Customer Reviews:
The recipient loved it.......2004-10-22
I bought this as a gift for a friend who helped a great deal with my wedding, advising me of dress styles, hair styles, fashion from this era, dances, music, food, and everything in between, as well as arranging all the flowers for the wedding! She was a godsend! When I gave her the book, her jaw dropped and she was so excited to get it... she said she had been wanting it forever. As I consider her quite knowledgeable about the subject matter of this book, and as it came highly recommended by her, I would say that it's a great book to have if this is something you are interested in as a serious hobby or more.
The best place to start for Elizabethan Costuming.......2003-04-10
This is one of the best books ever written on the subject of Elizabethan Costuming. It mainly contains all of the details of Queen Elizabeth I wardrobe but it has unique points in the society that surrounded the dresses. This book helps to explain the Gloriana image that became so popular and it helps us to understand all the little details that went into the dress of the period. Detailing costumes using portraits and explaining how the fashion progressed makes this book a must for anyone interested in Renaissance Faires and the nobility. The only drawback is that very very few of the portraits and pictures are in color. I think a total of about 7 are in color the rest is in black and white. The only way to make this book more appealing and usable would be to put all of the portraits and pictures in color, but that would make the book even more expensive. After this must have book the 2nd on the shelf should be a J. Hunniset book (the lady who did all the costuming for Elizabeth R and The Six Wives of Henry the VIII produced by BBC). Next, any Janet Arnold book. Last, would be the Norris book: Tudor Costuming and Fashion (although most of this book is very outdated it is nice to look at). All of these are must haves and will make a well rounded library. Dispite the high price of the book it is worth posessing. Enjoy.
Such An Amazing Resource!.......2002-02-12
For the historical costumer focused on 16th century clothing, this is the "bible" hands down. Big, expensive, and filled with the usual detail that is the hallmark of Janet Arnold, this is one very worthwhile investment for the serious costumer. This book has one tiny drawback, in that it focuses entirely on women's fashion in the 16th century as viewed through the wardrobe accounts of Queen Elizabeth I and some of her contemporaries. Therefore, it has nothing to say on the topic of men's clothing, which is an unfortunately neglected aspect of 16th century research.
Much of Janet Arnold's most important contributions to the costuming community are addressed in this book, making it extremely valuable. She presents each section with satisfying detail, raising very few questions that remain unanswered. The photographs accompanying the text are also invaluable, as many of them are not available in other books or to the general public for viewing. If only there were more color images...
If you can afford the book, you won't regret buying it.
Really great book but....there are a few issues.......2001-08-06
For years I heard how this was _the_ book to buy if you were into Elizabethan costuming and wanted authentic items that could be documented. The book is good for that, and I enjoyed the style that Ms.Arnold wrote it in.
But I have two major gripes with the book-both regarding the quality of graphics and images in it.
First off-in the whole book there are only about 5 pages in color. The rest of it-including hundreds of portraits, examples of extant clothing pieces and pieces of embroidery were all in black and white. I complain about that because, with so many of the portraits quoted as examples it would help if they could be seen clearly. (Many of them are too dark to have reproduced well, and a few are quite horrible.) And the photographs....
If they could reprint this book and possibly include more color plates it would be a much much more valuable resource. As it stands now, it is a good source, but not all that I could have hoped for. Instead I have begun a search for color reproductions of the portraits cited in the book. A long tedious job but one that I think over all will make it a much more solid resource for my needs.
The Best source for the Wardrobe of Elizabeth 1st.......2000-05-13
This book is amazing. Huge, and packed full of information. An essential refernce work if you are seriously considering doing anything with elizabethan fashion. The author has poured years of scholarship into this work and it shows. It's not really a coffee table picture book. Instead it is full of carefully culled facts for the serious student or anybody curious about 'real' English Tudor costume.
Book Description
She is called "The Perfect One," the most famous and beautiful woman in the ancient world. She rules with her husband Akhenaten over the most powerful, sophisticated and affluent society the world has ever seen and across an empire that stretches from Africa through the Middle East.
But behind these glorious scenes an epic power struggle is taking place: Nefertiti and Akhenaten inaugurate an enlightened new religion and build a magnificent and mysterious new capital, Akhetaten, in which to worship the Sun God, the Aten. The delicate balance of power in Egypt is thrown into confusion. The priesthood is stripped of its traditional authority and wealth, the army is enraged by the growing turbulence in the empire, and the people resent the loss of their gods. Old alliances are brought into doubt, and generations of inherited power and wealth are suddenly at stake.
And then, just days before the crucial festival to celebrate the new capital, Nefertiti suddenly vanishes. Rai Rahotep, the youngest chief detective in the Thebes division, with a rising reputation for his original methods, is secretly assigned by Akhenaten himself to investigate. He has ten days to find the Queen and return her in time for the celebrations. Success will bring glory—but if Rai fails, he and his family will die. . . .
Customer Reviews:
Disappointing, discouraging, and disturbing.......2007-09-23
I was so annoyed by this book that I am moved to write this. Here's what you can look forward to: a detective who detects nothing -- the only crime he supposedly solves has nothing to do with the outcome of the book. Sherlock Holmes was a triumph because he showed the power of thought; this book reveals the impotence of thought, loyalty, and persistence. But what is frustrating is that Drake has skill; what he needs is a better editor. Nothing the protagonist does matters in the end. His triumph is a non sequitur.
ANCIENT EGYPTIAN INTRIUGE.......2007-09-12
NEFERTIT is a truly fascinating novel about this enigmatic Queen of Egypt. Written in a contemporary style, but possessing all of the stilted syntax of formality, the reader is swept away and along the Great Nile and into the distant past. The "Prefect One" is missing, and it falls to chief detective Rahotep of the Thebes division of the police. Rahotep uses unusual methods of detecting, and he has come to the attention of the Pharaoh Akhenaten, who is seeking the whereabouts of his missing Queen.
Religion, power, duplicity, insanity, revenge, fear, and terror all blend together to weave a story that is powerful but yet telling. Nick Drake, the gifted author, makes the reader keenly aware of the toxicity of power, and the impact that callousness from those in power has upon society as a whole. He speaks of the time of Nefertiti, and to our own time as well. Basic values are also explored, and the fragility of the human condition, both of the great and small, are explored.
The resolution of the mystery of the Queen's disappearance is as intriguing as her original disappearance. The rationale for her disappearance and re-appearance will leave the reader in wonder. We ultimately all have roles to play in the greater scheme of things, and this book will remind us of that simple truth. READ THIS BOOK.
Adventure set in ancient Egypt........2007-09-09
Nefartiti. The perfect and the most beautiful one.
I have always been interested in Egyptian history. Specially Queen Nefartiti's reign is something I really love to know and find out more about. That's the reason I started reading this book. And when I started reading this book, I couldn't keep it down.
An adventure/mystery weaved during the time of Queen Nefartiti and King Akhenaten in ancient Egypt. The book is written with the perspective of Rahotep, Medjay detective in Thabes.. Rahotep has to find Queen Nefartiti, who has vanished couple of days before the big festival day. Does he manage to find her in time for the big festival?
You will surely like reading this book if you are interested in adventure/mystery and ancient Egypt. Recommended.
So so, but with some funny moments.......2007-09-01
I didn't love the book, but I didn't hate it. It was reasonably good light reading.
I also have to respect an author who can stick a Steven Wright quote in the middle of a historical mystery set in ancient Egypt. (It's a small world, but I wouldn't want to paint it.)
There were a few other laugh out loud lines in there as well--often obvious ones, but still funny.
Hopefully the reader has read most of the other reviews and realizes this isn't a comic novel--still the funny lines were pleasant surprises though I wouldn't read the whole book for them.
