pickThis was very interesting- I never knew that Cicero‘s life was that remarkable and went through significant ups and downs. He survived more than Roman dictator and tried to save the Republic. This is definitely a very detailed book. To listen to the audiobook while driving proved difficult sometimes because it was easy to miss information, so I had to listen to some chapters more than once. But it was worth it.
pickOne of the astronomers helping Julius Caesar with his reform of the Roman calendar is found murdered. Caesar takes this personally and orders Decius Caecilius Metellus to investigate.
Liberal use of famous names as red herrings made this, the last book in the series, even more fun. I accidentally skipped the penultimate volume so I still have that to look forward to as well as some short stories.
so-soThis was my book club‘s May pick (though we did discuss it 6/1!). Over the years, not too many #nonfiction books have won the vote, but this delve into Mithradates‘ life was certainly an interesting one! After seeing the physical copy, I wish I had read it instead— while an interesting listen, the audio version doesn‘t include the images or the extensive endnotes. Also, the author‘s obvious admiration for her subject was a bit eye-roll inducing!
pickWhen a priest's daughter is murdered in the luxury resort of Baiae, local opinion fixes on the son of a Numidian slave trader as the culprit. Decius Caecilius Metellus thinks the young man is innocent but he only has a couple of days before the trial, which is certain to find him guilty.
As usual great twisty fun much enhanced by Metellus's comments on the action as asides in the narration.
It was a good year for me, even if it was a bad one for Rome.
#FirstLineFridays
@ShyBookOwl
pickI want to save a lot of you a lot of trouble reading this book:
Attila and the Empire have numerous talks, a few battles, a few demands for wives and tribute, a lot of fighting with their neighbors (the Goths and the Vandals)—that had it all not happened, Rome wouldn‘t have “fell” when it did. Well, ok. If a butterfly flaps its wings…
Probably well written and researched but boring. Unless you are really into a lot of ancient bureaucratic ⬇️
pickWhat an excellent memoir of a year in the life of an amazing author! Doerr won the Rome Prize, an expense paid year in Rome to write and for his family to live there with him. He‘s clearly working on All the Light We Cannot See while there, but this memoir is also a result. He writes about his four seasons in Rome. I only spent a week there, but I was able to picture most everything he described and it was absolutely wonderful “re-living” it. ⬇️
My next audiobook
#foodandlit #Italy #Jubilee @Catsandbooks
