Cleopatra

Rating:
Summary:
Grant has a thing for Cleo

Review:
The erudite, prolific Michael Grant's bio of Cleopatra is well worth reading. Keep in mind however that he is, if anything, a Cleo partisan. Sure, says Grant, Cleo's entire family were a bunch of incestuous, ruthless killers, but Cleo, she was a shining light of the ancient world. In other words, the factual content of the book and the writing style make this a worthwhile book to experience, but Grant's unfounded assertions that Cleo's character was impeccable and/or justified given her times are ridiculous and pointless. Perhaps his view is a consequence of growing up under a female figurehead monarch. Cleo was nothing but a Roman plaything, set on the throne by Rome, for Rome's convenience, and removed from that throne when she began to act against the interest of Rome. Period.

By contrast, the ancient rumors about Antony's adulteries and the like are for the most part given by Grant without disclaimer (the supposed surviving note from Antony to Octavian allegedly regarding Antony's marriage to his sister being an exception). Any such thing regarding Cleopatra is immediately dealt with by Grant's elaborate denials. Obviously the same supposed conspiracy of Cleo haters would have cooked up even more insidious lies about Antony, since Cleo was not a traitor (she was a Greek), nor was she militarily significant.

Spoiler: Antony and Cleopatra lose the war with Octavian.

Everyone must have some familiarity with the story of Cleopatra through the plays of Shakespeare and the various movies based on them. Many of the lesser known characters from Cleo's time are fleshed out in Grant's book. His account of the civil war between them is sufficiently detailed without being overlong. As I do with many works of history, I found many potential "what if" scenarios, including Antony's bungling attempt to conquer Parthia.

Ultimately, Antony lost Rome through his own long absence and lack of ability to think strategically, at least in comparison with Octavian's military subordinates such as Marcus Agrippa.

This is recommended in either format (audio 0788703528, ppbk 184212031X).

Also recommended: the BBC production "I, Claudius" is available on DVD. This 25 year old 13 part series was adapted from Robert Graves' book, well, romantic novel, and puts Octavian's wife Livia in the role of Cleo historically assigned in literature.

Recommended viewing:

-:- Spartacus (DVD, B00005A8TY)

-:- I, Claudius (DVD set, B00004U12X)

Recommended reading:

-:- Everyday Life In Ancient Rome by Lionel Casson (0801859921)

-:- Travel in the Ancient World by Lionel Casson (0801848083)

-:- The Ancient Mariners by Lionel Casson (0691014779)

-:- Sick Caesars by Michael Grant, particularly for the profiles of Marcus Aurelius and Commodus (0760709378, 00090312011)

-:- A Scandalous History of the Roman Emperors by Anthony Blond (0786707593)



Rating:
Summary: Michael Grant is the greatest!
Review: All of Grant's books are becoming classics,he is the premier true storyteller,factual and fascinating, all his books are collectible must reads!

Rating:
Summary: Probably the best biography on Cleo
Review: Cleopatra is a fascinating figure... renowned as a patron of arts and learning, a gifted linguist, and a canny politicians, she is too often remembered as a sex kitten. Grant cuts thru the myths, pro- and anti propaganda to deliver what is probably the best biography on Cleopatra. Writen by one of the marquee lights of classical history, the book is written in academic style, although for the most part it is highly readable. To be honest, I found the first preliminary chapters to be somewhat slow going, but once the story begins it takes off like a grand soap opera. Not as splashy as some other works on the great queen, this is *the* place to go for a detailed, comprehensive look at Cleopatra.

Rating:
Summary: Probably the best biography on Cleo
Review: Cleopatra is a fascinating figure... renowned as a patron of arts and learning, a gifted linguist, and a canny politicians, she is too often remembered as a sex kitten. Grant cuts thru the myths, pro- and anti propaganda to deliver what is probably the best biography on Cleopatra. Writen by one of the marquee lights of classical history, the book is written in academic style, although for the most part it is highly readable. To be honest, I found the first preliminary chapters to be somewhat slow going, but once the story begins it takes off like a grand soap opera. Not as splashy as some other works on the great queen, this is *the* place to go for a detailed, comprehensive look at Cleopatra.

Rating:
Summary: Ancient spin meisters
Review: I'm not a classicist as some of the other reviewers on this site appear to be, but as a layperson I can say that this book was pretty interesting. There are some boring parts, as others noted, but what biography does not have some boring parts? Here's what I found especially interesting:

Grant gives readers a good idea about how most of the chronicles he consulted were written from one perspective or another and thus tended to be sentimentally biased in one direction or another. Grant points out significantly that as "Westerners" we have clung most closely to the "Occidental" version of matters, rather than anything leaning toward the other side, the "Orient." He points out consistently how ancient writers who disliked Cleopatra changed facts around to disparage her, while the opposite was true of those who liked her.

