Welcome to Litsy!

Theodora reading about Ancient Rome.
#Rome #TuxedoCats #catsandbooks #readingcats #cats

Excellently written, Mike Duncan does a thorough job at communicating the years and decades of Roman history prior to the rise of figures like Crassus, Pompey, and Caesar. Besides covering major events, wars, and social tensions, this book highlights how these events frequently led to constitutional crises, and how these crises frequently resulted in violations of established laws and precedents, Additionally, Duncan frequently mentions and highlights how these events influenced later events and built upon each other. Highly recommend the book.

“Thieves of private property pass their lives in chains; thieves of public property in riches and luxury.” - Cato the Elder

Excellent. It is clear, readable and entertaining. The author looks at Roman history from the final destruction of Carthage to the rise of Julius Caesar. If you ever wondered about the Gracchi brothers, Marius (the 3rd Founder of Rome), and Sulla, then this is the book for you! Excellent.

Interesting overview of a period that often gets ignored in favour of later events

This was a great read, eady to follow, and shining light on a less discussed period of Roman History.

The most recent addictions to my to read stack. Delving into some Ancient Histor😄

Very interesting account of Roman history from the creation of the republic to the beginning of the end with the empire.

Storm Before The Storm was a book club choice. I didn‘t know much about Roman history, so I wished this book would have had a timeline or chart that I could have referenced! There are several interesting parallels between the events and ideas in this book and the present, so we had a great discussion!

Wow. As a lover of Roman history, I've always been curious about what led up to the Roman Republic failing and transforming into the Roman Empire. Mike Duncan took me from the beginning of the end to the next beginning with so many awesome characters. Whoever says history is boring hasn't paid attention to the oversized personalities of the past. They are what fictional characters should aspire to be.

It's 81°f in South Louisiana. So I'll just read outside while I wait for my delivery.

"Surprisingly, there has been much less written about how the Roman Republic came to the brink of disaster in the first place--a question that is perhaps more relevant today than ever. A raging fire naturally commands attention, but to prevent future fires, one must ask how the fire started."

A fascinating look at the transition from the Roman Republic to the Roman Empire. It's very hard not to notice parallels between current American politics and those in ancient Rome. Human history does seem to cycle around and around. 5 💥💥💥💥💥 out of 5.

Book: Exiles At The Well of Souls
Author: Harlan Ellison (RIP)
Movie: Escape From New York
Food: Eclairs
#MANICMONDAY @JOSCHO

The more I read of history the more I realize how little I know of the world. Packed full of stories and details, my favorite tidbit from this is the fact that if Julius Caesar hadn't had some mad networking skills to get himself off a massive kill list the course of history would've run very differently (I think there's the making of an alt-universe novel in that somewhere). Great listen and some interesting parallels if you can spot them.

A pretty accessible work on the beginning of the end of the Roman Republic. Adapted from a podcast (I listened to the audio). It made me want to listen to SPQR again!

Fun and enjoyable read as the reader travels through Rome‘s not so well known aspect of its history. The books reads like a story with some familiar names and some not so familiar ones. Sometimes the people are just introduced for a line or two then they disappear along with Rome‘s republic, but overall great way to introduce yourself to Roman politics and history

“Reflecting on the recurrent civil wars of the Late Republic, Sallust said, “It is this spirit which has commonly ruined great nations, when one party desires to triumph over another by any and every means and to avenge itself on the vanquished with excessive cruelty.”
― Mike Duncan, The Storm Before the Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic

“But this was an age when a lie was not a lie if a man had the audacity to keep asserting the lie was true.”
― Mike Duncan, The Storm Before the Storm: The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic

I went the audiobook route with this history of the late Roman Republic. I was not very familiar with the politicians featured (this is right before Caesar and Augustus). Unfortunately, I HATED the author‘s voice (he‘s famous for a history podcast). His voice was tinny and annoying. I just prefer narrators with English accents whose deep voices resonate with solemnity. Be prepared for a lot of Latin names!!! 🗡

I am a big fan of the author's two podcasts, The History of Rome and Revolutions. THoR was one of the first podcasts I subscribed to.

#TBRtemptation post 1! To be released soon. For 400 years, the Roman Republic never had a single person at its helm. Elected consuls would peacefully hand power to the the next and so on. When the Republic exploded with its growing Mediterranean empire, political conflicts and civil wars. This book focuses on 133-80 BC. What parallels can be drawn with today: political polarization, corruption, quagmires, etc.? #blameLitsy #blameMrBook 😎