How In The World Did This Get A Starred Review?.......2007-08-09
I have no idea what book some of these reviewers were reading. I am a huge Nefertiti addict. I've read all of the books, seen all of the specials on Discovery Channel and NG, and have even taken a trip to Berlin to see her bust. I'm hoping my next trip will be to Egypt. But this book was sadly lacking in any historical accuracy whatsoever. The characters were unbelievable, the plot thin and extremely difficult to follow in places, and the end leaves you really wishing you had stopped reading much earlier on in the book. Perhaps Drake's work down the line will be better, but this book is not recommended.
Book Description
Bestselling novelist Margaret George brings to life the glittering kingdom of Cleopatra, Queen of the Nile, in this luch, sweeping, and richly detailed saga. Told in Cleopatra's own voice, this is a mesmerizing tale of ambition, passion, and betrayl, which begins when the twenty-year-old queen seeks out the most powerful man in the world, Julius Caesar, and does not end until, having survived the assassination of Caesar and the defeat of the second man she loves, Marc Antony, she plots her own death rather than be paraded in triumph through the streets of Rome.Most of all, in its richness and authenticity, it is an irresistible story that reveals why Margaret George's work has been widely acclaimed as "the best kind of historical novel, one the reader can't wait to get lost in." (San Francisco Chronicle).
Customer Reviews:
History comes alive.......2007-08-27
The Memoirs of Cleopatra is a mammoth novel, both in size and scope. Crammed full of historical events, real-life characters and period detail, it breathes new life into the familiar story of the fabled Queen of Egypt.
The book revolves around a triumvirate of finely crafted characters: the ambitious Cleopatra, the aloof Caesar, and the vacillating Antony. While the tale occasionally bogs down under its sheer weight--I felt like I needed a scorecard to keep track of all the characters--it is nonetheless a riveting read.
Margaret George is a fine writer, skillfully depicting epic battles, palace intrigues, and tender intimacies. At times, as Cleopatra reflects upon her life or upon human nature, George's prose is profound and takes on the beauty of poetry.
I think this book would appeal to just about anyone who likes historical fiction. Don't let its size intimidate you.
Best Historical Novel EVER!!!!!!.......2007-08-16
"Memoirs of Cleopatra", by Margaret George, was by far one of the best books I have ever read, and I love books. I was constantly in emotional turmoil along with the character as she made her way through life. George has a great gift for making situations seem real. I felt as if I were actually in the room with Cleopatra as she held meetings, walked the palace, and best of all, had her intimate moments with the two great loves of her life, Ceasar and Marc Antony. I could hardly put the book down as I was enthralled by every detail. I even cried at the inevitable ending (I rarely cry from books), which I knew was coming and almomst dreaded it knowing the book would soon thereafter come to an end.
George really researched her facts well and made them seem as if everything actually happened, even the unknown gaps in Cleopatra's life. I learned a great deal and would never have learned so much from reading a textbook, simply because I would have fallen asleep. With this, I was constantly enthralled and was thinking about it even at work. I wanted to continually read it until I could read no more!
One note, I have read her other two books when I was younger, and, after reading this book at an older age, I feel as if these books would be best suited for older teens and up. The content is very saturated with facts and details that a younger reading may become lost with, let alone the love scenes may be a bit too much for young teens.
Overall, wonderful book by a wonderful author! I am currently re-reading "Henry VIII" and it is amazing!
Loved It.......2007-08-15
This 960 page book is truly outstanding. I have loved Cleopatra from the first time I read about her in grade school. This book gives you tons of visual images through the words of the author and a list of fact-checking sources in the back of the book (something very important to me).It is heart-breaking at times and even though most people know the way she died, it's still with dread that you turn those last few pages. But it's hard not to be in awe of Margaret for doing such a fantastic job. I highly recommend this book.
Intriguing Book.......2007-07-17
At first I was intimidated by the length of the book. I got past that once I opened it, it was a little long winded in the beginning but I somehow couldn't put it down and by the end was wishing it had a sequel.
Fascinating Book .......2007-07-11
I have to admit I am in love with Cleopatra. After all, she is one of the very women who have made her mark on the history of time. Margaret George writes a beautiful fictional story based on Cleopatra's life.
Book Description
The final book in her series about the men who established Rome of the Emperors, The October Horse features Gaius Julius Caesar at the height of his stupendous career. When he becomes embroiled in a civil war between Egypt's King Ptolemy and Queen Cleopatra, he finds himself torn between the fascinations of a remarkable woman and his duty as a Roman. Though he must leave Cleopatra, she remains a force in his life as a lover and as the mother of his only son, who can never inherit Caesar's Roman mantle, and therefore cannot solve his father's greatest dilemma -- who will be Caesar's Roman heir?
A hero to all of Rome except to those among his colleagues who see his dictatorial powers as threats to the democratic system they prize so highly, Caesar is determined not to be worshiped as a god or crowned king. Swearing to bring him down, Caesar's enemies masquerade as friends and loyal supporters while they plot to destroy him. Caesar must die, they decide, for only when he is dead will Rome return to her old republican self.
Packed with battles, intrigue, love affairs, and murders, The October Horse hurtles toward the assassination, and onto the dangerous consequences of that act -- in which the very fate of Rome is at stake.
Download Description
"In her new book about the men who were instrumental in establishing the Rome of the Emperors, Colleen McCullough tells the story of a famous love affair and a man whose sheer ability could lead to only one end -- assassination. As The October Horse begins, Gaius Julius Caesar is at the height of his stupendous career. When he becomes embroiled in a civil war between Egypt's King Ptolemy and Queen Cleopatra, he finds himself torn between the fascinations of a remarkable woman and his duty as a Roman. Though he must leave Cleopatra, she remains a force in his life as a lover and as the mother of his only son, who can never inherit Caesar's Roman mantle, and therefore cannot solve his father's greatest dilemma -- who will be Caesar's Roman heir? A hero to all of Rome except to those among his colleagues who see his dictatorial powers as threats to the democratic system they prize so highly, Caesar is determined not to be worshiped as a god or crowned king, but his unique situation conspires to make it seem otherwise. Swearing to bring him down, Caesar's enemies masquerade as friends and loyal supporters while they plot to destroy him. Among them are his cousin and Master of the Horse, Mark Antony, feral and avaricious, priapic and impulsive; Gaius Trebonius, the nobody, who owes him everything; Gaius Cassius, eaten by jealousy; and the two Brutuses, his cousin Decimus, and Marcus, the son of his mistress Servilia, sad victim of his mother and of his uncle Cato, whose daughter he marries. All are in Caesar's debt, all have been raised to high positions, all are outraged by Caesar's autocracy. Caesar must die, they decide, for only when he is dead will Rome return to her old ways, her old republican self.
Customer Reviews:
Interesting and Absorbing .......2007-07-22
The October Horse is an interesting and absorbing book. I found myself engrossed in this well-crafted story. My only complaint is I expected to find a bit more of Cleopatra in the book. This novel made me even more curious about ancient Rome and get my hands on as many books related to the subject as possible.
how to decide a favorite?.......2007-07-06
This is the last book of the Masters of Rome series, and maybe the best, but it is so hard to decide. They are all exceptional and I strongly advise reading them from the first through to the last. I was lucky enough to have all of them on hand before beginning and went right through all 6 of them. What a treat!
But this last is probably my favorite for the way it brings Julius Caesar to life, from the most important and productive stages of his life, through the tragedy of his assasination and wrapping up the events immediately following the assasination: Antony and Cleopatra and the rise of Octavian/Augustus. I wanted the history to continue, but as Ms. McCullough writes in her author's notes, she had to stop somewhere or she would keep on forever!
I followed up this series by reading the recent biography by Adrian Goldsworthy called "Caesar". Another great book for anyone interested in a strict historical biography. Reading "Caesar", I was constantly amazed at the historical accuracy of Ms. McCullough's stories. She stayed with the truth while fleshing out the characters and bringing them to life. Mr. Goldsworthy makes positive mention of the Masters of Rome series in his epilogue, high praise indeed from an expert, scholarly historian of Ancient Rome. I found it a great treat to have read this series before tackling the long, dry biography. The memory of McCullough's wonderful books brought the real history to life!