The point being, it seems, that you have to take your history with a grain of salt (just as we do the news from the various modern media). Some reviewers seem to feel that Grant himself is slightly biased, in Cleopatra's favor, but as long as we're aware of it, we can perhaps discern the bias and read other viewpoints to get a well-rounded sense of what actually occurred.

The other interesting point was how many people, mostly men presumably, died during these ancient wars. And how little their deaths accounted for anything. In other words, life was a lot cheaper then than today. In Cleopatra's time, only the top dogs had the sense of individual rights that most of us have today. Is that progress?

Grant's book, of course, is thoroughly documented for those wishing to do further investigation.

Diximus.

Rating:
Summary: Ancient spin meisters
Review: I'm not a classicist as some of the other reviewers on this site appear to be, but as a layperson I can say that this book was pretty interesting. There are some boring parts, as others noted, but what biography does not have some boring parts? Here's what I found especially interesting:

Grant gives readers a good idea about how most of the chronicles he consulted were written from one perspective or another and thus tended to be sentimentally biased in one direction or another. Grant points out significantly that as "Westerners" we have clung most closely to the "Occidental" version of matters, rather than anything leaning toward the other side, the "Orient." He points out consistently how ancient writers who disliked Cleopatra changed facts around to disparage her, while the opposite was true of those who liked her.

The point being, it seems, that you have to take your history with a grain of salt (just as we do the news from the various modern media). Some reviewers seem to feel that Grant himself is slightly biased, in Cleopatra's favor, but as long as we're aware of it, we can perhaps discern the bias and read other viewpoints to get a well-rounded sense of what actually occurred.

The other interesting point was how many people, mostly men presumably, died during these ancient wars. And how little their deaths accounted for anything. In other words, life was a lot cheaper then than today. In Cleopatra's time, only the top dogs had the sense of individual rights that most of us have today. Is that progress?

Grant's book, of course, is thoroughly documented for those wishing to do further investigation.

Diximus.

Rating:
Summary: Pretty Dry
Review: It's the splashiest period of all ancient history... a near Jerry Springer opera of lust, betrayal, and tawdry affairs. And yet, Michael Grant makes it about as dull as he possibly can.

He presents a very factual and well-researched account, though I take exception to several of his assertions and theories, including the one where he asserts that Octavian wanted Cleopatra to commit suicide because he was afraid the Romans would want to free her as they did her sister Arsinoe. Arsinoe was just one random Egyptian princess who defied Julius Caesar. Cleopatra was the occidental temptress who had ensnared and ruined two of Rome's best men. She was probably the most vilified and hated of all Rome's enemies in history, for with Cleopatra, it was intensely personal. The very idea that the bloodthirsty Romans would have a sudden sentimental streak towards her is pretty laughable.

But on the whole, his theories are soundly researched and well justified, even when I disagree with them. The book has some lovely portraits and a more in depth examination of Cleopatra's forebearers than is usually presented in her biographies. Moreover, he has an excellent perspective on the supposed 'inevitability' of Cleopatra's loss, and how the world may well have been different had things gone another way.

It's a reasonable and scholarly work that makes a fine addition to my collection. If you're looking for something to move you, you may prefer Margaret George's "The Memoirs of Cleopatra".

Rating:
Summary: Pretty Dry
Review: It's the splashiest period of all ancient history... a near Jerry Springer opera of lust, betrayal, and tawdry affairs. And yet, Michael Grant makes it about as dull as he possibly can.

He presents a very factual and well-researched account, though I take exception to several of his assertions and theories, including the one where he asserts that Octavian wanted Cleopatra to commit suicide because he was afraid the Romans would want to free her as they did her sister Arsinoe. Arsinoe was just one random Egyptian princess who defied Julius Caesar. Cleopatra was the occidental temptress who had ensnared and ruined two of Rome's best men. She was probably the most vilified and hated of all Rome's enemies in history, for with Cleopatra, it was intensely personal. The very idea that the bloodthirsty Romans would have a sudden sentimental streak towards her is pretty laughable.

But on the whole, his theories are soundly researched and well justified, even when I disagree with them. The book has some lovely portraits and a more in depth examination of Cleopatra's forebearers than is usually presented in her biographies. Moreover, he has an excellent perspective on the supposed 'inevitability' of Cleopatra's loss, and how the world may well have been different had things gone another way.

It's a reasonable and scholarly work that makes a fine addition to my collection. If you're looking for something to move you, you may prefer Margaret George's "The Memoirs of Cleopatra".