Book Description
The Spartans were a society of warrior-heroes who were the living exemplars of such core values as duty, discipline, self-sacrifice, and extreme toughness. This book, written by one of the world’s leading experts on Sparta, traces the rise and fall of Spartan society and explores the tremendous influence the Spartans had on their world and even on ours. Paul Cartledge brings to life figures like legendary founding father Lycurgus and King Leonidas, who embodied the heroism so closely identified with this unique culture, and he shows how Spartan women enjoyed an unusually dominant and powerful role in this hyper-masculine society. Based firmly on original sources,
The Spartans is the definitive book about one of the most fascinating cultures of ancient Greece.
Customer Reviews:
Not bad for an extremely short introduction........2007-08-21
It's good for what it is, but I was hoping for a bit more depth. If you want a short introduction to the subject that is well written and a really fast read, this would be perfect for you.
The world of the ancient Spartans made clearer........2007-05-26
These Spartans of ancient Greece are a very interesting lot. Most writings and opinions of this society seem to come from Athens, usually they prove to be rivals of Sparta or from Athenian expatriates like Xenophon. A lifetime of practice in hunting, combat training and preparation for war certainly defined who and what the Spartans were, fueled by the legends of Heracles and other god-men of fame, this society saw itself as heroic in their own time. Victorious in battle and in the Olympic games, usually called upon by other Greek city-states to take the lead in war yet profoundly distrustful of the world outside of Laconia. The rights of women, children and even slaves could be considered progressive in Sparta by the standards of the ancient world. This is impressive considering the hyper-masculine standards the Spartans imposed on themselves and the fact that these warrior-heroes seem to be profoundly religious at the same time. Cartledge does a fine job of bringing these people, now long dead to life. I do not personally buy the authors belief these Spartan men were homosexual, considering their brutal and fanatical upbringing, their view and treatment of their mothers, wives and daughters and the strict obedience to Lycurgus laws proclaiming such activity as Foul and abhorent.
Most of what Cartledge comments on seems to have the ring of truth. Is it worth your money and time to have it on the shelf? Yes! It is extremely interesting and it helps to explain how these men once lived and died.
Herodotus is better.......2007-05-14
If you have not read Herodotus or Thucydides this book might be helpful to understand some parts of Ancient Greek history. Otherwise, Paul Cartledge has a talent of turning bright and interesting history into difficult and dull.
Best Intro to Sparta for the Layman.......2007-04-23
This was the first book on the Spartans I ever read, and it is still the best. I used it as a springboard to delve further, but the fact is that little is known about the Spartans, and I still keep coming back to this book to put everything in perspective. It is easy to read (nowhere near as dry as the same author's history of Lakonia) and pretty much has everything known about the Spartans as a people if you don't want to muddle around in timelines, sources, pottery, etc. One reviewer here thought it was confusing for some reason. My condolences. For everyone else, there is no better place to start. The text is never dry, gets into specifics only when the need arises, yet gives a complete and detailed picture without insulting the reader's intelligence and Cartledge's prose here (unlike his other book) rolls right along with a wry wit. You will learn of Spartan attitudes, structure of their government, customs, etc. Don't worry about it being a companion book to a TV documentary. I never saw it and the book stands firmly on its own.
I also highly recommend a collection of essays about different aspects of Spartan life written by a variety of eminent archeologists called (appropriately enough) "Sparta", edited by Michael Whitby and available on amazon.com It is quite readable, and is the MUST HAVE companion book to the above.
interesting and informative.......2007-04-10
I thought this book would be boring but it was very good and informative. Im glad Paul Cartledge also paid attention to the Spartan Women as well, it was a good guide to all things Spartan. I can see why he is considered the "Authority" on everything Spartan.
Book Description
One of our most provocative military historians, Victor Davis Hanson has given us painstakingly researched and pathbreaking accounts of wars ranging from classical antiquity to the twenty-first century. Now he juxtaposes an ancient conflict with our most urgent modern concerns to create his most engrossing work to date, A War Like No Other.
Over the course of a generation, the Hellenic city-states of Athens and Sparta fought a bloody conflict that resulted in the collapse of Athens and the end of its golden age. Thucydides wrote the standard history of the Peloponnesian War, which has given readers throughout the ages a vivid and authoritative narrative. But Hanson offers readers something new: a complete chronological account that reflects the political background of the time, the strategic thinking of the combatants, the misery of battle in multifaceted theaters, and important insight into how these events echo in the present.
Hanson compellingly portrays the ways Athens and Sparta fought on land and sea, in city and countryside, and details their employment of the full scope of conventional and nonconventional tactics, from sieges to targeted assassinations, torture, and terrorism. He also assesses the crucial roles played by warriors such as Pericles and Lysander, artists, among them Aristophanes, and thinkers including Sophocles and Plato.
Hanson’s perceptive analysis of events and personalities raises many thought-provoking questions: Were Athens and Sparta like America and Russia, two superpowers battling to the death? Is the Peloponnesian War echoed in the endless, frustrating conflicts of Vietnam, Northern Ireland, and the current Middle East? Or was it more like America’s own Civil War, a brutal rift that rent the fabric of a glorious society, or even this century’s “red state—blue state” schism between liberals and conservatives, a cultural war that manifestly controls military policies? Hanson daringly brings the facts to life and unearths the often surprising ways in which the past informs the present.
Brilliantly researched, dynamically written, A War Like No Other is like no other history of this important war.
From the Hardcover edition.
Customer Reviews:
Best book of its kind.......2007-09-20
I am a big fan of those authors like Jared Diamond who try to look at the big picture, but I also occasionally read more "conventional" history which focuses on events during a particular time and place. "A War Like No Other" is the best book of that kind I have ever read. It tries to understand the "why's" of the Peloponnesian War. Why was their a stalemate for so long; why was the effectiveness of Hoplites limited, and why didn't the Greek world realize this earlier; why was cavalry important and why wasn't more use made of it; why were the Greeks so poor at conducting sieges; what determined success at sea; why did Athen invade Syracuse, a fellow democracy, and one very distant; why was the war marked by a greater frequency of atrocities than the Greek world had previously experienced; what was the nature of democracy and oligarchy and what form did social tensions take; why were a few critical battles won or lost. The book also implicitly explains why any one with a classical background might be distrustful of democracy. Finally, students of modern history know the importance of economic might; Hanson, in answering some of his questions, shows the importance of economics in this ancient conflict.
I have a few minor complaints. The maps provided don't always show the places referred to: in fact, the reader would be advised to refer to the map on p.182 when reading the earlier chapters. It would have been helpful if the chapters on armor and cavalry had been earlier. Hanson is a like a home team announcer in sports, the home team being Athens, so that the failure to conquer democratic Syracuse, not just the loss of life (p.212), was a "tragedy". However one may dislike the Spartan state, it was Athens, not Sparta which was expansionist. For a celebration of the Spartan way of life, I would recommend Steven Pressfield's "Gates of Hell", which while a novel, focuses on the Spartan ethos.
