Customer Reviews

The Twelve Caesars (MP3 CD)

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Suetonius, the author, was a contemporary of many of the Roman emperors that he wrote about. It starts from Augustus and goes through the life of Domitian. This is the history that the book and BBC series, I, Claudius, is based on.

This history gives us almost the only glances we have of Caligula, and goes into sordid detail on the corrupt lives of most of these emperors. Most of these men did not die by natural means, and the author brings up known facts where he has them, but many times talks of then current rumors explaining the lives and deaths of these men. Suetonius would not be considered a good historian by today's standards, but more of a good tabloid reporter. Still, this is the best information we have of many of these men today.

One thing that fascinated me was the amount of superstition that was around during that time. We are told of the signs signaling the fall or rise of the Caesars. Almost any natural occurrence was considered a good or bad omen, and Suetonius is sure to tell about all of them.

This was a very fun book and I not only learned more about these 12 men, but also about how the people thought back then. The reader, Charlton Griffin, was excellent and had a very appropriate voice for this history. The translation is that of Robert Graves and I thought it was excellent. I highly recommend this audio book.