Great Finish To An Outstanding Series.......2007-04-25
I'm a huge Julius Caesar fan, and have been ever since I first discovered him when I was in the seventh grade. The man was a true superstar. One of the most brilliant figures in history. Not only one of the greatest military leaders who ever lived, but also a consummate politician, gifted public speaker, and one of the greatest writers of latin prose ever. He excelled at everything he did. McCullough does an excellent job of portraying Caesar, and the other prominent players from the period of the decaying Roman Republic, in a way that makes their personalities and actions real and understandable. And they are all here: Cicero, Cato, Brutus, Cassius, Octavian, Labienus, Mark Antony, Cleopatra and all the rest. Caesar, however, is the star.
The writing is very good and McCullough's command of the actual history of the period is impeccable. She provides maps to help illustrate events. She has even sketched busts of the main characters which are, as far as possible, true to existing portraiture. She even explains her reasons for choices she makes in situations where the record is ambiguous or unclear. Her characters ring true. It's fiction because she invents conversations and conjures up personal incidents, but it is thoroughly researched and McCullough has full command of the factual material she is covering.
Sometimes, the writing is almost too real. As I approached Caesar's assassination, I knew perfectly well what was coming. Despite that knowledge, however, I found the hair on the back of my neck standing up straight as that brutal and tragic scene unfolded.
THE OCTOBER HORSE is the sixth and, regrettably, final book in McCullough's series about the life of Caesar and the collapse of the Roman Republic. The series is a long one, but it's well worth reading in it's entirety. It relates real events of genuinely epic proportions, and it is superbly done. I loved it and would recommend it to anyone. It is at least as entertaining as any fiction you'll ever read. Ten stars if I could give them.
Very good book.......2007-03-09
This is a very readable account of a period in history which has not been well doncumented in literature [other than glamorous and untrue accounts of Cleopatra]. It is well written with just the right amount of dramatic action involved in what could have been a dusty history. It is a good value at the price and a book that one will read again and again.
Historical fiction that reads as if history is happening.......2006-12-10
In the culminating novel of her series depicting the collapse of the Roman Republic, Colleen McCullough details the events from the end of the war between Gaius Julius Caesar and Pompey the Great, through Caesar's defeating all other opposition, to his own assassination in Rome in 45 BC, to the battles of Philippi that ended the first phase of the civil wars and set the stage for the rise of Augustus and the Empire. "A kingdom for a stage, princes to act, and monarchs to behold the swelling scene" as Shakespeare said in a different context...
As with its predecessors starting with "The First Man in Rome", McCullough's novel is exquisitely detailed, little pieces of everyday Roman life falling into place with the larger scenes to move the plot forward; likewise, the action happens so convincingly that the reader can believe it is happening as it is being read- so that even though we all know Caesar died on that fateful Ides of March in 45 BC, the narration can keep us hoping something will change, something will intervene.
If this tale and its predecessors have a fault, it is that Caesar doesn't have one. It's clear, starting three volumes back with "Fortune's Favorites" that McCullough is an unabashed Caesar-fancier, and the books from that point on are definitely biased in his direction. While Cato, Caesar's perpetual adversary, has a reputation for incorruptibility but is portrayed as narrow, inflexible, small-minded and unyielding, many of the same charges could be laid at Caesar's door - except that he is the hero of the story, so what are faults in Cato's case are strengths or virtues for Caesar. Which doesn't make the story any less fun to read. Caesar was one of the seminal political figures of his age as well as one of the great military minds, and anything that brings him into a closer perspective is worth reading.
Average customer rating:
- Not Just Pharaohs--but all of Egypt!
- Pharaohs!
- An Effective Introduction to Ancient Egypt for Children
- a good introduction to Ancient Egypt, for children
- Excellent introduction to Egypt!
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The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt (Landmark Books)
Elizabeth Payne
Manufacturer: Random House Books for Young Readers
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Binding: Paperback
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Similar Items:
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The Golden Goblet (Newbery Library, Puffin)
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Pyramid
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Mara, Daughter of the Nile (Puffin Story Books)
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Mummies Made in Egypt (Reading Rainbow Book)
ASIN: 0394846990
Release Date: 1981-02-12 |
Book Description
For more than 3,000 years, Egypt was a great civilization that thrived along the banks of the Nile River. But when its cities crumbled to dust, Egypt’s culture and the secrets of its hieroglyphic writings were
also lost. The Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt explains how archaeologists have pieced together their discoveries to slowly reveal the history of Egypt’s people, its pharaohs, and its golden days.
Customer Reviews:
Not Just Pharaohs--but all of Egypt!.......2006-07-11
This book is another Landmark Books success!
Your children and you will learn, not just about Pharaohs, but about Egyptian history as well. The author utilizes stories well in order to draw the reader in and retain his interest. This is no mere book of facts that you will have to drag your children through; I found myself engaged and learning while reading it.
Of course, this is not the FULL history of Egypt, but all the main Pharaoh's and the events surrounding them are covered in detail. I take issue with a few of the assumptions the author presents that have been made by modern Egyptologists, but the error is in our current thinking on Egypt, not the author's work.
(For example, do you really believe that illiterate peasants worked from sunup to sundown and were pleased to do so for Pharaoh--to a man? Or, that modern scholars who have been able to find little evidence from the time period of Cheops know more about the opinion of the ancient Egyptians towards their Pharaoh than the Egyptians themselves did in 50BC?)
Some Pharaohs covered include Cheops, Hatshepsut, Thutmose III, Akhnaton, and Rameses II. Also covered are the times of chaos in between the kingdoms, minor pharaohs and some queens, and times when Egypt was conquered and how this changed their kingdom. Even daily life of ancient Egypt is described within the text, making this an good stand-alone study on Egypt.
Summary: This is an excellent middle-school resource for a study on ancient Egypt that will provide information about most of the main events in a chronological manner. Highly recommended!
Pharaohs!.......2005-08-23
The mythology of Egypt can be fun, but the history is what really draws your attention. A clear part of Egyptian history is her pharaohs, and this book follows the line of ancient pharaohs with adequately-sized sections for each.
If you are looking for specific details this might not be very helpful, but it is very good for reading about the bigger stories.
This is a great book to help start young readers on their road to learning about Ancient Egypt.
A 'must have' for any Egypt-history-lover!
An Effective Introduction to Ancient Egypt for Children.......2001-08-31
Written for children who are independent readers, Pharaohs of Ancient Egypt was, nevertheless, a fascinating introduction to Ancient Egypt for all my children. My younger daughter was in first grade at the time and needed some help with the reading, but the stories themselves were of great interest to her. It was fun for me to see all three of them learn about the Rosetta Stone and other archaeological discoveries, most of which I hadn't learned about until I was well past childhood. It's amazing what children will find interesting when it comes wrapped in a story. Although some may regard the story-telling as somewhat fanciful (obviously we don't really know what most of these people really thought or felt), the author has succeeded in her quest to bring the attention of the reader into the context of the history she describes.
We bought this book along with the Greenleaf Guide to Ancient Eqypt, which listed it as one of its primary texts for children's history. I recommend that book, along Tony Allan's Time Traveller Book of Pharaohs and Pyramids, if you are going to teach your children the history of ancient Egypt. The Greenleaf book helps you organize your children's study with questions and projects (along with recommended resources), while the well-illustrated Time Traveller book helps the children visualize what they're reading about.
a good introduction to Ancient Egypt, for children.......2000-08-30
In this book, the author examines the important discoveries and the pharaohs of Ancient Egypt. She gives a description of the infamous Rosetta Stone, then continues with a brief history of the Ancient Egyptian civilization and religious beliefs. She also reports on the pharaohs and their accomplishments, including those of Akhenaton, Ramesses II, Cheops, Hatshepsut and Thutmose III. An interesting book for children ages 9 to 12.
