Synopses & Reviews
"The father of history," as Cicero called him, and a writer possessed of remarkable narrative gifts, enormous scope, and considerable charm, Herodotus has always been beloved by readers well-versed in the classics. Compelled by his desire to "prevent the traces of human events from being erased by time," Herotodus recounts the incidents preceding and following the Persian Wars. He gives us much more than military history, though, providing the fullest portrait of the classical world of the 5th and 6th centuries. This readable new translation is supplemented with expansive notes to help the reader appreciate the book in depth.
Synopsis
The central theme of The Histories is the epic clash between the Persian Empire of King Xerxes, and a handful of Greek city states in which the Greeks were, against all odds, victorious. In telling this startling story, Herodotus takes his audience into the ancient Mediterranean and Near Eastern world from Spain to India, and from Ethiopia to central Russia, in a magisterial narrative full of fabulous cities and the strange customs of distant peoples.
Description
Includes bibliographical references (p. [594]-735) and index.
About the Author
Carolyn Dewald is Associate Professor of Classics at the University of Southern California.
Robin Waterfield is a distinguished translator whose version of Plato's
Republic has been described as `the best available'.