Excellent.......2007-05-29
Hanson has crafted a history of the Peloponnesian War which breaks form the traditional, chronological storyline. Instead, Hanson has broken down the conflict into the types of warfare and the whole book is essentially detailing the evolution of Greek warfare into the tactical juggernauts of Thebes and later, Macedon. Basically, Hanson contends that the Peloponnesian War exerted such stress on the Greek city-states, over twenty-seven years, that the old politics of pitched hoplite battles and open sea engagements, a la the Persian Wars, were too ineffective and inefficient. Sparta's armies were preeminent on the field of battle and Athens' fleets ruled the seas without equal, until the final stages of the war. Because of their absolute dominance in their respective fields, the real fighting took place elsewhere: in nightfighting, sieges, the novel use of auxiliaries who attacked with ranged weapons (javelins, bows, slings), a newfound appreciation for the cavalry wing and the impact of the plague on Athens. Hanson's book falls short of the elusive 5-stars because his style sometimes dragged. However, this is a clear, concise, well-researched and well-written analysis of a war that changed everything in the eastern mediterranean, opening the power vacuum for Thebes and Macedon.
Hard to Follow.......2007-04-17
This book breaks the Peloponnesian War into its component parts and discusses how each influenced the strategy of the two sides. The author seems to presuppose a working knowledge of the conflict on the part of the reader. Because this was my first effort at educating myself about the war I found Hanson's explanations hard to follow. "A War Like no Other" is not for beginners. Prior to tackling this book I would suggest first reading Thucydides and some other more basic text about the complicated conflict between Athens and Sparta.
A Landmark History.......2007-02-04
I was encouraged to read Hanson's history, "A War Like No Other", because John Keegan heaped praise upon it in his "History of Warfare". As a devoted reader of Keegan's, I took his advice, picked up a copy, and was not disappointed. It is easy to think that Classics scholarship has little room for innovation, but Hanson manages to break new ground with a history that is also compelling and readable. Indeed, Hanson's work shares much in common with Keegan's seminal masterpiece, "The Face of Battle". Hanson's goal is to explore and, as accurately as possible, reconstruct the raw, local experience of the Peloponnesion War from the eyes of participants.
Hanson's chief innovation is a common-sense, experiential approach to the conflict which yields surprising results. Hanson asks the question, for example, "Was it really possible for the Spartans to ravage the countryside of Attica?" To answer this question, Hanson actually assembled primitive implements that the Spartans would have had, and attempted to "ravage" sections of his farm over a period of time. The conclusion is impressive: estimating generously, it would have been extraordinarily difficult for the Spartans to have inflicted meaningful damage to Athenian surroundings.
In a similar fashion, Hanson explores the physicality of phalanx combat, and shows its relatively modest significance in the war. One gets a sense of the carnage, the noise, terror and psychological intimidation that a Spartan hoplite unit could produce. Even more impressive is Hanson's narration of naval conflict -- specifically, the difficulties in maneuvering, the environment on-board, and the participants.
Hanson's experiential approach does not preclude analysis of the strategic considerations and cultural motivations behind decisions. His analysis of the Athenian assembly -- its demagoguery and passions, or the Spartan oligarchy -- constantly in fear of Helot revolt, is excellent.
Hanson not only covers phalanx and naval combat, but examines siege warfare, terror, strategy, disease, and the overall influence the conflict had on Greek civilization. Indeed, it is this last item that is the most depressing. If there is any difficulty in reading the history, it is the foreknowledge of the tragedy -- the reduction of Athens and other cities, the senseless, pyrrhic victories, the massacres, the waste. It is a tragedy worth witnessing however, for the lessons are meaningful and lasting. One sees the tyranny of the majority, the passions of the mob, and sees also the wisdom of the American Founding Fathers' crafting of an indirect democracy. One sees as well the influence of demagogues, men who felt little compunction ruining their society for personal gain -- demagogues who are still with us, unfortunately, even if the faces, names, times and places have changed.
Hanson does it again.......2007-01-11
If like me you have read previous books on Greek history by Victor Davis Hanson you will know what to expect. This has all the usual Hanson fingerprints - lively but prolix, at times repetitive, with one or two stylistic quirks (in this book Hanson seems to be fixated on the word "calculus"), and a somewhat irritating tendency to draw parallels with more modern events. Yet he can be a compelling writer and this after all is a compelling story.
For a detailed chronicle of the Peloponnesian War go to Donald Kagan's authoritative three-volume work which I recommend highly. For an interesting and very evocative discussion of key themes in the war, Hanson's "A War Like No Other" is well worth your attention.
Product Description
From their heroic performance in the Pacific War, against Japanese troops on godforsaken islands, to their tip-of-the-lance leadership in key operations in the two Gulf Wars, the Marines have proven again and again that elite men with elite training are worth entire armies. James Warrens battle-driven history shows how this elite culture has produced the best warriors in the country, through six decades, several open wars, and many smaller interventions.
Customer Reviews:
Cheerleading At Its Worst.......2007-01-11
I found this book in my local library while searching for information on the activities of the modern United States Marine Corps. While it goes pretty far in meeting this interest, its got some really annoying baggage.
The basic premise of Mr. Warren's story seems to be the United States Marine Corps is the only organization capable of defending the interests of the nation. The other services are failed organizations lacking in the martial skill, charisma and intelligence to do much more than thwart Marines in their activities and to occasionally produce a leader who will praise their greatness. To apparently reinforce this, the author almost always uses lower case terminology when referring to members of the supposedly inferior branches. I really don't see the point of all this. The Marines have an illustrious history which does not need the belittling of other services to help it along.
If Mr. Warren could have proved his premise, I would not be so harsh. But the man just does not seem to have much of a clue when it comes to the background of the "lesser" services and their histories. This can best be seen in his take on activities in Somalia in the early 1990s. From the author's vantage, the Marines pretty much had Somalia stabilized when the Army took over and screwed up everything by not using Marine techniques. This is a massive oversimplification given that the Marine and Army missions in Somalia were so different comparisons just do not make sense. Perhaps if he delved into a little Army specific research he might have realized this. Sadly, it appears the author just relied on official Marine sources such as one would get from Public Affairs Officers. How does one otherwise explain the author's bizarre comment that Marines pioneered the use if helicopters in warfare (yeah, Marines were first to actually use them but most of the innovations came from the Army during the Vietnam War).
