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Claudius the God And His Wife Messalina Robert Graves Books

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Claudius the God And His Wife Messalina Robert Graves Books

I'm not a scholar. I don't consider myself to be super-intellectual. I started reading 12 Caesars because I love history and it sounded fascinating. I admit, however, the way it is formatted made it hard for me to enjoy and sometimes follow. I mentioned it to my friend who IS amazingly smart and well-versed in pretty much everything and he suggested I might enjoy I, Claudius since it is fiction based on the 12 Caesars and more readable (for me). I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was riveting and thought provoking. I learned more about ancient Roman culture and history and made some connections I hadn't made before about other ancient cultures of that time period. This book made me feel as if I was watching the story unfold right there. Now I do realize this is fiction and am always careful to take that into consideration, but from what I've read about the author, it seems he went to great effort to base it on as much historical supporting evidence that's available. I believe he probably closely created a book based in that time period as possible. It feels authentic (again, not a scholar nor a historian so I can only report my impressions). I definitely recommend it for any history buff. It was great and I'm just starting the next book that continues the story.


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Claudius the God And His Wife Messalina Robert Graves Books Reviews

This was an engaging novel from the start--humorous, dramatic and skillfully written. Despite the long list of historical characters living out their lives in these pages, the story is easy to follow. From the witty narrator who hides his intelligence behind a stutter, to an assortment of unscrupulous schemers, power-mad emperors and doomed heros--Graves' cast of vibrant characters are certainly memorable. For anyone interested in the period after fall of the Roman Republic, or just in an engrossing read full of rich and interesting characters, I would highly recommend this book.
Robert Graves has written an amazing book based on actual Roman history. Most of the book focuses on Augustus, Tiberius, and the last part on Caligula. They also mention Germanicus, Drussus, Livia, and the horrors Claudius experience growing up. You can say Claudius was a victim of child abuse, not sexual, but psychological. Imagine having a grandmother yelling "he should have been exposed," meaning, they should have left the baby in the middle of the woods for him to die of hunger or get eaten by animals. Romans could be extremely cruel.

[SPOILER ALERT]

Consider Livia's justification for her actions. She says she did everything for the sake of the Empire and not herself, yet by doing all those awful things, all those poisonings, she fears eternal damnation in hell, which is why he wants Claudius to make her a God someday, so she won't go to hell. Wouldn't it be better to live a virtuous life instead?

Of course, you do get to understand her point of view when she explains that it was her husband who murdered his father, during the Augustan proscriptions, and she never forgot she was her father's daughter, so maybe she wanted revenge. Either way, it felt good when she made peace with Claudius, Livia was horrible to Claudius for most of his life, with the exception of his mother who never had a kind word to say to his son, even when she announced her suicide, she never said "I love you." Instead, she regretted that all her perfect children are dead, murdered by Tiberius, and only Claudius the idiot has survived. Of Claudius she said that nothing can take him down.

I also like Claudius favorite prostitute, a woman who is kind, wise, and better than the backstabbing nobility. A woman who insists on getting paid in cash instead of gifts. Gifts after all attract attention while cash is easy to hide. I also like the advice Claudius got, about pretending to be an idiot and exaggerating his stammer to avoid being murdered.
What is it about the Romans and their history that makes reading a book about their lives not only educational, but also very entertaining? I suppose a lot of it has to do with the people themselves. With all the intrigue, scheming, conspiracy and illicit affairs going on you tend to forget that these people actually existed in real-life and are not just characters you could easily find in a modern day soap opera. It’s thoughts such as these that ran through my mind as I read Robert Graves’ I, Claudius.

While you did get all the intrigue surrounding Claudius, it wasn’t at the expense of the quality of information in this “autobiography” by Claudius. This book may be about Claudius’ life and his account of the major events and people in his life, but the wealth of information about Roman life is impressive. Through Claudius, Graves provided details of what happened behind the scenes of the Senate and the various Emperors that have reign during his life. You get insight into the culture and political scene of the times. Reading Claudius’ narrative, I was really drawn into the intricate web of lies and conspiracies that were prevalent and by those who were the main perpetrators such as Livia, Claudius’ grandmother. While this is a historical account of Claudius’ time, you never get the sense that you’re reading a history book. Having the book be an “autobiography” of Claudius’ enable Graves to tell historical events as if Claudius was telling a story. It prevented the book from having a stale and monotonous tone which would’ve made it difficult for me to keep my attention.

I appreciated the depth of information involved in this book. You can tell that time and research went into putting this book together. And to have it all told in such a way that you were able to learn while being entertained is what made this book an enjoyable read for me. With all the scheming and determined cast of characters, it’s easy to forget these are actual historical figures. I suppose it’s easy to read books such as these when those involved do things that make it difficult for you to turn away.
I'm not a scholar. I don't consider myself to be super-intellectual. I started reading 12 Caesars because I love history and it sounded fascinating. I admit, however, the way it is formatted made it hard for me to enjoy and sometimes follow. I mentioned it to my friend who IS amazingly smart and well-versed in pretty much everything and he suggested I might enjoy I, Claudius since it is fiction based on the 12 Caesars and more readable (for me). I thoroughly enjoyed it. It was riveting and thought provoking. I learned more about ancient Roman culture and history and made some connections I hadn't made before about other ancient cultures of that time period. This book made me feel as if I was watching the story unfold right there. Now I do realize this is fiction and am always careful to take that into consideration, but from what I've read about the author, it seems he went to great effort to base it on as much historical supporting evidence that's available. I believe he probably closely created a book based in that time period as possible. It feels authentic (again, not a scholar nor a historian so I can only report my impressions). I definitely recommend it for any history buff. It was great and I'm just starting the next book that continues the story.