When Katherine Of Aragon wrote a heartfelt plea to her father, she held the title of Princess of Wales through her marriage to Prince Arthur of England. The couple had not been married long before the prince’s untimely death in 1502 at Ludlow Castle. Faced now with widowhood and all alone in a foreign country, […]
The strongest quality Blackbeard had were his ability to terrify others. It was a skill that allowed him to be a successful pirate without having to spill a lot of blood. He had a long black beard that would cover his whole face giving him a very menacing appearance. He is known for being one […]
Yes, nearly forty years ago we were on summer holiday on that wonderful Greek island, staying in a not-so-wonderful taverna. Nevertheless, I still fondly remember buying this book in an open air stall, somewhere near the waterfront of Aghios Nikolaos, quite early on in the holiday. I had read it before we left about ten days later.
Somehow we had conspired to be away when Lady Diana Spencer married the heir to the British throne – but enough of that.
Judging By The Cover
As a lover of history (so-called) and art, I was initially drawn to the cover. Few figures in ancient history are as iconic as Alexander The Great, who conquered much of the then known world by his untimely (or timely) demise in 323 BC in Babylon.
But of course, supposed facts are one thing, but weaving them together in an entertaining narrative is quite another. In my opinion, Mary Renault succeeded brilliantly. She is of course most associated with being a fine historical novelist with a penchant for ancient Greece, prerequisites for writing this acclaimed biography.
Vivid
I remember vividly (I have yet to re-read it) that it was easy to read, making me almost believe that I too was being tutored by Aristotle and later courting the beautiful Roxanne.
The fact that I did most of my reading on the hot sand or in a shady cafe, only added to the experience of travelling relentlessly eastward in my imagination.
Charismatic
Most especially the notion of conquest, that it is in fact a product of the mind, came across very strongly – to the point that by the end of the book I felt as if I had personally known this clearly insatiable and charismatic man — doubtless testimony to a great writer.
Maybe that day when I finally re-read this book is not too far away, though somehow I don’t think it will be in Crete.
A typical question when people mention astrology. How many of them are aware that this information refers to a solar position in a birth chart? But even that description is insufficient . To describe sun’s location in a chart we need a house number as well. Sometimes it is even more valuable information than the […]
Constantinople is a beautiful city that was founded by Roman Emperor Constantine I in 324 CE. The city served as the capital for the Roman Empire and later the Byzantine Empire. It has faced many sieges and attacks throughout the years but managed to remain standing. The city had once been the most heavily fortified […]
Ciscography 