The only part I liked was Warren's recounting of recent Marine combat activities. While a bit dry at times, he does managage to pull together the big picture and a foxhole view pretty well. But even then, youve got to put up with lots of propaganda.
a bit revisionist of marine history.......2006-06-25
begins with wwii works forward. has many of the standard historical errrors of the tet and misses most of the final victories in the late sixties.
A thoroughgoing history of the Marines.......2006-04-08
If you're interested in the history of the Marines and how they have maintained their independence and their relevance, this is a great book for you. I enjoyed learning more about how the Marines train their recruits to instill Marine values. Some elements of the military think this sort of thing is outdated; this book makes a good case that it's not.
The book makes an interesting point that in some ways the Marines are diverging more today than they used to from the mainstream civilian American lifestyle. America today has fallen for the idea that happiness lies in buying more stuff. The Marines reject this in favor of loyalty, duty to country, hard work, etc. Materialism is not part of the ethics they teach. I had not thought of the Marines as a force for good in this area before. In a way it gives me hope. As an ecological economist I put a lot of effort into trying to get people to understand that the present American way of life centered around driving to the mall is not making us happier. That lifestyle has no future in any case; the passing of the oil peak and the end of the cheap oil era will see to that. It's great to know that there are some unexpected allies out there. For more on this, see "The Long Emergency" by Kunstler.
One thing the book left me wishing is that the Marines would play more of a role in asking questions about when, where, and why America should fight wars. The Marines have lost a great many good men fighting in utterly pointless wars like Vietnam. The war in Iraq, sadly, looks to be going down the same tragic pathway. Our nation simply cannot afford this sort of war. The Marines clearly love their country. Why aren't they doing more to see that America spends its money and men where they will do some good, instead of pouring them down rat holes?
The first modern battle history of the Marines in a generation and examines how they performed in key conflicts.......2006-04-03
Students of World War II will want to read a different view in American Spartans: The U.S. Marines: A Combat History From Iwo Jima To Iraq. It's the first modern battle history of the Marines in a generation and examines how they performed in key conflicts from World War II to modern times - and how they've changed. The evolution of their strategies and tactics have really undergone transformation over six decades, and American Spartans traces these changes using dozens of interviews, hundreds of print sources, and firsthand observation of modern Marine exercises.
Sixty years of Marine Corps History.......2006-04-03
Americna Spartans relates sixty years of the 230 year history of the Marine Corps from Iwo Jima to Iraq. After reading the first seventy pages it seemed that the book was an antithesis to the creed of MTSgt Percy Webb, a pioneer public relations type from the early 1900s who said, "I had the utmost faith in the service I was writing about and so I did not need to "gild the lily. Warren was writing a masterful tale of "cheerleading". But from that point on it became increasingly evident that the author does not "gild the lily". American Spartans is not written in the gray areas of history. It is written in black and white, reciting the bad along with the good.
The Ribbon Creek Incident in 1956 is reported by telling what happened, how it happened and what resulted from its happening. The excesses in training experienced by recruits are also realted with no excuses offered. Casualities from friendly fire are included in the battle summaries. The dismal "State of the Corps" in the period of 1972-1975 is brutal, but accurate in stating that 50% of the recruits were non-highschool graduates, just under 50% of those who joined in this period "washed-out" prior to completing their first enlistment and 20% were mental group IVs (borderline intelligence). Keep in mind that this 20% was in part forced on the Corps by Secretary of Defense Robert McNamara's 100,000.
The Corps was in danger of losing it's reputation as an elite force. The sociological attitudes of the junior leaders within the Corps at that time contributed to this sad state of affairs. Warren also brings to the fore a number of SNAFUs, such as Mayaguez, of the Corps. This mess and others were generally brought about by combining the Marines with their sister services causing errors in coordination and control. Splitting of the air and ground elements of the Corps lead to many of these errors and unnecessaary casualities resulted.
The leadership of the Marines became cognizant of this state and brought the Corps back from the ashes of the Phoenix Bird to it's rightful position of being the nation's "force-in-readiness".
As the history proceeds from World War II to Korea, the author shows an increasing knowledge of what occurred between the lines. The early years are reported factually but without great depth. As the distance in years is shortened the author includes more and more insight for the reader. This insight adds excitement and thrist for more of what makes history live and breath. The in-depth detail of the post World War "China Marines" creates a beginning of the thrist for more in this history of the Marine Corps and it then continues to the last page.
James Warren shows that the Marine Corps is unique over it's sister services by instilling in its leaders a "can-do" attitude expressed by Elbert Hubbard in "A Letter to Garcia" written in 1899. The senior (at whatever level) issues the order to the junior but does not tell the junior how to compete the mission. The senior expects the junior to employ his own imagination and resources to accomplish the task. This attitude is paramount in the philosophy of the United States Marine Corps.
Warren uses 50-cent words from time to time which created a need for trips to the "Webster". The author may have used these words to keep the readers attention and to insure that alertness was maintained. Warren uses "won" in place of "awarded" in reference to Medals of Honor or Silver Stars which irratates many within the "Brotherhood".
American Spartans expresses a value stated in an axion of Col. John W. Thomason, Jr., "The profession of the military is a noble one and I chose to follow it".
The United States Marine Corps has had its ups and downs but will continue to live in concert with a quote of President Teddy Roosevelt's:
"It is not the critic who counts, not the man who points out where the strong stumbled, or how the doer could have done better. The credit belongs to the man who is in the arena, his face marred by dust, sweat and blood, who strives valiantly, who errs and falls short again and again: there is no effort without error.
But he who tries, who knows the great enthusiasms, the great devotions who spends himself in a worthy cause, at best knows the triumph of achievement, and at worst, fails while daring. His place shall never be with those cold and timid souls who know neither victory nor defeat". The book does "cheerlead" but it does not "gild-the-lily".
Book Description
This is the first book-length examination of Spartan women, covering over a thousand years in the history of women from both the elite and lower classes. Classicist Sarah B. Pomeroy comprehensively analyzes ancient texts and archaeological evidence to construct the world of these elusive though much noticed females. Sparta has always posed a challenge to ancient historians because information about the society is relatively scarce. Most existing scholarship on Sparta concerns the military history of the city and its heavily male-dominated social structure--almost as if there were no women in Sparta. Yet perhaps the most famous of mythic Greek women, Menelaus' wife Helen, the cause of the Trojan War, was herself a Spartan. Written by one of the leading authorities on women in antiquity, Spartan Women reconstructs the lives and the world of Sparta's women, including how their status changed over time and how they held on to their surprising autonomy. Proceeding through the archaic, classical, Hellenistic, and Roman periods, Spartan Women includes discussions of education, family life, reproduction, religion, and athletics.
