Roger Hudson (1)

Athens,461 BC. A young man comes to Athens only to find that his uncle has died under mysterious circumstances. Pretty soon it is clear that murder is the keyword and the hunt for the culprit(s) starts in earnest. Athens is in turmoil, two factions,the radicals,with Pericles as a leading figure(who believe in a distribution of power among the entire population, except slaves(!)...)and the aristocrats,heads of military families and so on..(who believe that only a very few, and very well show more connected, are entitled to lead,to take decisions. ..)are at daggers drawn. History,of course,tells us which faction did eventuality win and consequently led to Athens Golden Age and to something called democracy.
The historical aspect of the story is very well researched. But,because it is such a dominant part of the story,the mystery story tends to be put aside. After a while one is no longer sure there is a mystery at all and it becomes a tad long winded. A firmer editing might have been a good idea.
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Coleridge often complained that it is difficult for words to do justice to an observed landscape the way a painting can. Indeed, some of his descriptions are hard to understand and follow. But the overall effect is always good and there are many excellent moments and turns of phrase. A nice read.

From Donne on Angels to Pepys on Nell Gwyn, there is something on every page of this day-by-day miscellany which will amuse or inform you. Some of the extracts are famous, like Captain Scott, himself dying, on the death of Oates during their Antarctic expedition; others will be new to all but the most erudite. A fine selection of illustrations complements the text. The only defect I can find is that although from its contents and beautifully readable print it would seem to be the ideal show more bedside book, it is just a bit too big and heavy. show less

Anthology of reporting by William Russell, special correspondent for The Times, including The Crimean War, the Indian Mutiny, the American Civil War and the Franco Prussian War, etc. His eye witness reports of battles, at The Alma and Balaklava must have electrified readers at the time and are still impressive today, in their scope and descriptive power. Russell wielded great power in forming public opinion and did much to highlight the deficiencies of equipment and medical support , in the show more early stages of the Crimean campaign. He also had tremendous access to the powerful and his dealings with Count Otto von Bismarck, during the Franco Prussian War, are particularly fascinating. show less