Excellent introduction to Egypt!.......2000-08-06
This is a wonderful general introduction tot he study of ancient Egypt. Caution: This is really meant for grades 7 and up. The langauge is difficult for younger ones,even as a read-aloud. Also, the first chapter is mostly conjecture about the beginning of civilization in the Nile River Valley. You can skip it. Overall, it is fascinating reading.
Book Description
With the full panorama of her life forever lost, Cleopatra touches us in a series of sensational images: floating through a perfumed mist down the Nile; dressed as Venus for a tryst at Tarsus; unfurled from a roll of linens before Caesar; couchant, the deadly asp clasped to her breast. Through such images, each immortalizing the Egyptian queen's encounters with legendary Romans--Julius Caesar, Mark Antony, and Octavian Augustus--we might also chart her rendezvous with the destiny of Rome. So Diana Kleiner shows us in this provocative book, which opens an entirely new perspective on one of the most intriguing women who ever lived. Cleopatra and Rome reveals how these iconic episodes, absorbed into a larger historical and political narrative, document a momentous cultural shift from the Hellenistic world to the Roman Empire. In this story, Cleopatra's death was not an end but a beginning--a starting point for a wide variety of appropriations by Augustus and his contemporaries that established a paradigm for cultural conversion.
In this beautifully illustrated book, we experience the synthesis of Cleopatra's and Rome's defining moments through surviving works of art and other remnants of what was once an opulent material culture: religious and official architecture, cult statuary, honorary portraiture, villa paintings, tombstones, and coinage, but also the theatrical display of clothing, perfume, and hair styled to perfection for such ephemeral occasions as triumphal processions or barge cruises. It is this visual culture that best chronicles Cleopatra's legend and suggests her subtle but indelible mark on the art of imperial Rome at the critical moment of its inception.
Customer Reviews:
The Life, and the After-Life Influence.......2006-03-13
If you can name one famous woman of the ancient world, it is likely the name will be Cleopatra. "That Cleopatra was the most powerful woman in the ancient world's first century B.C. cannot be contested," writes Diana E. E. Kleiner in _Cleopatra and Rome_ (The Belknap Press of Harvard University Press). Her power was not only political, but as everyone knows, sexual. She also had an enormous intellectual grasp, and she had a flair for style and self-promotion in art, architecture, and fashion that was to be influential to the Rome that had ostensibly conquered Egypt. The influence continued long after her dramatic death and even into our own times. Kleiner is qualified to tackle the Cleopatra story, since she is a professor of art history and classics at Yale. The first half of this erudite but amusing volume is a biography of the queen; the second half chronicles her surprisingly strong postmortem power.
Cleopatra has a reputation as a vamp, but Kleiner says there is no evidence she had affairs with anyone except Caesar, and after his death, Antony. In both cases, the men were smitten by her knowledge, and in Caesar's case, he was inspired by her building projects to make some of his own. Also in both cases, Cleopatra was performing a balancing act to protect the independence of her own nation while supporting the superpower of Rome. Antony's affair with her infuriated Rome, or at least Augustus in Rome was able to manufacture public infuriation, and went to war with Antony and Cleopatra. During the invasion Cleopatra killed herself by means of the famous asp. She probably did so to avoid being a captive in Augustus's Rome. Antony also killed himself, one story saying that he did so upon hearing of Cleopatra's suicide. "Cleopatra's death by asp, reenacted in Augustus's triumph in Rome, was instrumental in elevating her to superstar status," writes Kleiner. Augustus was never Cleopatra's lover, but he was smitten by her. Like Caesar before him, he took up urban renewal, changing the city from one of brick to one of marble. It became fashionable for the moneyed set to commission buildings and paintings in the Egyptian style. One of the most surprising battles which Cleopatra posthumously fought was that of hairstyles. She herself had a style known as the "melon", with waved sections looking more-or-less like the outside of a melon. She often wore over her forehead the _uraeus_, the rearing cobra. From this developed the classical Roman style for women, the _nodus_, a roll of hair over the forehead in pompadour-style. The hairstyle, seen repeatedly in sculptures and paintings of the time, was championed by Octavia, the older sister of Augustus and the wife Antony had abandoned for Cleopatra. Kleiner tells the story of the women and their joint efforts with their hairdressers in a chapter wittily titled "Princesses and Power Hair."
Augustus included Cleopatra in monuments, and allowed himself in depictions in such monuments to be robed in the outfits of the Pharaohs. He was merely taking up Cleopatra's image because of its inherent power. Kleiner calls upon statues, friezes, coins, temples, embossed tableware and more to show how the power game was played in the arts of the time. As befits an art historian's book on such a subject, _Cleopatra and Rome_ is beautifully illustrated with ancient art from the times, as well as interpretations of the events in Cleopatra's life by later artists, and even an obligatory still starring Elizabeth Taylor.
A very different book on Cleo.........2005-12-25
If your looking for a book that examines the precarious relationship between Cleopatra VII and her eternal enemies in Rome; well then, this is the book for you.
Kleiner breaks down Cleo's influnce over Roman art and archiecture after her defeat and ultimate suicide in 30BC. She also presents facinating evidence of Augustus use of Cleopatra's cultural image for the images of himself and his wife, daughter, and sister. This is the first book I know of that finds an implicit connection between Octavian, Cleopatra, Antony, Octavia, and Livia.
It is well researched and well written, and perfect for a student of the Classics or Art history.
Average customer rating:
- A Leap Into History...
- To be continued?
- Exciting Book!
- Cleopatra VII... =a GREAT book!!!
- Daughter of the Nile, Egypt, 57 B.C.
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Cleopatra VII: Daughter of the Nile, Egypt, 57 B.C. (The Royal Diaries)
Kristiana Gregory
Manufacturer: Scholastic Inc.
ProductGroup: Book
Binding: Hardcover
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ASIN: 0590819755 |
Amazon.com
The year is 57 B.C., and 12-year-old Cleopatra, Princess of the Nile, has a lot on her mind. Her father, the Pharaoh of Egypt, nearly died when a venomous adder meant for him attacked and killed his favorite servant. Now the Pharaoh has gone into hiding, hunted by his enemies, and the young princess has to keep her head--literally--as her power-hungry older sister Tryphaena threatens to grab her father's throne.
"I took the cup and raised it toward Tryphaena as if toasting her, but really I was watching the liquid, looking for oil floating on its surface, or powder sticking to the sides of the cup. If I suspected poison and tossed it into the pool, she would have her guards behead me on the spot. If it was indeed poison, one sip and I could die..."
In an elegantly written royal diary, Cleopatra VII has recorded every rich detail from this tumultuous time: her hairsbreadth escape by boat to Rome, where she and her father must plead for help; her struggle to absorb the overwhelming sights (and smells) of this new city and its "barbarian" ways; and her poise and quick thinking as she deals with the likes of General Pompey, Marc Antony, and the famous orator Cicero ("words fly from him like darts!").
Kristiana Gregory, a contributor to the excellent Dear America series, has done an admirable job ghostwriting for the princess, painting an engaging portrait of a resourceful, intelligent, compassionate young woman forged by the forces of her time. The book concludes with a helpful section of maps, portraits, a Pharaonic family tree, and 20 pages of illustrations. (Ages 8 to 12) --Paul Hughes
Book Description
Established Dear America author Kristiana Gregory kicks off the Royal Diaries with the captivating story of young Cleopatra's tumultuous life. Daughter of King Ptolemy Autletes, Pharaoh of Egypt, Cleopatra lives a life filled with opulence and mystery.
Customer Reviews:
A Leap Into History..........2007-08-04
From start to finish this book is a real joy! Delve into the thoughts of Cleopatra VII in this historically accurate account of her early teenage years. A good book for children and adults alike, you can watch your child become fascinated with the goings-on and intrigues of an age that is not written about enough. The Cleopatra we meet in the story is easy to sympathize with and relate to, as well as a character to admire. The book also paints a detailed picture of the setting and age and what it was like to be a princess in ancient Egypt.
