Lives of the CaesarsMy rating: 3 of 5 stars

An enjoyable book that I have to say I started skimming through after about 130 pages. It is definitely a good reference and will find a place on my shelf. At times it felt like People Magazine, but that also made these emperors more human. While the veracity of the stories is debatable, it is a contemporary reference that bears consideration.

I enjoyed reading that many of the emperors were multilingual, e.g. Tiberius who read and wrote poetry in Latin and Greek and was well-versed in mythology (70-71, p. 132). Gaius Caesar (“Caligula”) quoted Homer to visiting kings: “Let there be one Lord, one King!” (Caligula 22, p. 146). The line referenced is from the Iliad (2:204). I pulled down my Greek & Latin edition of the Iliad and found the line right there. So very cool.

Having just finished Mary Beard’s SPQR, I was acquainted with many of the personalities mentioned, which helped immensely. I wouldn’t come at this book without having had one or more introductions to the history of the early Roman Empire.