get bored with it.
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Ah, Cicero.

Fascinating.

Let me know what you think of the book when you have read it.

I'm one of those - and I suspect that I may find myself quite possibly in a (rather small) minority - who far prefers Roman history to (ancient) Greek history.
 
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yaxomoxay

yaxomoxay

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Scepticalscribe said:
Let me know what you think of the book when you have read it.
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Absolutely, and please don’t forget to let me know if you liked the book on Augustus.
Scepticalscribe said:
I'm one of those - and I suspect that I may find myself quite possibly in a (rather small) minority - who far prefers Roman history to (ancient) Greek history.
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I agree with you. Granted, we’re talking about two giants of history that often influenced each other…
 
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pachyderm

pachyderm

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Artemis-Andy_Weir_%282017%29.jpg


So far not too shabby.
 
pachyderm

pachyderm

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41XIJPS9uyL.jpg


A fairly depressing and ultimately anticlimactic read. Manny, the manager of a Red Lobster in "Snowstorm of the Year Northeast"*, is in charge of permanently closing his store. He's allowed to take/hire 5 of his people to an Olive Garden 40 miles away. Enter a blizzard, an ex girlfriend, and current girlfriend drama. Very low key and forgettable IMHO.
The good news is that it's only about 120 pages long.

41c8rhrfntL._AC_SY780_.jpg


Just over 20 pages in and this one is much more promising. It's actually a horror story... which I didn't realize when I bought it even though I'd read the dust jacket. lol. It involves the Klan and ...?
 
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Scepticalscribe

Scepticalscribe

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Jul 29, 2008
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In a coffee shop.
yaxomoxay said:
This might be of interest to @Scepticalscribe and all the other book nerds on here. We’re going to get a new translation of Franz Kafka’s diary. It seems that the translator went the extra mile to preserve the quirks of such journal.

www.theparisreview.org

Kafka’s Diaries, 1911

“A calm positively scenic thinking sets in.”
www.theparisreview.org www.theparisreview.org
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Fascinating.

And thank you.

Leaving aside The Trial and The Castle, (both of which my mother - bless her - had on her shelves), she also had a book of Kafka's short stories, a collection named after the (unsettling) title story "The Metamorphosis", which was not the only unsettling and somewhat disturbing story in that collection.
 
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