Customer Reviews:
Being feminine - Spartan style.......2004-07-27
This is a one-of-a-kind exhaustive study on the lives of Laconian women. As Sparta was a closed society, not a whole lot is known about how the men lived, and even less is known about its female denizens. The sparse availability of primary sources on Spartan women makes any study of them rather difficult.
Sarah Pomeroy has consolidated just about everything we know, we think we know as well as what we might hypothosize about knowing about the lady Spartans. This book is a well-researched treatise on what their lives were, or at least could have been like some 2,500 years ago.
Ironically enough for a militaristic state, Spartan women enjoyed myriad freedoms and rights that were denied basically all other women of the classical age. As we look in hindsight, these factors weigh in to give them much more historical interest than women in other Greek city states. Pomeroy does an excellent job of delineating these various traits that separated them from alternative Greek social norms.
This book is highly recommended for both aficionados as well as persons interested in historical women's studies. Either way, this text has a wealth of information that will elucidate the lives of both Spartan women as well as Spartan men.
Most interesting book I've read this year.......2002-11-11
All those intriguing images of Spartan women from art and literature! Of course I wanted to know more about them. But how? Archaeologists and historians have interpreted such facts as survived, along with surviving propaganda written about them at the time – all of it in classical languages that I could not read – according to their own (and often quite male) biases. That is why I am so grateful for Sarah Pomeroy’s book. An expert on women and families in Ancient Greece, Pomeroy is also a resourceful scholar of the utmost integrity and common sense who works her way around and through the omissions and layers of bias to provide a portrait of Spartan women that is richer and more realistic than any hitherto available. This is the most interesting book I have read this year.
Book Description
Shades of Artemis recounts the life of Brasidas, Spartas most audacious commander, from his upbringing in the Spartan military school called the Agoge to his induction into the ranks of the ancient worlds finest warriors. Overcoming petty jealousies and the politics of his own country, he finally rises to the rank of general and embarks on a daring mission to bring Athens to its knees and an end to the Peloponnesian War. With the death of Pericles, the politician Kleon becomes the architect of war policy in Athens, directing the strategy against Sparta. Thucydides, the Athenian general and chronicler of the conflict, bears witness to the brutality of ancient combat, the devastating plague that strikes his city, and the ambition of fellow Athenians that rely on war to sustain them. In the last quarter of the fifth century BC, these three men would meet in battle on the plains of northern Greece and determine the course of Western Civilizations first world war.
Customer Reviews:
Brasidas is honored.......2006-07-17
I remember while reading Thucydides how I thought "Wow, this Brasidas fellow is one very competent General." Following a popular approach, Jon Edward Martin has breathed life into this historical figure, and in doing so he made the General into a living, breathing human who comes complete with a Spartan code-of-ethics.
Like most historical novels that detail ancient Sparta, we get a grand tour of the Agoge. Martin shows Spartan upbringing in all its brutal and arduous detail. While minute details of the Agoge are hard to come by, historically, Martin does a great job of expanding on the well known anecdotes that are known of the training.
The best part of the book for me was Brasidas' character development. To paraphrase Ernest Hemingway, the sign of good fiction is that it seems more real than if it had actually happened. While much of Brasidas' makeup was obviously fabricated in this novel, I can't help but think that the historical Brasidas would have shared the core values of the Spartan represented in this novel.
If you're a fan of ancient Greece and the Spartans, this book is for you. Those who wish to learn more about the landmark Peloponnesian will doubtlessly find this historical novel insightful. In addition to this present novel I would also recommend TIDES OF WAR by Stephen Pressfield and ISLE OF STONE by Nicholas Nicastro. Both novels potray other phases of the war.
A stunning novel of the Pelopenesian War.......2005-04-07
This novel makes a good companion to Steven Pressfield's "Tides of War" Both take place during the Peloponnesian War. However, the focus of each novel is different. While Pressfield's work revolves around Alcibiades and the ill-fated Athenian expedition to Syracuse, neither are mentioned at all by Martin. Instead, Martin has focused on the Spartan Brasidas and the rivalries in Sparta concerning how to fight the war. Thucydides also plays a large role in the book.The rivalries in Sparta in mirrored in Athens, where Pericles wants to stay behind the walls of Athens, while Kleon wants to attack. Be forwarned, however, that Martin's work is not for those without familiarity with Thucydides or the war. There are no maps and there is little, if any, explanation of background events. For example, if you don't know where the Chalcidice is or the importance of Amphipolis, you will be lost. For those with a good knowledge of Greek history, Martin has created a stunning work of historical fiction.
Book Description
The word gay has never described mere homosexuality. Gay is a subculture, a slur, a set of gestures, a slang, a look, a posture, a parade, a rainbow flag, a film genre, a taste in music, a hairstyle, a marketing demographic, a bumper sticker, a political agenda and philosophical viewpoint. Gay is a pre-packaged, superficial persona--a lifestyle. It's a sexual identity that has almost nothing to do with sexuality.
Androphilia is a rejection of the overloaded gay identity and a return to a discussion of homosexuality in terms of desire: a raw, apolitical sexual desire and the sexualized appreciation for masculinity as experienced by men. The gay sensiblility is a near-oblivious embrace of a castrating slur, the nonstop celebration of an age-old, emasulating stimga applied to men who engaged in homosexual acts. Gays and radical queers imagine that they challenge the status quo, but in appropriating the stigma of effeminacy, they merely conform to and confirm long-established expectations. Men who love men have been paradoxically cast as the enemies of masculinity--slaves to the feminist pipe dream of a 'gender-neutral' (read: anti-male, pro-female) world.
Androphlia is a manifesto full of truly dangerous ideas: that men can have sex with men and retain their manhood, that homosexuality can be about championing a masculine ideal rather than attacking it, and that the wicked, oppressive 'construct of masculinity' despised by the gay community could actually enrich and improve the lives of homosexual and bisexual men. Androphilia is for those men who never really bought what the gay community was selling; it's a challenge to leave the gay world completely behind and to rejoin the world of men, unapologetically, as androphliles, but more importantly, as men.
Customer Reviews:
Revolutionary Book with Flaws!.......2007-05-07
Androphilia examines the CORE of why male homosexuality is hated in this world. That core is that gay males (and gay male identity) are seen as effeminate, whereas straight men (and straight male identity) are seen as manly. Jack Malebranche argues that homosexuality need NOT mean this, that a man can be turned on by men sexually and STILL be a man. This is a radical message. The gay community, Malebranche argues, encourages effeminateness in gay men (e.g., "you go girl") and reinforces the very stereotypes that make the mainstream not want to associate with male homosexuality. The book criticizes effeminateness in men because effeminateness--whether perceived or real--separates gay (read, effeminate) men from the larger brotherhood of straight (read, real) men. If gay men embrace traditional masculinity, Malebranche argues, they would discover that rich world that straight men enjoy (e.g., courage, emotional control, and being tough). Straight men would also not be uncomfortable around gay men. This is a revolutionary message.