I have read most of the Royal Diaries books aloud to my daughters (7, 9, 11), which always succeed to help enamour them with history. However, of the ones I have read, I find Cleopatra VII: Daughter of the Nile, Egypt, 57 B.C. to be all of our's favorite.
Also, my children love the wonderful style of all the books: the hardbacks are a lovely gold, with a detailed color representation of the princess and gold-tipped pages. They make my children feel like royalty themselves!
Educational and entertaining, this is a wonderful choice for a gift or for your own enjoyment.
To be continued?.......2007-06-27
This is a charming, small book concerning a very short period of Cleopatra's life. It generally concords with what is known of Cleopatra. I am disappointed that it was not larger in scope.
Exciting Book!.......2007-04-30
This is a great book! (Much better than Elizabeth) It is like listening to a real person. This is my favorite book in the royal diary series that I have read so far. It is packed with action, adventure, emotion, sadness, happiness, and much more! I just finished reading this about an hour ago. It is wonderful. I really recommend it!
Cleopatra VII... =a GREAT book!!!.......2007-03-26
Cleopatra... is an awesome book about Cleopatra VII when she was 12-14 years old. The story begins when her father, King Ptolemy Alutes, begins losing support among the commoners. He leaves on a ship to go to the Romans for help, and Cleopatra figures that two Ptolmies are better than one, so Cleopatra sneaks aboard to caome. Her father knows no Latin, so she finds it hard to figure out how he will speak to Ceasar, so she ends up doing all the talking after Pompey and his men decide to get smart and insult them in Latin so (he thinks) they won't know what he's saying. Cleopatra has two sisters, Berenice, who is eight years older and very nice, and Tryphaena, who is as "mean and snappish as a crocodile." Whilist Cleopatra and her father are in Rome, Tryphaena takes over the throne and sends them a message that if they ever set foot in Egypt again, they will be beheaded. One night, the King's friends kill Tryphaena in the middle of the night, and afterwards are killed with flying swords be Berenice's guards. Then Berenice takes over. Meanwhile, Cleopatra and her father have finally won the Romans over, and when they return, the King orders Berenice to be put to death for pretending to be Queen. The epilouge is sad, but you can't change history. Overall one of the best books I have ever read, and if you're smart, you'll read it too.
Daughter of the Nile, Egypt, 57 B.C........2007-03-19
-"I could feel my insides shaking. Would this sister try to poison me? Yes, I believe so. As for my other older sister, Berenice-never! She and I adore each other even though I am eight years younger. I took the cup and raised it toward Tryphaena as if toasting her, but really I was watching the liquid, looking for oil floating on the surface, or powder sticking to the sides of the cup. If I suspected poison and tossed it into the pool, she would have her guards behead me on the spot. If it was indeed poison, one sip and I could die... My eyes closed as I took the first sip, as if savoring such and excellent taste, but really my thought was, O Isis, I am afraid... My stomach turned with nervousness, or was it from a fearsome death beginning in me?" Cleopatra was the third daughter of Ptolemy XII and Cleopatra V Tryphaena. Cleopatra's mother died when Cleopatra was very young. When Cleopatra's father is awoken by a hissing sound in his room, he is frightened to see a black adder in the striking position, while his favorite slave jumps on the adder to save the pharaoh, his slave is bitten and killed, then the snake got away. The next day, one of his slaves brings him his food and the Pharaoh orders him to test it, and after his slave takes the first sip of wine he is writhing on the floor in pain. The Pharaoh decides to go into hiding so his guards can find the assassin and kill him. While the king is gone, Tryphaena, the Pharaohs oldest daughter, decided that she was going to be Pharaoh. While Cleopatra's father is gone, Cleopatra suspects her oldest sister for the assassination attempts. Then one night Tryphaena is drug out to the theater, and beheaded on the spot, the same fait was to her guards. The Pharaoh comes back to the palace and announced that he was going to go to Rome to get help to gain control over his people once and for all. When Cleopatra hears the news she decides to go with him so she can translate the Roman language into Egyptian. When they finally arrive in Rome, the royal family soon finds out that the Roman troops are in the northern part of the hemisphere and can't come back for about a half a year. When they finally come back to Rome, there is a huge hurricane out in the ocean, so Cleopatra and her father cannot make the journey home until the sea subsides. It isn't till two years later that Cleopatra and her father can return home. All the while, Berenice has taken the throne and has married six times, each one of her husbands hanged for not meeting her standards. I liked this book, because it had a very unusual story line and many "father killing daughter" scenes.
-One reason I liked this book because it has many funny parts in it, even when Cleopatra may not mean for it to be funny. For example, "I enjoy my father when his high spirits are from good news, not good wine." Another example, "I did not want to wipe off my fingers on the soiled tablecloth or in me hair (like two of the senators were doing)."
-Another reason I liked this book is because of all of the deaths that the family ordered on one another. An example is this, "For three days, there has been much celebrating. Tryphaena is dead... After we left Alexandria, his friends sneaked into the palace while Tryphaena slept, then killed her guards. Awakened by the commotion, she sat up in bed and screamed for help while putting on her slippers (an odd thing to do, in my opinion.) But men tied up her arms and carried her through the dark streets to the Gymnasion, where some of our wrestlers were waiting. One of them stood behind her, grabbed her around the neck, and then with his strong arms lifted her up until she had strangled. A slipper that had fallen from her foot was delivered to Father as proof."
-I liked this book because of all the letters that were written, you can tell who they are and what they are writing about. One example is "Olympus, friend, loyal companion, and student of medicine in Alexandria, to Princess Cleopatra in Rome, friend much missed: Good news, come home."
-I enjoyed reading this book because Cleopatra could understand different languages and a general didn't know that and insulted the Pharaoh while she was there. "As our meal began, Pompey walked over to our table, smiling broadly. When Father stood to greet him, Pompey clasped both his arms and began speaking rapidly in Latin. Father didn't understand one word, but I surely did. `King Auletes,' the general said, `so we finally meet, you gorilla face. Indeed you are a half-baked, a decrepit drunk with a nose like a plum. Did out trumpets wake you from your nap, you lazy dullard?' Dropping Fathers arms, he turned to where I reclined. `Ah, little child,' He smiled. Slowly I stood up and looked around me. The soldiers were grinning with pleasure at their leader's clever trick. I thought in my heart that I must be brave and strong, like Queen Ester and the Queen of Sheba who in their day spoke before the most powerful men on earth. `Sir,' I began in Latin, `I am Cleopatra, Princess of the Nile, third daughter of the King and Pharaoh of Egypt, the man you have so cruelly insulted.' At first, I was so nervous my voice trembled. The Latin words felt awkward on my tongue, but soon I was speaking with confidence, quite well, it seems, because the look on Pompey's face was one of shock. His soldiers' smiles dropped like dead flies. I began to relax." I really enjoyed this book and I think that many others will enjoy it as well.
D. Foster
Book Description
Fabled for her sexual allure and cunning intelligence, Cleopatra VII of Egypt has fascinated generations of admirers and detractors since her tumultuous life ended in suicide in 30 B.C. The last of the Ptolemaic monarchs who had ruled Egypt for three centuries, Cleopatra created her own mythology. She became an icon in her own lifetime and a legend after her death.
This lavishly illustrated catalogue coincides with a major international exhibition celebrating images of Cleopatra. It explores how she was depicted during her own era, in works ranging from coins to life-size sculpture. Exciting new discoveries are featured--including seven Egyptian-style statues believed to represent Cleopatra, and two portraits probably commissioned while she was living in Rome with Julius Caesar. The book also examines interpretations of Cleopatra from the Renaissance to modern times, as seen in paintings, ceramics, jewelry, plays, operas, and film. In addition, recent archaeological finds from Alexandria (Cleopatra's capital) and from Rome illustrate aspects of life in Cleopatra's day.
