Mary Beard (1) (1955–)

The author makes her intentions very clear; this is not a linear, chronological narrative, but an examination of the institution of one-man rule in Rome as it was experienced by the men who occupied the post during the first and second centuries. It concentrates on how the office functioned, the men's quotidian lives, and how they were chosen (and, often, deposed). Beard writes in an informal, breezy, sometimes salty style which is quite winning, and the information here is pretty unique, to my knowledge. The closest thing to a criticism I would have is that, in her close examinations of the mundane, sometimes the topics get a little, well, mundane; I particularly could have dome without the longish chapter on palace architecture, not exactly on topic and which made a pretty long book even longer. Still, I enjoyed this throughout and gained a great deal from her approach.… (more)