Description
By (author) King, Ross
:
From New York Times–bestselling author Ross King, the storied rise and reign of the greatest empire and most influential civilization of the ancient Western world
“For who is so indifferent or indolent as not to wish to know by what means the Romans succeeded in subjecting nearly the whole inhabited world to their sole government—a thing unique in history?”—Polybius, second century BCE
Table of contents:
The City on the Hills: The Origins of Rome“The Favor of Heaven”: The Rise of the Roman Republic“Men of Violence”: Decline of the Roman RepublicPax Romana: The Age of AugustusThe “Bad Emperors”: Tiberius, Caligula, Claudius“Let the Earth Be Consumed by Fire”: The Age of Nero“Savage Victors”: The Height of Empire“Revere the Gods, Save Mankind”: The Age of the AntoninesThe Empire in Crisis“There Will Never Be an End to the Power of Rome”
Review quote:
“King achieves an uncommonly dense work of compression, telescoping events and fashioning brief character studies in surveying the arc of ancient Rome . . . from the mythic folktale of Romulus and Remus to the fall of empire. Literary tradition tells one story, archaeology another. We get the emperors and chroniclers, generals and legions, builders and artists, stabilizers and insurrectionists, the mad and the bad responsible for rise and ruin—all written with a historian’s attention to detail and the fluid storytelling of a novelist. His is also a fascinating etymological tour of modern words derived from Latin. . . . Brisk but immersive.”
Review quote:
“As Oxonian academic Ross King demonstrates in The Shortest History of Ancient Rome, there is always something up-to-the-minute in a tale of ancient power plays. . . . Expertly blending instruction with amusement, [this volume] presents serious lessons for our times and reminds us why the past should not be forgotten if a better future is what we desire. But it’s also good for the odd chortle, which provides a necessary leavening amid the inevitable copious bloodletting.”
Review quote:
“Praise for The Shortest History of Italy”Known for his impeccable research and engaging style, King is the perfect Virgil to guide us from The Aeneid to COVID-19 in this densely packed volume of tantalizing details. . . . King has a keen eye for the provocative anecdote, ranging from the debauchery of the emperors to papal history and the origins of the Mafia. . . . Each page brims with Bill Bryson–like trivia that is sure to delight.”
Review quote:
“Terrific . . . a lucid, riveting history of a country that is both exquisitely old and painfully young at the same time.”
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“A remarkably readable whirlwind tour of Italian history over the millennia, replete with conquerors, emperors, slaves, popes, assorted invaders, and filled with juicy historical nuggets. There’s nothing quite like it.”
Review quote:
“A rollicking introduction to the history of a country that, until barely 150 years ago, was not one. Vibrant, admirably clear, and often wryly amusing, Ross King’s narrative benefits again and again from his eye for the telling detail—a splendid achievement.”
Review quote:
“Jump into the Alfa Romeo and hold tight as Ross King speeds through Italian history with this effervescent and entertaining guide to the peninsula’s past.”
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“History exerts a force [in Italy] that is multifaceted and ambiguous, especially to the outsider—but The Shortest History of Italy helps to render the country coherent.”
Review quote:
“Few have as much insight into the history of Italy as the author of Brunelleschi’s Dome, and here Ross King offers a masterful and perceptive account of Italian virtues—and sins—from the Romans to Berlusconi, as well as the country’s inimitable art and
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