Caesar: Life of a Colossus
by Adrian Goldsworthy
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Book Reviews of Caesar: Life of a Colossus
Book Review: Excellent read on Caesar
Summary: 5 Stars
I disagree with some of the reviews that say Caesar doesn't come to life in this book, I believe he does. You get into his mind, a man who simply dominated life like no other Roman. Admittedly the coverage was skimp on Caesar's time as a dictator, but Goldsworthy does his best in the room to describe the most important and interesting periods of Caesar's life. My favorite part about Goldsworthy is that he tells you what is known from our sources and what is pure speculation. He doesn't speculate himself as best he can which I like, and he doesn't try to make Caesar into Hitler as some modern revisionist historians have tried to do. He simply lays out the facts of what happened and lets the reader decide for himself about Caesar.Book Review: Little new to talk about Caesar
Summary: 4 Stars
It certainly is a good biography. The problem any reader like myself has is that we have read it most of it before. Unfortunately there is little new to report about Caesar's life so you end out reading much of what you have already read. You know this French leader, will start his rebellion, you know what will happen to him and most of the other characters in the narrative.
To overcome this problem what the writer did here was repeatably introducing little known facts of Rome and the period to keep the interest of the readers that know Caesar's history interest up. In this he did a good job.
So I ended out enjoying the book.
Book Review: Good, Factual
Summary: 4 Stars
I learned a lot from this book and recommend it for anyone seeking an introduction to Caesar. The writing itself was workmanlike but good enough to let the subject carry the reader through the material. The author's strength is military history, which occupies about half of the narrative. The political half is still interesting but clearly out of his expertise, though he is good enough. The author is not one to weave a conjectural projection by filling in the gaps of the historical record with his own thoughts, so the effect is dry but historiographical at points (though this is not a formal academic work by any means).Book Review: Life of a Colossus
Summary: 5 Stars
A well presented biography of, who may arguably be, the most well-known and studied man in history. It does well in its attempt to cover the main events prior to, during, and following Caesar's life. It carefully unravels his thinking and uncovers why he most likely may the decisions he did.
It does get a tad dull in some parts and the author does delve deep enough into the historical aspects for me (this truly is just a biography of Caesar, not a history of the Later Republic as is usually the case). Absolutely brilliant though.
Book Review: wonderful book!
Summary: 5 Stars
As a non-professional reviewer, I'll just give a few comments. This book gives a wonderful picture of a fascinating man. As is often the case with a good historical biography, the book also provides a revealing insight into the subject's society, the late Roman Republic, and the amazing, alien, and yet very human characters that played a part in forming it. The book is, furthermore, a joy to read - well written, detailed without being overwhelming, and full of interesting stories. Highly recommended.