EXHIBITION SCHEDULE:
Palazzo Ruspoli, Rome
October 12, 2000-February 25, 2001
The British Museum, London
April 12-August 28, 2001
The Field Museum, Chicago
October 20, 2001-March 2, 2002
Customer Reviews:
Excellent primary resource on Cleopatra VII.......2007-05-07
This is THE book that try to find the real Cleopatra VII. It has tons of photographs on historical artificts, either they were real portraits of her, image inspired from her, or artificts long mis-identified the image as her, or the artificts from her time, this book carries the invaluable information that is hard to find them anywhere else. And this book carries scholars essays that analyse and discuss all the aspects about this famous pharaoh. Great refernece book for anyone who wants to find historical, non-fictional information about her.
Cleopatra Comes To Life Again, After 2000 Years.......2005-10-12
This book, I would say, is the best book I have read, (and that's a lot) on the Ptolemaic Period and Egypt's last and fateful Macedonian Queen, who died for her ambition, and desire to restore her country as major power. She was brave enough to challenge the enslaving and powerful force of Rome, and dreamed of an independant Egyptian Empire. But her attempt to achieve her goal cost her her life, and her country.
After her death, the Romans destroyed most representations of her. They overlooked, however, the many exquisite Egyptian-style statues of the queen, however, and instead destroyed what would have been the many classical depictions of her, which are lost to the Romans wrath. But fortunately, the Egyptian art survived the centuries, and with these gorgeous and mysterious representations of the living goddess herself, Susan Walker, with the help of the British Museum, has pieced together an accurate and enthralling portrait of her eventful life.
The sections, on subjects such as Alexandria, The Ptolemies, and Cleopatra and Rome, this book contains dozens of well-written and powerful essays on the monarch's life and relationship, and also Egypt at the time. Lavishly illustrated with hundreds of full color images of Egyptian style artwork depicting the queen, and also many statues of the people that influenced her life such as her lovers Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, and her nemesis, the enigma Octavian, later to be Augustus, the first emperor of Rome.
I recommend very strongly this book to anyone at all interested in Egyptian, Greek, or Roman history, and art. An unearthly account of the last years of Egyptian power.
Great resource for Cleopatra.......2002-10-19
If pressed, I'd almost say that this is the single best book on Cleopatra. Granted, there are critical biographies, historical accounts, and all sorts of other sources, but this massive book is unique in that it shows nearly every sculpture, coin, or papyrus that can be tied directly to Egypt's last independent ruler. Its fascinating to finally see how Cleopatra presented herself to her subjects -- in traditional Egyptian style for the local population, in Greek style to the Greco-Roman world at large. It's also sobering to see how little remains of her reign. The Romans went after her Greek-style statues, but since they didn't understand Egyptian art, many works of art in that style survive. Besides the impressive visuals, the book includes important essays on many different parts of Cleopatra's reign, life in Alexandria, and the legends that have swirled around Cleopatra after her death. A good comprehensive look at this famous queen, scholarly and readable. But boy, those visuals...!
Book Description
Egypt's Queen--or, as she would prefer to be remembered, King--Hatchepsut ruled over an age of peace, prosperity, and remarkable architectural achievement (c. 1490 b.c.). Had she been born a man, her reign would almost certainly have been remembered for its stable government, successful trade missions, and the construction of one of the most beautiful structures in the world--the Deir el-Bahri temple at Luxor. After her death, however, her name and image were viciously attacked, her monuments destroyed or usurped, her place in history systematically obliterated. At last, in this dazzling work of archaeological and historical sleuthing, Joyce Tyldesley rescues this intriguing figure from more than two thousand years of oblivion and finally restores the female pharaoh to her rightful prominence as the first woman in recorded history to rule a nation.
Customer Reviews:
Hatchepsut: The Female Pharoah.......2007-08-09
The layout of the history leading to the story of Hatchepsut is very informative. I enjoyed knowing what is believed to be the events leading to her acension and the contributions she made during her reign. very interesting reading and well constructed.
An Easy Good Read.......2007-01-14
The book is highly readable and certainly interesting in content about the first Pharoanic female "who would be king." The problem with it lies in the evidence or, more accurately, lack thereof. Because there is so very little known about Hatshepsut and her time, writing a book that isn't almost entirely speculative is rather difficult and becomes, by necessity, more of a historical novel than a discussion of historical fact. Redundancy is also unavoidable as the author tries to present the very little information that we have in enough pages to fill a book. All the content could have been condensed quite easily into a chapter rather than a book. Having said that, it IS fun reading, and the lack of evidence certainly allows the reader's imagination to take over and recreate a past that may or may not have existed. Hatshepsut the ruler certainly lived, but much more than that, we just can't know at this time, so that this author's guesses are as good as any other Egyptologists.
Hats and Shoes.......2004-06-11
I enjoyed this book thoroughly and read it at one sitting! It's quite a page turner. I found some of the authors conclusions to be rather quick given the spotty historical record of that time period but there is pleanty of citations and a lengthy bibliography for further reading.
The female pharoah.......2003-05-16
`Had Hatchepsut been born a man, her lengthy rule would almost certainly be remembered for its achievements: its stable government, successful trade missions, and the impressive architectural advances which include the construction of the Deir el-Bahri temple on the west bank of the Nile at Luxor, a building which is still widely regarded as one of the most beautiful in the world. Instead, Hatchepsut's gender has become her most important characteristic, and almost all references to her reign have concentrated not on her policies but on the person relationship and power struggles which many historians have felt able to detect within the claustrophobic early 18th Dynasty Theban royal family.'
Egypt was of course a male-dominated society, but for being so, it produced many strong women, including Hatchepsut, Cleopatra, and Nefertiti. The latter two are far more famous, having been renowned as well more for their gender and gender-attributes (the beauty of their physical form) than for any political or social achievements they might have made (although Cleopatra's foray into Roman politics most likely would have assured her fame).
Hatchepsut took on the outward aspects of male dress and iconography when assuming the power of Pharoah -- while Cleopatra has always been described as 'Queen' Cleopatra, it is perhaps more correct to refer to Hatchepsut as a 'King', a Pharoah, which is a male term with no real feminine equivalent in the language. She even wore a false beard in the manner of Pharoahs of the time to play the role of ruler. She was an eldest daughter of Tuthmosis I, married to her half-brother Tuthmosis II (a regular custom in Egyptian royal families from earliest times to the final dynasty of Cleopatra, whose generation also had such intermarriages), and guardian of her stepson Tuthmosis III. Much of the history of her reign was suppressed by later generations of Egyptians who wanted to prevent another female from assuming royal/divine power.
Joyce Tyldesley (who also wrote the book on `Nefertiti', which I have reviewed recently) has produced a well-researched work exploring the political, social and family climate into which Hatchepsut was thrown. Using historical research and archaeological discoveries, she has produced a marvelous biography, restoring this long-forgotten ruler to the ranks of the Pharoahs.
Hatchepsut was short-tempered and made many mistakes during her twenty-year-long reign. However, she was also a capable and able ruler in many respects. The Tuthmosidian Theban royal family which uneasily straddled the divide between the 17th and 18th Dynasties was a tight-knit but feuding lot. To give themselves stability and legitimacy, they strove to replicate glories of the past, in particular those of the 12th Dynasty. This was an era of unease, due to the quickening pace of technological advance occurring simultaneously with a resurgence of interest in 'traditional' values (much like our own time today, in many respects).
Tyldesley begins with an examination of the general society: the role of pharoah, a divine/absolute ruler upon which almost all society turned; the role of the royal family, the priest and military classes, and the interaction with foreign cultures. From here she proceeds to examine the specifics of the Tuthmoside family, with their warring factions and cooperative ventures designed to shore up a tenuous grasp on the authority of power. Examining Hatchepsut's rise to power, she divides it into two chapters - `Queen of Egypt' and `King of Egypt'. The precise sequence of reigns between the three Tuthmosis rulers and Hatchepsut is still unclear (given the degradation and recasting of monumental and inscription engravings to eliminate Hatchepsut's name) -- it is likely that the authority shifted back and forth, with periods of co-regency during multiple years.
