# Readable Roman Histories



## Culhwch (Aug 5, 2005)

I'm interested in reading up on Roman history (and classical history in general) but most the texts I find are dry, unispiring and a chore to read. Can anyone recommend some good, 'readable' histories? I don't necessarily want to wade through every minor detail, but I'd like a general overview written in somewhat of a narrative form, or at the least in engaging prose. Any help would be greatly appreciated!


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## Rosemary (Aug 5, 2005)

Culhwch have you tried any of the books recounting the invasion of Britain by the Romans?  

This of course as most people know was before the Angles and the Saxons invaded and before the Vikings.  

I have done a fair bit of research into this subject, and although I cannot tell you the titles of the books I borrowed from the library, I did find some very interesting facts!  Funnily enough I have never really been that interested in Roman history but when it came to them invading Britain, that certainly caught my attention.  I had to do that research to help with my Anglo-Saxon research.


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## Brian G Turner (Aug 5, 2005)

Culhwch said:
			
		

> I'm interested in reading up on Roman history (and classical history in general) but most the texts I find are dry, unispiring and a chore to read. Can anyone recommend some good, 'readable' histories? I don't necessarily want to wade through every minor detail, but I'd like a general overview written in somewhat of a narrative form, or at the least in engaging prose. Any help would be greatly appreciated!



There's a couple of books I'd really recommend:

*General History*

 A book I would definitely recommend - and almost certainly the easiest to read of all of them - is this great work that covers most of the Roman Empire in an extremely short form, providing just a few well illustrated pages for each emperor.

It's very simply written, well illustrated, and engaging, and covers all of the Roman Imperial Period itself - which means it's a great guide for deciding which period you would like to read more of.

For example, I personally find the first few decades the most intriguing, so I'm drawn to enjoy Suetonius and Tacitus, but if you find any specific emperor or period more interesing, this book not simply covers the very basics, but also provides reference to its original sources. So it's easier to chase up more details on specific periods.

Chronicle of the Roman Emperors: The Reign-by-reign Record of the Rulers of Imperial Rome



*Illustrated History*

One of the best books I have is a big illustrated edition of Gibbon's condensed Rise and Fall of the Roman Empire. The text is *very* dry and sometimes compiled/edited in a rather haphazard way - - - but the rich and glorious use of photographs on every page make everything come to life in a really incredible way. There are also sections covering daily life in unique detail - Roman hairstyles over the centuries, for example.

An amazing book worth buying just for the pictures - and one where you can ignore the text or skim as required, and simply read the short sections and illustrations.

Illustrated: Gibbon's Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire



*Contemporary Roman History*

In terms of actual text histories - I definitely recommend you read Suetonius "The Twelve Caesars" (or however entitled), which is essentially a relatively contemporary account of the first decades of empire by a Roman living in the later decades of the first century. The Penguin Classic version should be a good translation as its by Robert Graves (who wrote "I, Claudius - a very decent work of historical fiction on the Roman Empire) and is pretty easy to read.

Where Suetonius is especially alive and entertaining is that the guy made no effort to sanitise or edit his work to provide his own slant on Roman history (unlike Livy, who spends most of his volumes bemoaning the loss of Republic Senate diginity to the plebian masses). This means that Suetonious includes what is effectively the Roman equivalent of tabloid stories of the day regarding the Caears.

This can make Suetonius very accessible because sometimes the events he relates are so incredible as to sound fictional - but no matter how informal it can sometimes seem, it does remain a historical account, so it may read a little dry in relation to others.

Suetonius - translated by Robert Graves



Anyway, hope that helps.


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## Culhwch (Aug 6, 2005)

Helps plenty, thanks Brian. Sounds like a great jumping off point. Now I just have to chase them up...


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## Esioul (Dec 9, 2005)

I second the Suetonius, it is very readable and covers quite  a bit. 

Syme's 'The Roman Revolution' is very good too, if a bit dated, if you are interested in the period between the end of the Republic and the start of the empire.


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