Androphilia, however, has drawbacks as serious as the book is revolutionary. Its utopian vision is: 1) A world where gay men--not just straight men--have embraced traditional masculinity and 2) A world where androphiles (men sexually attracted to men) and straight men associate as men FIRST and as straight or androphile SECOND. The problem is that the book does not address the IMPLICATIONS of this. If male homosexuality is seen as manly as male heterosexuality, then the fear of male homosexuality would diminish among straight men. As activist Peter Tatchell has argued (barely mentioned in Androphilia), more men would then have straight AND gay sex without identifying themselves as straight or gay. Bisexuality would become the norm. The b word, however, is used but twice in Malebranche's book. The assumption of Androphilia is that the straight/gay divide would continue as if it were an innate difference. Perhaps, that is the gist of the book's problem. In adopting an either/or stance on sex and gender, Malebranche goes to the other extreme. He questions the idea that masculinity is constructed to argue that it is innate. What about BOTH?
The danger of this book is that it elevates straight men (and male heterosexuality) as masculine and does not critically examine heterosexuality itself. Many straight men, for example, wear long hair, earrings, and even nail polish. Many straight men are also soft-spoken. There is nothing wrong with this, of course. But rather than address today's metrosexual phenomenon (which may be a prelude to a bisexual future for men, not just for women), Malebranche instead argues that most straight men are traditionally masculine. This is still true. But things are changing. This flux of masculinity is important because if same-sex attracted men are to embrace their masculinity, they need to first understand WHAT they are embracing.
In the epilogue, Jack Malebranche rejects gay marriage because, in his view, marriage is designed for men and women about to reproduce and raise children. For androphiles, Malebranche proposes fraternal unions based on traditional rituals of manhood (e.g., sharing blood). This is a fresh departure from the gay marriage debate. But Malebranche's solution assumes that ALL androphiles (including bi men) want to be ONLY with men without raising kids. Also, Malebranche's solution does not question the couple paradigm. What about people who want to marry more than one person? There is a growing movement in the West for polyamory (many loves). But Malebranche does not address this in his gay marriage epilogue. Where do bi men and bi women fall in this? What about men who fall in love with the same woman? What if the woman wants to marry both of them in the future? What if one man is straight, one man is bi, and the woman is bi? What would such a marriage look like in the future? Androphilia proposes ONE model for masculinity (e.g., traditional masculinity), ONE model for same-sex unions (e.g., the couple paradigm), and ONE model for same-sex desire (e.g., becoming apolitical and rejecting all queer subcultures). In so doing, this book does not present MORE CHOICES for males--let alone, for females.
Overall, Androphilia calls on men sexually attracted to men to accept their homosexuality as MEN (actually, as one TYPE of man, the traditional kind) and to take responsibility for CHOOSING to act--or not act--on their homosexual desires. This is commendable. But the book rejects romantic love between men as unmanly. The book argues that violence against gays is a thing of the past. This simply isn't true. Malebranche even dismisses as pathological men with different homosexual tastes than he has.
In short, Androphilia is a starting point for seriously original thinking about the future of gay male identity (and culture) and by implication, the future of straight male identity (and culture). But just that: a starting point. Most important, Androphilia resurrects the long-neglected ideas of Adolf Brand, a German writer/activist who, in the 1890s, organized against the idea of homosexual men being a "third sex." Androphilia mentions Brand in passing and that the gay community--and straight world--adopted instead the "urning" (third sex) idea of sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld. Brand's idea that homosexual men were NO DIFFERENT (gender-wise) from heterosexual men was ignored, Malebranche writes in passing. But WHY Brand's ideas were rejected (e.g., the mainstream fear of bisexuality) is not explored. Still, Androphilia resurrects Brand's forgotten paradigm, one that proposed a return to ancient male cultures (e.g., ancient Greece). For this alone, Androphilia deserves to be read. For this IDEA. The INTENT of the book, however, is to create a respectable way of being homosexual. In this, Androphilia echoes writers like Andrew Sullivan and Camille Paglia. The idea of embracing traditional masculinity is valid--up to a point--in an age of masculinity being pathologized. But readers ought to know that beyond this groundbreaking message, this type of literature is part of the conservative backlash against everything that the 1960s represented. The 21st century will require MORE options for humanity, not less.
Can a gay man be a real man?.......2007-04-09
After three decades of it, I might not be ready to start "rejecting the gay identity" but "reclaiming masculinity" is something I have been engaged in for a long time. So Jack Malebranche's "Androphilia" is a welcome voice. When he noted, just for starters, the pervasive infections of "anti-male feminism, victimist mentality and left-wing politics" in the gay mainstream, he had my attention. And kept it. Although Androphilia is a manifesto, it is well-written, accessible and yet richly packed with content that you can return to and mull over after first reading. I have.
An image of my own that supports his take on the Orwellian strangeness of current gay identity/culture: A transgender man who asserts, "Just because I don't have the `right' equipment doesn't mean I'm less a man", will be praised and defended. An ordinary gay male who asserts, "Just because I'm a Republican doesn't mean I'm less gay", will be booed and booted out.
Malebranche has a strong point: contemporary gayness is a pre-packaged ideology and lifestyle often at odds with the natural masculine identity of its own population, and pressure to buy the whole thing is very intense. Deviance, ironically, is not well tolerated.
The primary slur against homosexual men is that we are not men at all, but something less, something like faux-females. Malebranche underestimates the deep contempt many men still have for one of their own who, how shall I put it, kneels or bends over. One defense against this is for us to identify with the slur and defiantly transform it into a mark of pride. This is how the cross, the ancient analogue of our noose or chair, became a religious symbol of victory. The same inversion with the pink triangle.
So, many gay men embrace the feminine that they are accused of aping. And in its defiance, it is a masculine act. But far too often, it is an unintegrated and adolescent, even pathological, femininity. And it remains perpetually stuck in defiance mode, becoming a pose or a cartoon, retarding their maturation as men. Rather than refuting the slur, they sadly prove its point. It is not necessary. It is painful to see. And it is not rare. And it is very rarely challenged from within the gay world.
Although I may differ with Malebranche on the depth of the feminizing stigma, or his reflections on desire as preference vs orientation, or his regrettable but minor decision to use Andrew Sullivan's bogus "Christianist" lingo -and I am glad that he minimized his old notion of fetish--, I stand with him solidly and gratefully on his central androphile point, true for all men, but especially now for us men who love and desire other men. To paraphrase, "Manhood is not the problem, it is the solution".
