Customer Reviews

A History of Rome to A.D.565

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This is a textbook, no doubt about it. But it's still very readable and informative. The author attempts to limit himself to description of those events for which contemporary or near-contemporary accounts are available. For example, he omits all description of Rome under the kings, since the earliest manuscripts about them are from hundreds of years later. He even goes so far as to state that Romulus may not have been a historical person! There is a ruthless zeal to de-sensationalize Roman history by omitting scandalous details, making the book less exciting than it could be. But this is a textbook, not entertainment. There are excellent sections on economics, agriculture, literature, and the arts as they developed through Roman history. Significant treatment is also given to the Roman military system and its evolution as a core element of Rome's culture. If you want to learn about Rome and don't want to hear about the "juicy details", get this book. Otherwise, to AD 100, get Livy.

This book presents the facts, yet fundamentally lacks any flavor for the absolutely remarkable story of Rome's Republic and Empire. The reader gets an outline with very little analysis or depth, a truly boring read. Unfortunately, it was this book that I first studied as a classics civ major, indeed it was the first history book I tried to seriously study. It is so dull - I just picked it up to peruse as I am reading a wonderfully meaty book by Peter Heather - that I threw it away.

Not recommended. THis is the kind of book that turns young people off to history.