What became of Hatchepsut is a bit of a mystery. She may have been killed by Tuthmosis III who was tired of sharing the reigns of power or waiting for his inheritance. However, this is unlikely given Hatchepsut's advanced age -- nature would take its course in any event. Hatchepsut's mummy has never been definitively identified, nor has any particular tomb been found that might have been hers and hers alone. Multiple sites have been discovered that are possible candidates, but this mystery awaits future discoveries.
This is an interesting, accessible biography which brings to light many recent discoveries and shares contrasting theories of the history of this interesting figure.
Good read and fairly balanced.......2003-04-08
Joyce Tyldesley's Hatchepsut: The Female Pharaoh is more than a good introduction to the title figure from ancient Egyptian history. The book is, in a way, Hatshepsut's biography; however it is quite honest about the amount of evidence that survives today--very little--and therefore does not pretend that some sort of definitive and personal narrative of the Pharaoh's life is possible. Instead of giving a year-by-year account of Hatshepsut and her life, the book presents and examines its subject in terms of historiography. Tyldesley discusses previous theories and extant evidence in a frank manner while offering her own interpretations, which tend to legitimize Hatshepsut's reign (and are sometimes quite compelling). Because there is so little evidence and the subject of Hatshepsut, a woman who ruled Egypt as a Pharaoh, is so easily entangled is people's own ideas about gender and power, all these interpretations--including Tydesley's--involve a degree of bias. This was particularly the case when scholars argued from silence, constructing their own ideas about Hatshepsut based on the logic of contemporary gender roles but in the absence of tangible facts. To address such interpretations by previous scholars, Tyldesley has had to put forth arguments in this same vacuum. She recognizes that interpretation without corroborating evidence is fundamentally problematic, and, when it comes to such difficult topics, she makes a laudable effort to be honest about how just what is and is not firm fact, and to give previous scholars their due credit. Overall, then, the book does an excellent job of problematizing the study of Hatshepsut--of showing what we know, what we assume (and why), and what is still wholly mystery. Those who read this book even slightly critically should come away with a decently balanced view of Hatshepsut.
At the same time as she displays a scholar's caution in weighing evidence and interpretation, Tyldesley writes a very readable book. This is not a novel or highly-animated biography, but it does hold the reader's attention with lucid writing and a good structure. Even its historiographic analyses should be interesting to the non-specialist--they are not dry and technical, instead having an element of the excitement of a mystery--Tyldesley traces clues and leads us toward some possible answers without closing the topic. The book should be useful and interesting for students of the field as well as for the general public--I read the book for a graduate paper, but I intend to send it to a friend to read for fun!
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- a typical teenager in an atypical position
- A skewed view of Byzantium for children
- Truly excellent historical fiction
- Just Read It
- Good Mixture Of History And Invention
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Anna of Byzantium
Tracy Barrett
Manufacturer: Laurel Leaf
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Binding: Mass Market Paperback
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ASIN: 0440415365
Release Date: 2000-10-10 |
Book Description
Anna Comnena has every reason to feel entitled. She's a princess, her father's firstborn and his chosen successor. Someday she expects to sit on the throne and rule the vast Byzantine Empire. So the birth of a baby brother doesn't perturb her. Nor do the "barbarians" from foreign lands, who think only a son should ascend to power. Anna is as dismissive of them as are her father and his most trusted adviser--his mother, a manipulative woman with whom Anna studies the art of diplomacy. Anna relishes her lessons, proving adept at checkmating opponents in swift moves of mental chess. But as she matures into a young woman, her arrogance and intelligence threaten her grandmother. Anna will be no one's puppet. Almost overnight, Anna sees her dreams of power wrenched from her and bestowed on her little brother. Bitter at the betrayal, Anna waits to avenge herself, and to seize what is rightfully hers.
Customer Reviews:
a typical teenager in an atypical position.......2007-06-10
Anna is the heir to the Byzantium throne, which is quite the tough job for a teenager. Soon, though, Anna finds herself torn between her kind-hearted mother and her harsh and powerful grandmother. She faces all the difficulties of fighting parents, annoying siblings, boyfriends, and growing up (that is, moving from the selfishness of childhood into the selflessness of adulthood, moving from the weakness of dependence on adults to the independence of adulthood), but all in the sphere of royalty and in the Byzantium Empire. This is a beautiful, complex, dramatic, emotional, and thoroughly clever historical fiction. Grade: A
A skewed view of Byzantium for children.......2007-03-19
This story by Ms. Barrett is a good, but seriously flawed fictional account of the life of Anna Comnenus, a Byzantine princess during the medieval era. For those who like fiction with no connection to reality, (and the plethora of fantasy titles, sci-fi and other `historical fiction' tampering with the past on the market today, is a pretty good indication of such!) this is a noble effort, that comes very close to the real thing, but fails at the very point at which it could have made a good novel, a great one. The author's very good pacing of her storyline, her evocation of some of the elements of a Greco-Roman society, are all well executed- it is clear she is a respected writer (the American Library Association gave it awards, as did Booklist and Bulletin).
But the reality of an [Greek] Orthodox culture and the suffusing of that faith in an overtly Christian realm that endured for over 1000 years, are completely missing in Barrett's novel- as are the realities of how deeply intertwined the Christianity of the Apostles and the Greek culture's dependence on them would have more than deeply influenced not only a royal such as Princess Comnena, but the entire court, far more than Barrett envisioned.
The plot strikes me more as a `junior Lucretia Borgia' than a Byzantine monarch's first-born heir. What I mean is this: the intricacies of plotting, revenge, murder, poisoning and all the rest that were a hallmark of the Borgias- and Italian, Papal culture (including some Popes whose offices were bought and paid for by Borgia money!) are in far shorter supply in the Byzantine records, and are by and large totally foreign to an Orthodox phronema [mindset]. Not that they did not exist, mind you! But Barrett's confusion of Roman Catholic and Orthodox prayers, sacramentals, liturgy, and Weltanschauung are apparent to an informed reader, and all of this is tacitly glossed over, downplayed, or clearly absent [by omission rather than commission in the book?] which confuses an Orthodox reader seeking material for his children to have them learn their own history, and points out how such organizations such as the ALA and Booklist are woefully ignorant of world cultures, even though they preach `multiculturalism.' Such obfuscation is made even more obfuscated because of the cover art on the paperback edition, which alludes to some `inner sanctity' of the Princess, showing her with an iconic nimbus of sainthood, that NEVER appears in her actions, or in the pages of the book, nor can be gleaned from the history of the real ruler!
Not once that I recall, is anyone found praying before an iconostasis, a foundational element of ANY truly Orthodox culture, nor are icons even mentioned! Nor is there any mention, allusion, or talk of one of the most astounding events of this era, namely the actions of the Roman schismatics, when Cardinal Humbert, acting as the Pope's henchman, came to Byzantium (Constantinople) with the `anathema' for the Orthodox, over their non-use of the `filioque' [`and the son'] clause in the Nicene Creed - an addition which the West inserted without canonical authority, and then accused the Byzantines of `omitting'- and it is this ONE event, which started the entire break between East and West Rome, which has yet to be healed, over one thousand years later!!! This is not a minor point in dealing with a fictionalized account of Byzance in the year 1100- it would be as if one were to write a fictional story of Lincoln, and not mention the fact that, under his rule, the Civil War took place! This is an example of pure Western hubris, and wilfull ignorance of another, equally valid culture!
Modern writers are all seemingly afflicted with a skewed, adolescent, egotistical temperocentric view of history, [one that is stuck in only THIS century, and THIS era, as `normative' for all of history] and this is increasingly apparent in children's fiction- see my reviews of other historical fiction. Barrett's book is a good look into ego, pride, lack of Christian charity, and the machinations of power, but as a historical novel of either an Orthodox princess, land, or culture, it is severely lacking. Orthodox parents would especially need to do some `caveat emptor' before giving this novel to their children as a `good look' at their own culture.