Essential Reading For The Homosexual Male........2007-04-07
Though the GLBT movement prides itself on diversity it's view have become quite narrow and it's battles, petty. This book removes the blinders off gay men and shows a better way of living and loving. This book affirms and builds men.
A Very Important Book.......2007-03-28
Malebranche, Jack. "Androphilia: A Manifesto--Rejecting the Gay Identity Reclaiming Masculinity", Scapegoat Publishing, 2007.
A Very Important Book
Amos Lassen and Literary Pride
It is not often that a book knocks me out but "Androphilia" by Jack Malebranche did just that. It is such an important book that has so much to say that it should be read by every gay male in the world today. Jack Malebranche tells it like it is and holds nothing back as he shows us how to find a more manly way of doing things and shows us how the return to masculinity is so important. He tells us that we must join "the army of men" and reclaim our masculinity and shows the problems in the gay community today. [...]
For a short book (143 pages) there is a lot to read here. There is definitely a great deal of food for thought here. You do not have to agree with everything in the book but all of us will see ourselves to some degree in it.
A Place of Truth.......2007-03-28
Jack Malebranche speaks to me with the voice of a much sought-after mentor. I concur with a previous comment, lamenting the fact that this voice was not around when I was first coming to grips with my desire. This book is a must-read for any self-identified gay man. Even if you vigorously disagree with Jack's thoughts and observations, it will speak to you. At a gut level, as a man first, I know he writes from a place of truth.
Book Description
The book that inspired the ESPN documentary 151: The Greatest Streak is now Revised and Updated!
By 2002, The Streak—a historic 13-year run of consecutive wins by the Spartans, a high-school football team from Concord, California, that couldn't be beat—was still going strong. In this revised edition of When the Game Stands Tall, author Neil Hayes, who had unrestricted access to the De La Salle team, writes from the inside about the games, the players, and their visionary coach, Bob Ladouceur, who managed to amass the highest winning percentage in football history (.995) through standing for something greater than winning. The book, which also features interviews with major sports figures like Bill Walsh and John Gruden, is a revealing portrait of the coach who believed above all in instilling basic life skills where winning is not the goal, but merely the byproduct of playing the game.
The Streak had become a national story long before it ended in September 2004. In this revised paperback, Neil Hayes catches up on the lives of the main characters and takes readers through the final tumultuous year. What results is a timeless and inspirational story of struggle, tragedy, and triumph.
Customer Reviews:
Great Book, Great Program.......2006-12-20
This is a very well written book by Neil Hayes. I liked how the author looks back on the past of the De La Salle football team, while going through the present season. Another thing I liked was the way the author made you feel like you were part of the team. A way he made you feel that way was by showing the speeches head coach Bob Ladeucuer speeches before and after the games. I liked that Neil Hayes followed the team around to show the more in-depth look at one of the most well known High School teams. I especially liked the speech after their first lose in the 2004 season. Overall I thought this was an extremely good book and I would recommend this to anyone who would enjoy a good sports history novel. This was a great read and was easy for me to understand. I also liked the pictures they had in the book to show what the players were like.
The best of what's around.......2006-07-04
This book is about so much more than football. I am a high school English teacher, but my sports background allows me to appreciate the importance of developing the whole student-to celebrate not only the essays they write, but also the great blocks and hits they have on the field, or the great music they create. Lad and the DLS coaching and teaching staff are successful at doing exactly that: developing whole young men who are thoughtful, respectful,and disciplined in the way a man needs to be as they face the world outside of the classroom, develop meaningful relationships, and eventually become fathers themselves. Thank you so much Coach Lad for allowing Neil Hayes to write this book and inspire the rest of us, football coaches, teachers, parents-to do our best by our boys so they can be their best.
A great example of what happens when you keep the main thing the main thing........2006-04-27
Not everybody that read this book liked it, judging from the other reviews here.
What I appreciated about the book was the look at coach Lad, and what he emphasized in his coaching.
It seemed that he was most concerned with challenging his players to be disciplined, to work hard, to love each other, and to grow in maturity. He uses football to do it, and I would say that he is very good. De La Salle's winning streak is a symptom of a much deeper, more profound success that that football team is experiencing. I love this book because it shows that when you love your players, and they love each other and are willing to work to show each other that love, then winning happens.
When The Game Stands Tall.......2006-04-03
I have had the privilege to play for the De La Salle Spartans on the J.V. level. Although I have never played on var yet, I know what it is to play for the Spartans. There is a brotherhood of love and Unity, that is the key to winning. I know ther is no recruiting, people want to come to De La Salle for more than sports,to learn more about themselves and their lives. After all, the motto is "Enter to learn, leave to serve", and that is exactly what the school and football program do. I would recommend this book to anybody looking for an inspirational guts and glory story.
One of the greatest books about children's sports ever.......2005-01-27
Truly, this book gives an astonishing insight into what is possible when a grown man devotes his life to children's sports. When a small community decides to really identify itself with a children's football team, and when parents and educators alike say "Yes! What really matters to us in life is that our local children's football team wins against other childrens' football teams!" then something extraordinary can happen.
For example, national television stations start broadcasting games between 16-year-olds. People start writing fawning biographies of PE teachers. And parents allow their sons to start on programs of hideous overtraining that will almost certainly lead to long-term injuries, all in the service of the cause of being the nation's finest children's sports team. What dedication! Even people whose children do not attend De La Salle school can bask in the reflected glory of living in an area that has at least one school with a jolly good team of sixteen-year-old football players.
I would unreservedly recommend this book to anyone with an interest in sixteen year old sporting competitions. Indeed, I would recommend it most of all to people who think that a national obsession with high-school football is silly, even laughable. Such people would certainly find this book an eye-opening experience.
Average customer rating:
- Written Well, But Nothing New...
- Great example of historical fiction
- Magic and mystery in Classical Greece
- Bullied youth makes good...
- Great book
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Lion of Macedon
David Gemmell
Manufacturer: Del Rey
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ASIN: 0345485351
Release Date: 2005-12-27 |
Book Description
Over and again, the aged seeress Tamis scried all the possible tomorrows. In every one, dark forces threatened Greece; terrible evil was poised to reenter the world. The future held only one hope: a half-caste Spartan boy, Parmenion. So Tamis made it her mission to see that Parmenion would before the deadliest warrior in the world -- no matter what the cost.
Raised to manhood in Sparta, bullied and forced to fight for his life every day, Parmenion had no notion of the unseen dimensions of magic and mystery that shaped his fate. He grew in strength and cunning. His military genius earned him the title Strategos in Sparta. His triumphs for the city of Thebes made him a hero. And finally his fate led him to the service of Philip of Macedon.
