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Summary: An Epic Story of Loyalty, Honor and Sacrafice
Review: My husband read this book and raved about it. I thought it would be a "mans" book but ventured to read it anyway. From the very begining I could not put it down. Pressfield writes with amazing detail and clarity. I was drawn to the characters and felt as if I knew them. The desription of Xeones life and how he came to be at the battle of the Hot Gates was amazing. I felt like I was not only reading a compelling novel of loyalty, honor and sacrafice--but I was getting a lesson in Spartan history as well. Pressfield's portrayal of the rigors of Spartan life and self-discipline was fascinating. I absolutely loved this novel.
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Summary: Best book I read in 1999
Review: Riveting. Engrossing. Detailed. Sympathetic. Immediate. Not being one of the great authors of history, words elude me to accurately describe the impact this had. Gates of Fire brings you immediacy: right there, in the dust and dirt of the lyceum, in the sweating struggling surge of the line of battle, in the struggle of a young man to chart his course in life despite the fates and forces of man and nature. If Pressfield doesn't know how to use a sword or kill a man with one, it certainly isn't noticable in his writing. Told from the unique point of view of a survivor of the Battle of Thermopylae, this is the epic of a Spartan slave. Bereft of his home at a young age, Xeones knows that a man without a city is not a man. He looks at Hellenistic Greece as a cornucopia from which to choose. Sparta draws him like a siren's song. He wants to be a warrior, so he heads off to the home of the greatest in Hellas. But life never goes the way you want. Gates of Fire follow his training and beginning as a warrior. Though not a free man, he trains side by side with them, and is eventually confronted with the fact that even a warrior's life is never as simple as it seems in the training grounds. The book ends with the Battle of Thermopylae. Do you know how the battle ended? Read the book anyway. For, like war, it is not always who won or lost, but how it all came to be which is how one learns. I actually cried at the end, even though I knew how the story had to end. (I also heard the audio-book. It is condensed, but very worthwhile.) Be prepared to exert yourself when you read this. It will draw you in, and is not a quick read. Definately the best book I read in 1999.
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Summary: Very accurate account on the defense of Thermopylae
Review: Pressfield gives vivid descriptions of characters, and the brutality of Spartan warriors. This book was written as a personal account told by a Spartan slave to the Persians just after the battle. Although this was never told to the Persians(there were no Spartan survivors) it was still historicaly accurate, and a great book. If you want to learn more about Thermopylae, and don't want to get bored while you learn, this book is for you.
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Summary: Men, men, men , men....
Review: Best thing about this book is how all the characters are always staring at each other's physiques. You know how those Greeks were, nudge nudge, wink wink. I guess the parts where they're all stabbing each other are good, too.
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Summary: One of the most gut-wrenching novels I've ever read...
Review: Pressfield set out to create an awe-inspiring Greek epic revolving around the Battle of Thermopaylae, and he did just that. Xeones' story is one of fierce determination, iron-will, love, and war. A novel that should be read by all students of history, past and present. The novel is focused on a Spartan squire named Xeones, who is the only survivor of a kamikaze like mission to stave off the oncoming Persian hordes in order for the Greek mainland forces to assemble their men together and fight back, thus preserving democracy. The story begins during Xeones' childhood as a young boy living with his parents when they are attacked by their "allies," the Argives. In the ensuing attack Xeones' parents are killed forcing him, his cousin (Diomache) and his father's servant (Bruxius) to flee into the hills. What ensues is Xeones' childhood, his calling to be a Spartan archer, his eventual entrance into the Spartan academy at Lakedaemon, and the final battle at Thermopaylae. The novel is strikingly captivating and never ceases to entertain. It is, of course, all historical-fiction, but it combines war and love together so well, that by the end of the novel I had an almost completely different perspective on life. It manages to do what so little novels do today, entertain and educate, both historically and emotionally. The novel is a must-read, and I highly recommended it. The book can be summed up with this short Greek poem: "Tell the Spartans, stranger passing by, that here obedient to their laws we lie."
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Summary: Reservations about the historical accuracy of the book.
Review: I thought it was a pretty good story, and it was interesting to see things from a pro-Spartan perspective. But I have serious doubts that the book is historically reliable. For example: The author takes it for granted that Xerxes really had an army of two million; I gather modern historians believe it was much smaller than that. One of the characters makes a casual reference to a tomato. Tomatoes are from the New World, so were not known in classical antiquity or for a thousand years or so thereafter. This isn't important, but it is evidence that the author isn't careful about historical details. One of the characters makes a reference to future archaeologists digging up Sparta (not quite in those words). I would have thought that the idea of excavating a ruin to learn about the people who lived there was a modern rather than a classical one. The warriors seem to be mainly using 8 foot spears. The Greek phalanx as I thought I understood it, and the Macedonian phalanx a couple of generations after this, used much longer spears. It is possible that the Spartans were using 8 foot spears at Thermopylae, but that wouldn't have been my guess. The combat involves a good deal of a shoving match, with many lines of people each pushing the one ahead. I associate that approach with the "push of pike" in renaissance warfare. Is there evidence that phalanx combat worked that way too? I also find it a little hard to take seriously Spartans talking about the superiority of a kingdom of free men to one of slaves, given that they were slaveholders on a massive scale--but I wouldn't be surprised if that part were right. Not a bad book, but to me it doesn't carry the conviction of work by first rate historical novelists such as Renault or O'Brian.
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Summary: Great Book
Review: I was assigned to read this book for an Ancient Civilization class I am taking. I didnt honestly expect much, as most of the books that are required reading at my school are terrible. I was very supprised however. This book is an excellent story about the bravery of the ancient spartans. After reading this, I have also read Tides of War, also by Steven Pressfield, and I would recommend that also.
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Summary: Quench your thirst for the salty sting of the battlefield
Review: What an outstanding read! Do not be put off by the subject matter. The writing is clean, organized and every page is filled with the smell of adventure. This is a great primer for anyone interested in the Spartans or war or mans quest for unequivacol accomplishment. Stand silent in the pass at Thermopylae next to 300 of the bravest men to ever live and stare down 1 million Persians who marched unknowingly into hells den and ultimatley, to their deaths. Steven Pressfield brought high adventure to a collosal effort in professional academia. A fine mixture of what was and what might have been.
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Summary: Stunned
Review: I have just this second finished this wonderful book and now need to share some of my thoughts and feelings that it has evoked.I came to the book by accident - browsing a friends bookshelf- and I remember seeing the a review on the back cover saying "....... for six days the Spartans held the invaders at bay ..... shields broke, swords and spears shattered, they fought with their bare hands and teeth before being overcome...." I started to read the book thinking that action, blood and gore was to be the order of the day - it turned out to be a small part in the scheme of the story. I was there, seeing feeling and trying to comprehend what the real meaning of friendship, valour, heroism, stuborness and the whole gambit of human characteristics that makes us what we are or aren't. Although we now, on the whole, live in a completely different world, the values so evocotively portrayed are something we can all learn from and be inspired by. I'm going for a lie down!!!
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Summary: If you liked Gladiator, read about the real thing
Review: Few books are as gripping as those which depict the true story of pre-meditated self-sacrifice. In these jaded times, the virtues which characterize the Spartans are seen as too simplistic or naive. Who can imagine George W Bush or Al Gore abdicating their position to lead troops on a suicide mission? Maybe Jack Ryan would, but we would still be in the realm of fiction. After almost 2,500 years, King Leonidas and his men continue to provide lessons in courage, honor, and duty. These words are rarely used today but Pressfield conveys their meaning well through Gates of Fire. This book is more inspiring than a library of self-help books. Five stars are not enough!
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