Robert B. Strassler

Xenophon's account of a half-century of complete and total internecine mayhem — the Persians playing Sparta, Thebes and Athens off against each other with very little effort — is summed up thematically in its concluding words, describing the battle of Mantineia:

"And although each side claimed the victory, neither side was seen to have gained anything — no city, territory or increased rule — that they did not have prior to the battle. In Greece as a whole there was more uncertainty show more and disturbance after the battle than there had been before."

This is the most annalistic of the six Landmark editions, with no real unifying narrative except the Greek addiction to self-sabotage, but I still find it wonderful to read and, thanks to the luxurious maps, annotations, introductions and appendices, actually understand these texts from across a gulf of time. show less

This is one of those books you read to learn something interesting, not so much for entertainment. And it is definately interesting. The commentary and annotations add quite a bit to the book. I especially liked the appendixes, they add quite a bit of context.

However, due to the nature of this book, there are quite a bit of names, places, dates, and terminology thrown at you, as a result, on first reading, it all gets jumbled together. But, on the whole, I have a lot more understanding of show more Ancient Greek Culture.

As for this edition - it really is well put together. I believe that its intended for the regular reader, rather than an academic. I also quite like the commentary (This is what I believe, but most people think this). Its all over the book, and brings out how the rivalry of academics. It also lightens the tone of what is a very serious book. show less

The Landmark presentation is as superb here as for their editions of Herodotus and Thucydides. The 4-star rating (instead of 5) is purely for the original work, which is not nearly as interesting as the earlier works. Still, it's one of the rare early histories available.

I have yet to read a single word by Xenophon. I'm sure the book is very good. It's four-or-five thousand years old and it's still in print, so I feel safe in saying that. But I will not attempt to review this work until I've read it through and had a chance to think about my notes.