As Tamis had foreseen, Parmenion's destiny was tied to the Dark God, to Philip, and to the yet-unborn Alexander. All too soon the future was upon them. Parmenion stood poised to defeat evil -- or to open the gate for the Dark God to reenter the world.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
Customer Reviews:
Written Well, But Nothing New..........2007-06-27
I absolutely love David Gemmell, but this book was definitely not on par with some of his others. The writing was still crisp and clean, the action excellent, the characters interesting, entertaining, and three-dimensional, but the storyline fell short. I will always recommend any of David Gemmell's writing, but I would recommend some of his others first before the Lion of Macedon.
Parmenion is part Macedonian and part Spartan. Growing up in Sparta, he is never accepted by the other youth. Hate builds in his heart for Sparta and is fully realized after he defeats one of Sparta's best warriors. From then on his mission is to destroy the world's best fighting force. Sparta has never been defeated in battle when they have an equal or greater number of warriors.
Tamis is a seeress that has seen the future and found that there is only one man who can defend the world from the evil that is descending upon it. She ostracizes Parmenion from everything that he loves so he can become the deadliest warrior and general in the world and combat the evil coming.
David Gemmell continues with his excellent writing, but this story has been played out many times. He wrote a book in his Drenai tales that is similar to the Lion of Macedon (The King Beyond the Gate). I still recommend this book to those who love reading about ancient Greece and avid fantasy readers. Enjoy!
Great example of historical fiction.......2007-04-24
This and Dark Prince are both some very good reading for any fan of historical fiction. Gemmell really did his homework on Sparta and the Greeks for these couple of books. Reading them both was a great plessure for me. Parmenian is a great lead character and Gemmell finds plenty of other likable characters to further the story. The battles are great as can be expected from Gemmel. Really historical fiction as it ought to be written.
Magic and mystery in Classical Greece.......2006-11-24
Young Spartan warrior Parmenion has had his life manipulated by a seer/witch in order to help her fight the birth of the Dark God. Along the way he is taught soldiering skills by the warrior-based society of the ancient Spartans, eventually taught stratagy, and becomes a great mercenary general in the Persian-Greek world. He is finally hired on by Philip of Macadonia to whip up an army to help protect against invasions, but ends up playing a major role in the life of yet unborn Alexander the Great. But with his greatness in war comes the price; he is an outcast as a child in Sparta because he is a half breed, in Thebes he makes a major mistake with a young woman that costs them both, and he suffers from a brain tumor, though that is taken care of by magic.
The book is a bit long, but it is never boring. The action is streight forward, but always exciting. The characters are alive and feel so real. David Gemmell dose such a great job with the real people as well as the fictional ones. Philip wants a great lagacy for his son and Aristotle is a pretty cool wizard reminecient of Obi-Wan Kanobi. If I had one complaint it is that when Parmenion goes into Hades on his missio toward the end, there really wasn't a lot of detail about it. I wasn't expecting Dante's "Divine Comedy", but I was hoping for some more details. Oh well.
Great light historical fantasy though don't think this is a gospel for what life was like back then. Still great adventure and fu8n reading.
Bullied youth makes good..........2006-08-03
Gemmell's ambitious book takes an intimate look at a name that is associated with Alexander the Great, but not much else is known about him.
He is Parmenion, called the Death of Nations.
This is a very underrated book within David Gemmell's ever-increasing back catalouge. As guessed, it is situated in ancient Greece, several decades before the emergence of the great conqueror Alexander the Great.
We get to meet the main character, Parmenion, when he is just a young boy. He is a half-Spartan who is victimised, bullied, and despised by the Spartans. The Spartans are a warrior race who value military skills above all others. Their prejudice towards outsiders is just as legendary as their prowess on the battlefield.
Will Parmenion be able to rise above this, will he become bitter and twisted, will there be any joy in the life of this sorrowful, but brilliant boy? These are the kind of questions you will ask yourself as you read through the novel. I couldn't put it down! In the best of Greek tradition, the story is essentially a tragedy. Just when you thik good things will happen for our character, they will be just as quickly snatched away.
I think anybody who had a rough childhood would really relate to Parmenion. David Gemmell gives him life through the pages without descending into maudlin sentimentality. The reader can appreciate the motives for his actions, you are swept into his world and will cheer his triumphs against the odds, and you may shed a tear or two when things just don't work out for him.
I loved this book. Read it if you enjoyed the new Troy novel, or the films Alexander or Troy. Or just read it if you want to read about a boy rising past the abuse of his peers to become one of the greatest generals yet known.
Great book.......2006-04-05
Indeed, this is Gemmell's best work. A breathtaking, fast paced action / fantasy narrative filled with great characters, heroic deeds, passion, battles and death. Congratulations. Unfortunately, this book is so good that the follow-up to it, DARK PRINCE, is a little bit of a let down.
Book Description
The complex and distinctive Spartan tradition has been a prominent theme in western thinking from antiquity to today. Sparta is also one of a handful of ancient Greek cities with enough existing evidence for historians to create a realistic social portrait. Over the past quarter-century Paul Cartledge has established himself as the leading international authority on ancient Sparta. Spartan Reflections is a superb collection of his essays--two are published here for the first time, and the rest, often difficult to locate, have been revised and updated for publication in book form. Giving us a real sense of what Sparta was like as a culture, these essays constitute a fascinating introduction to and overview of ancient Spartan history and its reception. This collection, unique in breadth and scope, will be an essential source for anyone interested in this idiosyncratic society.
Cartledge brings us up to date on what is known about the most important and intriguing aspects of Sparta: its military development, questions of gender and sexuality, and the difficult problem of artistic and literary aspects of Sparta. We learn about the institutions that distinguished Sparta from other city-states, including its religion, education process, degree of literacy, secret service, unusual system of servitude, and institutionalized pederasty. Throughout, Cartledge also makes important comparisons with Athens, helping us grasp what is really striking about Sparta.
Cartledge's writing is clear and engaging as he draws from myriad sources both ancient and modern, as well as from political and cultural theory. These essays, together with their magisterial bibliography, demonstrate his remarkable scholarly and intellectual range. Spartan Reflections will be an important source on the most significant issues in Sparta scholarship today as well as a fascinating look at this culture for general readers.
A Selection of the History Book Club
Customer Reviews:
retaliation.......2004-11-14
for the above reviewer, too academic you say, how much so are you the general reader. i'm 20, in my second year at uni studying classical greece and it's at a level to which everyone can read. it is an insult to the general readers intelligence that you refer to it as too academic. may i suggest concentration!
Reflections on a mirage.......2004-04-26
Paul Cartledge of Cambridge university is one of the foremost philhellenes and classical scholars in the world. Beyond that, to my knowledge he is the preeminent authority on ancient Sparta of the present age. In fact, I can only think of a handful of names that would qualify as being in his class.
