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Title details for Augustus by Anthony Everitt - Wait list

Augustus

The Life of Rome's First Emperor

by Anthony Everitt
John Curless
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He found Rome made of clay and left it made of marble. As Rome's first emperor, Augustus transformed the unruly Republic into the greatest empire the world had ever seen. His consolidation and expansion of Roman power two thousand years ago laid the foundations, for all of Western history to follow. Yet, despite Augustus's accomplishments, very few biographers have concentrated on the man himself, instead choosing to chronicle the age in which he lived. Here, Anthony Everitt, the bestselling author of Cicero, gives a spellbinding and intimate account of his illustrious subject. Augustus began his career as an inexperienced teenager plucked from his studies to take center stage in the drama of Roman politics, assisted by two school friends, Agrippa and Maecenas. Augustus's rise to power began with the assassination of his great-uncle and adoptive father, Julius Caesar, and culminated in the titanic duel with Mark Antony and Cleopatra. The world that made Augustus-and that he himself later remade-was driven by intrigue, sex, ceremony, violence, scandal, and naked ambition. Everitt has taken some of the household names of history-Caesar, Brutus, Cassius, Antony, Cleopatra-whom few know the full truth about, and turned them into flesh-and-blood human beings. At a time when many consider America an empire, this stunning portrait of the greatest emperor who ever lived makes for enlightening and engrossing reading. Everitt brings to life the world of a giant, rendered faithfully and sympathetically in human scale. A study of power and political genius, Augustus is a vivid, compelling biography of one of the most important rulers in history.

  • Creators

  • Publisher

  • Release date

    September 1, 2014

  • Formats

    • OverDrive Listen audiobook

      • ISBN: 9781490628400
      • File size: 448898 KB
      • Duration: 15:35:12

  • Languages

    • English

  • Reviews

    • AudioFile Magazine
      The Roman Empire, with all its violence, greed, debauchery, and heroics, is depicted in this story of Augustus, adopted son of Julius Caesar, and heir to the throne. Augustus's rise to power is brought to life by John Curless's even narration. At first, the subject matter and Curless's British accent contribute to a slightly pedantic tone. As the story unfolds, however, Curless hits his stride, and the pace picks up, engaging the listener as Curless gives the characters personality and presence. He does an excellent job pronouncing the Latin names and infuses the story with continuity even though it is not strictly linear in structure. This production offers an enlightening listening experience. M.H.N. (c) AudioFile 2007, Portland, Maine
    • Publisher's Weekly

      July 31, 2006
      British author Everitt begins his biography of Augustus (63 B.C.– A.D. 14) with a novelistic reconstruction of the Roman emperor's last days, offering a new spin on his murder at the hands of his wife, Livia. Everitt presents the death as an assisted suicide intended to speed and secure the transition of imperial power to his stepson Tiberius. Later, Everitt presents a careful historical argument for this theory—and, save for a few other shadowy incidents such as the banishment of the poet Ovid, he keeps guesswork to a minimum, building his narrative carefully on solid evidence. Everitt (Cicero
      ) makes Augustus's rapid rise through Roman society comprehensible to contemporary readers, deftly shifting through the major phases of his life, from childhood through his adoption by his great-uncle Julius Caesar to the power struggle with Mark Antony that ended with Augustus's recognition as both imperator
      and princeps,
      or "first citizen." Everitt also neatly presents his subject's complex personality, revealing how Augustus secured a political infrastructure that would last for centuries while reportedly keeping up a highly active sex life, all the while fighting off longstanding rumors of cowardice in battle. This familiar story is fresh again in this lively retelling.

Formats

  • OverDrive Listen audiobook

subjects

Languages

  • English

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