Ten Caesars: Examining the Lives of Rome's Most Notable Emperors from Augustus to Constantine by Barry Strauss

Simon: This book provides a very useful introduction to anyone wanting to learn about Roman imperial history. Filled with plenty of imagery, it takes you on a whistle-stop tour through the ages starting with Augustus Caesar and ending with Constantine the Great. I quite enjoyed the message that the author attempted to convey; at it's core, imperial Rome was an imperfect institution, but by remaining ruthlessly pragmatic it survived and thrived for centuries and perhaps even millennia.

Highly recommended.

United Kingdom on Oct 21, 2023

Charles Scott: "Ten Caesars" is a factual historical account of several of the great many infamous rulers of Rome, written by Barry Strauss, and published in 2019. Once you've finished reading the book, you get a distinct sense of accomplishment, of great achievement. On second thought, maybe it wasn't quite as ambitious an adventure as the pilots and crew aboard the Gulfstream G-5 corporate jet that landed at the Kennedy Space Center had in 2019, after having circumnavigated the globe from pole to pole in record time, with a feeling of relief that it's finally over and done without a hitch, or hardly any complication whatsoever. Nevertheless, the sensation of sheer satisfaction is a lot like acquiring the mystical secret truth, that possessing the power to conquer the world and being able to defeat all of your personal demons at once and for forevermore can be a truly dangerous thing, universally and potentially, morally devastating.
My philosophy is making friends now before it's too late, without the deified demagoguery or groggy demonology.
Regardless, we're waiting with bated breath for authors to publish their best-selling versions of appropriate sequels to the book. Perhaps, "The...

United States on Sep 05, 2023

Alberto Ulloa: El libro da un buen barrido sobre estos diez emperadores y revisa con menos detalle los emperadores de transición entre ellos. No profundiza mucho pero permite entender los aportes y/o yerros más importantes de cada uno. Vale la pena leerlo.

United States on Jun 18, 2023

S. Nobile: The main line of the narrative - the changes each of the Caesars brought to the Roman Empire’s government, is solid but the book lacks details and context to make it a 5 star read

United Kingdom on Jan 03, 2023

michael Billington: This book tells the story of the empire by focusing on the lives of ten of the men who ruled as emperors of the greatest empire in history. By focusing on the individuals the author is able to show how the character of the empire changed over time and the importance of the individual. The essays also show wider trends and are able to be enjoyed as a means of learning about the individual emperor themselves and particular eras of imperial rule. Very enjoyable.

United Kingdom on Jul 08, 2021

Anthony: This description of the 10 most important emperors from Octavian to Constantine is a fascinating and very human story despite their being literally worshipped as gods. For anyone interested in any form of history, the study of the rulers is a good place to start. This book describes the rulers themselves and the environment in which they loved, hated, lived and ruled, and, as such, is a great way to learn and better understand a most important section of the Roman era. Of course, this is only a part of the story of the Roman world which anyway extends in some sense from the 8th century BC to the 15th century AD. However, the Imperial era of the four centuries at the start of the Christian Era, in many ways, characterises our view of what we mean by 'The Romans'. In this book, Barry Straus successfully brings us close to this era and shows us the stresses and strains on the Roman Empire, how the emperors reacted, their successes and failures as well as the violence and perfidy of almost all of them - even the 'good' ones! This is a wonderful interwoven story of these people and the Romans in general.
Very readable, nicely written and completely accessible to all.

United Kingdom on Mar 03, 2021

George Poirier: In this riveting book, the author outlines the lives of ten Roman Emperors, from Augustus to Constantine, as indicated in the book’s subtitle. He states that he selected these ten particular emperors because he feels that they were the ten most successful ones. But he also briefly discusses some of the other emperors who ruled over those centuries but are not highlighted by having their own chapters. In each case, the emperor’s accomplishments are discussed as well as his character, background, strong points and weaknesses. Throughout the book, one reads about wars, conquests, murders, executions, forced suicides, exiles, construction projects, corruption, etc., as one would expect in the Roman Empire.

I have enjoyed this author’s books very much over the years, having read several of them. In this case, as in the others, the author’s prose is very clear, friendly, accessible, lively, authoritative and immensely engaging. This book should be of particular interest to those who are fascinated by the history of the Roman Empire, particularly its emperors, but who do not wish to read a whole series of individual biographies. A wonderful book!

Canada on Jun 20, 2019

Donald: SUMMARY. This book is deceptively short but information-rich. Author Strauss masterfully chooses ten Caesars whose reigns can serve as “jump points” to span this high period of the Western Roman Empire. The book was well-researched yet interesting and easy to understand. Strauss appears to have visited numerous Roman sites, and comments first-hand on their features. By using these prominent Caesars as focal points, Strauss teaches Roman history and introduces the reader to Roman times.

Strauss personifies the Caesars by describing them physically from their Roman coinage and surviving statuary, and by speculating about their personalities. He also delves into family relationships and their effect on ruling and succession. The author provides two excellent guides to understand the dynastic framework: a “cast of characters” and a “family tree” for each dynasty. Unfortunately, this material is in the back of the book and not readily discovered.

This book reminded me that some of the Roman traditions contributed to the modern world, such as a republican government, a system of laws, and the proclamation of Sunday as a day of rest. But their times also echo...

United States on Jun 03, 2019