The present book is a compilation of essays that Cartledge wrote during various times during his intellectual career. Cartledge engages sundry enduring questions that the in inquisitor of Spartan history is apt to have.
Some of the topics covered include the Laconian approach to slavery, homosexuality, the art of war, the duel kingship concept, the idea of the egalitarian citizen, the position and treatment of Lacedamon women as well as the AGOGE [i.e.: public education] of young Spartan males.
Through it all, Cartledge attempts an elucidation between what Sparta was "really" like and what he liked to call the Spartan "mirage" would have outsiders believe. The latter was how Sparta wished to project herself to all other Greek city states.
The present text is far easier to read than his SPARTA AND LACONIA (which was his doctoral dissertation presented in book form). Nevertheless, it would be prudent for the reader to have at least some familiarity with the Homeric epics as well as Herodotus and Thucydides. If you're able to grasp some of the inferences Cartledge makes, you'll be fine. If not, you might get lost.
This is a book that should be read by all graduate and undergraduate classrooms where the course is has in mind a focus on ancient Sparta. If Sparta is what you're interested in, then Cartledge is whom you should be reading. He really is that good.
TOO ACADEMIC.......2002-02-12
This book is not for the general reader interested in Sparta or Greek history. It is much too academic, with numerous references to other Greek scholars and to their writings. I know Paul Cartledge is an expert in the subject, but because of the schoarly manner in which this book was written, I just could not finish it.
Book Description
These eyes...he'd seen them before, staring at him, but he didn't remember where, or when. He remembered, without knowing why.
In this epic story filled with passion, courage, and adventure, the author of the internationally bestselling Alexander trilogy tells the tale of two warriors united by blood and torn apart by law.
This is the saga of a Spartan family, unraveled by a harsh custom of their people that causes them to abandon one of their own. The elder son, Brithos, strong and healthy, will live comfortably; but Talos, weak and feeble, must be sacrificed to the wolves of Mount Taygetus. Unbeknownst to his grieving parents, however, the child is miraculously found and saved by a Helot -- the once-proud people who now live in servitude to Sparta.
While his brother is raised in the mighty warrior caste, Talos, who is now a slave, is schooled in the history of the Helot people by his adoptive father. It is then that he learns of the legend of Aristodemus, the last King of the Helots, whose armor, it is prophesied, will be worn again by the liberator of his vanquished race. When the brothers meet for the first time since their separation, it is over crossed swords as Talos defends the woman he loves from the brutality of Brithos. But fate has a greater destiny in store for them -- and as war looms on the horizon, their lives become entwined in ways neither could have imagined. They live out their story in a world dominated by the clash between the Persian empire and the city-states of Greece until the voice of their blood and of human solidarity unites them in a thrilling, singular enterprise.
Customer Reviews:
Interesting twist to the tale of '300'..........2007-09-11
Although this book didn't focus DIRECTLY on the '300', thier story was a very important part to this story. I did enjoy this novel but the reason why I only gave it 3 stars was because it had to many down parts for me. Not enough to keep me from reading, but enough to bother me a little.
The story was a good one and I enjoyed the battle, blood, and gore! Exactly what a story in this time frame ought to have.
pretty good read.......2007-04-02
You can always tell who favors or despises the Spartan legacy by what they write about. Although you can hardly call the Spartans sweethearts one still admires them for their discipline and the way they upheld their laws. Mr. Manfredi it seems didn't like them very much, and i can understand it. I did enjoy this book, although i found it a bit lopsided. It seems that Talos goes through alot of hardship just to disappear at the end. Sometimes he would be portrayed as happy as a slave then it would portray him as downtrodden. winch one is it?? well the story line was good, alot of these types of books always revolve around a servant and what he witnesses in his servitude. ie. (the ten thousand, Gates of Fire). This was kind of more about the Helots than the Spartans and the Messenian revolt. Its a good read, im not sure how much of this was made up, but its good anyway. Yes I love Historical Fiction and I've basically read all of these books in about 3 days or less but I think that I'm going to have to get used to the fact that i will never find another book as good as Gates of Fire...(sigh)
Damn Good Read.......2005-12-05
Let's cut to the chase: This novel is at least as good as Pressfield's "Gates of Fire" (an excellent book), but in two areas I feel it surpasses it. The first is that it is a faster moving story. The second is that although Manfredi, like Pressfield, clearly admires the spartans, he doesn't sanitize them quite as much. Both novels are written from the perspective of a slave, but Manfredi's Talos has feelings much more in line with what a slave would feel, I think. Both involve Thermopylae, but where that is the central theme of "Gates of Fire", here it is one occurance among many halfway through the story. Elsewhere in the reviews for this book, I found one reader who felt a little lost with a few of the characters. Manfredi does an excellent job of bringing to life historical figures such as exiled King Demaratus, but I admit that it may help to have a general understanding of the Persian war. Interestingly, the prose flows particularly well for a translation. If you like reading about ancient heroics, I highly recommend this novel.
Great and Movin story.......2005-11-03
I've finished this book only days ago and still want to go back and re-read it again. It's a fantastic story. The story was about Talos and Brithos who were brothers but because of their unfortunate that they had to be separated and walked in t a different path. When time came, they met again but.......
ANyway, it's boring to write the plot of the story for u guys to read, u could read it at the back of the book. My review of the story is that it's a very touchign story as I don't know much about twins stuff, their emotion towards each other....The second part is about mostly Talos and the war he had ahead of him which is also very good.
I agree with one of the guy who wrote comment about Valerio not introduce some of the characters well enough and we might be a bit confused about some of the not-so-important characters but that wouldn't be much of a problem actually.
Buy it ppl, I know u guys would like it. I hate to admit but I think it is even better than the alexander trilogy coz Alexander is my hero.....hehehhehe
Twin emotions, Twin lives, Twin Choices.......2005-09-22
This is the second book by Manfredi that I have read - the first one being Last Legion - and I must say this was more intense than Last Legion. I have always wondered when people talk about joy and anguish being twin emotions. I could never imagine how 2 very different feelings could be as close. But reading this book makes you realise what it exactly feels like. To be exuberant and torn by anguish at the same time. This story is truly about Talos (Kleidemos), but his brother plays an important part in the story as well. In a way, Brithos is a fixed point of reference against the changes that occur in Talos/Kleidemos character. Its about the 2 lives that the Talos (Kleidemos) lives through and the choice he makes. I felt that this work might have had more stylish translation, it seemed to have a serene quality. I would recommend it to any history buff. Its a very moving tale. It can make you cry, but it definitely makes respect Spartans and Helots for who they were, and what they valued most.
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Thermopylae: The Battle for the West
Thermopylae: The Battle That Changed the World
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The Isle of Stone: A Novel of Ancient Sparta
