Friday, June 3, 2016

SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome

Author: Mary Beard
Stars: 1
Review by: Mandy Apgar

What the @#$% did I just read? At almost 600 pages of staggering dullness interrupted by periods of the author's glaring vanity this was beyond a waste. She mentions rape. A lot. Like more than Claudius, or Nero pretty much. There are only so many times an author can mention the Sabines yet again before I get really freaking bored. It was, I presume, supposed to be an explanation of why the Roman empire and classical thought sustained itself for so long and has interjected itself into modern life. But she would just have her little bugaboos that she wouldn't let up on for pages. The organization doesn't help - the book is sort of randomly set aside into chapters that chronologically go back and forth constantly. The prologue is an early history, first chapter an account of Cicero, the second another early history, etc... one doesn't even get much to the various emperors until well past the halfway mark.

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