Customer Reviews

Rome and Her Kings: Extracts from Livy I (Latin Edition)

5 star:		(0)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

This graded reader is a wonderful introduction to reading Latin. The passages are edited to allow students with an understanding of Latin grammatical concepts to apply that knowledge. Unlike many recently published textbooks, the notes and vocabulary in Rome and Her Kings are not underneath each passage, but instead are grouped in sections following the passages. While this may result in considerable page flipping for students who wish to use the notes alongside the text, the separation also discourages dependence on the notes, which is all too easy when they are right below the Latin. Thus students who are stuck on a sentence can refer to the notes or glossary in the back for help, but they are encouraged to try translating on their own, which is what `reading' really is.

Moreover, the content of the passages makes this text an even more appealing resource. When I was taking Latin, we memorized the names of the seven Kings of Rome, and so the order of succession was all I knew. This text starts with the destruction of Troy and journey of Aeneas to Italy and goes through the early historical figures and monarchs of Rome individually, providing interesting stories to give meaning to the names. Students can also find a sense of accomplishment in knowing that they are reading the works of Livy, one of the most celebrated historians of Rome. Rome and Her Kings makes reading Latin interesting through a skillful blend of Roman history and Latin grammar.