Truly excellent historical fiction.......2006-03-19
This is a fascinating and well written book. Set in the closing decades of the 11th century, in the legendary city of Constantinople, this book covers the life of the Byzantine princess, Anna Comnena. Named as heir to the throne from an early age, she grows up conceited, self-centred and ambitious but not without compassion and a strong sense of moral duty. She is loved by both her parents, but her father, the Emperor Alexius, is a distant figure, ideolised by Anna, but away on campaign so often that her true father figure becomes, subconsiously, her tutor, the eunuch, Simon. Simon is one of the best characters of this book, an intellegent, kind man deeply concerned with the other influences acting on Anna.
And other influences there are. From a young age, her ruthless grandmother, Anna Dalassena, takes Anna (Comnena) on as her pupil in the arts of statecraft. Anna Dalassena is an interesting character, one that the reader despises and yet admires, mirroring Anna's emotions. Anna (Comnena) is a willing, and to her grandmother, perhaps a little too able pupil. Some reveiwers have commented that Anna (Comnena)behaves too ambitiously to be a likeable character. I think that this is completely unfair and untrue; we know the real Anna, the compassionate girl that lies behind the princess, and the fact that she makes ruthless decisions makes us familiarise with how she developes as a human being all the more.
Anna has two siblings (in real life she had several but they were "cut" for simplicity's sake; the book looses nothing from it), a beautiful, kind, fairly intellegent but generally childish sister and a much younger brother. The brother, John, appears to be weak, spiteful and capricous, and Anna views him as naught but a minor annoyance, but in fact, John Comnenus is the greatest deciever of all the nobility.
As Anna grows up, both Simon and her mother become worried as to how Anna Dalassena is corrupting her with her cruelty and dishonesty. However, in the rigid, protocal obsessed Byzantine court, it is difficult for Anna Comnena to change arangements. Her grandmother has had the ear of the Emperor for too many years to be easily detatched. Her only confident is another of the book's best character, her maid, a Turkish slave called (by the Greeks) Sophia. One of Anna's rare moments of compassion is called into play when she rescues Sophia's illicit lover from execution, thus aquiring Sophia's eternal gratitude and friendship, something she will need as the years draw on.
As Anna grows older, she begins to hate her younger brother for his spitefullness and her grandmother for her cruelty. Unfortunately, while she expresses these emotions (admitedly rather vehemently) to Simon, she is overheard by her younger brother, John. Her grandmother, realising that Anna will be no ones puppet when she takes the throne, and believing John will be hers, sides with John, and Alexius is persuaded to promise the throne to John, not Anna, leaving Anna bitter. As time goes on, Alexius falls into illness and John and Anna Dalassena come to dominate the palace. Anna's claustrophobic life becomes ever more unbearable; her betrothed is killed in war (she is then betrothed to another man, a historian Anna does neither dislike nor love) and she is shut out from the library by her brother in a particularly malicous mood and the throne room, left with nothing to do but plan her revenge on the child that has ruined her life...
The book is difficult to do justice to in a review. The characterisation is remarkable, with some characters being truly... for a lack of a better word, lovable, while others are utterely hideous. A lesser writer might have made the enemies of Anna so pathetic that they inspire contempt rather than dislike, but Barrett successfuly gives them enough depth, and success, to be threatening and unpleasant. John's character, critised in some reviews, I actually think was very strong, (I won't give anything away, but remember John is a master manipulator, greater than even Anna Comnena, and, as we find out, the master of the Great Game of politics herself, Anna Dalassena.
The culture of Byzantium is reflected well in this novel, particularly the attitudes to women (which I understand the author has some knoledge in). This adds another layer of depth to the storyline.
I have some small qualms about the historical distortions of this book. There are several; there were actually many more than three Comneni children, Anna actually married Nikephorous Byrrenius and had several children by him, and here assasination attempt on John was actually made when she was around 35, not 15. However, these changes are in fact almost irrelevant; Anna's life as a married woman would have really been remarkably similar - claustrophobic and limited. The one more dubious change is that of John's personality; while I think John's behaviour in the book is perfectly consistent, the fact he was actually a benevolent and kind ruler somewhat belies his behaviour in this book. Barrett is a historian herself, rather than a novelist (you wouldn't guess from the book's quality) so I don't dispute that she knows her stuff, and I accept that it will have been almost impossible to streamline John's character with reality, but it still strikes something of a sour chord. This is, however, my only irritation with Anna of Byzantium, an otherwise fascinating story set in a neglected time period.
Just Read It.......2006-03-05
Although having been caught in the attempt of murder of her little brother, having her love killed in war, and have been kicked from being the first heir to the throne, Anna of Byzantium stood strong as her life took these nasty turns. She had been the first born of King Alexander III, and despite her parents bearing a son, her father had kept her as the heir to the empire's throne. But when her grandmother Anna Dalassena gets finds out that she won't be able to rule through Anna like she could rule through Alexander, she went out of her way to remove Anna from the succession list and place Anna's brother as the heir of the throne. Putting you in the 11th century, Anna of Byzantium, a historical fiction, will have you experience what the times were like back then.
What was extravagant about this historical fiction was that it was based on one of the few women historians of that time. Many in those centuries thought women were to dumb to write, although Anna proved them wrong. Anna Comnena wrote about her father's legacy as emperor of Byzantium, which also gave historians detail about her life. Anna faced many rigorous times throughout her life. She had to always watch what she did in her life, lest she be exiled. In the end she was banished though for the attempted murder of her brother. She lived in a place in the hills surrounded by nuns. Her courage to keep on going simply baffles you and shows that we are spoiled in our times.
The additions to this historical fiction, Simon and Sophia, were brilliant characters. Although they never existed, the write hoped that Anna had had somebody like them in her life. Sophia had been a Turk, a prisoner of the war Anna's father was fighting, and been made Anna's personal friend and confident. Sophia never was an obedient maid, and Anna soon discovered that she like this "infidel" and they became great friends. Simon was said to be Anna's tutor. In this novel he was the one to rat her out in the attempted murder. He believed still in the great Greek Gods, and despite Anna's loath for him for betraying her, she realized that he had done it only to save her from herself. Simon and Sophia were marvelous additions to the story, for they helped give it the more "real feel" to your mind.
How Tracy Barrett portrayed Anna Dalassena was exquisite. She perfectly showed that Anna Dalassena was the type of person who only though of herself and her bloodline, and anybody not of it was lower in the food chain. Barrett made Anna Dalassena that person that you just want to scream and yell at, and had her fit perfectly in the plot of the novel. When Anna Dalassena took Anna for lessons, her real personality was shown to Anna. Anna saw that her Grandmother was indeed a ferocious liar and plain evil. Anna Dalassena told Anna about how to make treaties and break them, how war was a "glorious" thing, and that to conquer all should always be a goal. Anna Dalassena can be easily thought of as an old and bald female Hitler.
Anna of Byzantium can show you that it wasn't all gold and silver being in a royal family. Your father would be your ruler, and could sentence you to death. You had to watch everything you said and how you acted. You always had to be on guard to make it in the royal court. A novel that gets you reading about a time before America, before Columbus, and before the reign of the English ruler King Henry VIII, you can enjoy a jaw-dropping story that actually gives you a bit of knowledge about the 11th century.
A.Johnson
Good Mixture Of History And Invention.......2006-02-17
I would have rated this book four stars if Tracy Barrett had put more "historical scenery" into her novel. It would have been fleshed out a little better if she had spent more time discussing, say, the clothing, locations, religion, architecture, foods, and overall "culture" of her Byzantine setting. She did a good job rounding out her characters and in heightening the feeling of limitation that came with Anna having to dwell within "protective" walls, first in the imperial fortresses and ultimately in the restrictive convent in which she spent her life after coming out on the wrong end of political machinations. This is a good "clean" story and a nice way to introduce readers within its intended age-range to true events in the history of the later Byzantine period.
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