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Liked It1 of 1 members found this review helpful “A review a wrote for Amazon: |
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“Fine tale of Julius Caesar, enjoyable history”
Jerry W wrote this review Monday, November 2 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Great Book...scholarly and very readable. Goldworthy's writes in a great narrative style never assuming anything's foretold. History as it should be written.”
Bill B wrote this review Monday, October 5 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No“Erm... so... it's about Caesar. LOL.”
Ria A wrote this review Wednesday, September 9 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“A great biography of Caesar. The maps are an added plus. The book is written so that one does not need to be an expert in Roman history to enjoy this book. Serves has a good foundation continued exploration of this subject. ”
Leroy M wrote this review Thursday, June 11 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
“Wonderful popular scholarship with legitimacy. Shows the mechanics necessary to take over the world. Follow the money. Insightful.”
PBP wrote this review Tuesday, April 21 2009. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No1 of 1 members found this review helpful“A review a wrote for Amazon:
deyganwolf wrote this review Sunday, March 25 2007. ( reply | permalink ) Was this review helpful? Yes | No
Objective, reader-friendly, thorough but not overly technical - a must-read for Roman scholars/fans...
Fans of Goldsworthy's previous works won't be disappointed with this bio, which will undoubtedly be named as one of the best overall works about Julius Caesar for many years to come.
Goldsworthy doesn't focus primarily on any one aspect of Caesar's life, yet manages to go over all of them in a way that is still detailed and illuminating, even for one who's read dozens of books on the subject.
He gives comprehensive accounts of Caesar's military campaigns, at the same time giving backgrounds on the regions/peoples involved, yet without getting lost in the history/tactics/equipment of the legions themselves.
*(the definitive work on Caesar's military campaigns will always be Theodore Ayrault Dodge's "Caesar", with Stephen Dando-Collins' ongoing history series on individual legions also proving to be very interesting).
Goldsworthy gives one of the most detailed descriptions of Caesar's early life and rise into politics that I've ever read, and in the process is able to go over the numerous political process(es) of the era in a way easily understandable for those unfamiliar with them.
He talks about Caesar's pros/cons in an objective manner, always bringing up alternative points of view, and asking questions that may not have occurred to those whose thinking may be slanted in one direction or the other.
While very long at first glance, Goldsworthy's writing is very insightful and reader-friendly, making the subject all the more fascinating.
Just as he did in his hard-to-find 2000 work "The Punic Wars", he's able to take a topic most people would have no interest in, and turn it into a study that you want to read more than once.
”
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