Book about Rome: Rome From Its Founding to the Present Day: a Quartet

Rome From Its Founding to the Present Day: a Quartet

Editor’s comment: Do read these books on Rome in the order presented. Enjoy them as you would a good grappa, slowly. Warning: once you start reading you will be unable to stop. And you will be unable to control the urge to go to Rome and wander about Ancient-Christian-Renaissance Rome as the Romans do.

1-Roma, the Novel of Ancient Rome by Steven Saylor (2007) -
Tells the story of Rome’s first thousand years, 1000 BC to 1BC, from the salt gatherers at the mouth of the Tiber to Caesar Augustus.

2-Lavinia by Ursula K. LeGuin (2008) –
Simply a masterpiece. Tells the story of Lavinia, princess of Latium, who, with pious Aeneas, is destined to found Rome. Their descendants ruled for 15 generations.

3-The Aeneid by Virgil (29-19 BC), Translation, Robert Fagles; Introduction, Bernard Knox (2006) –
Modern verse translation of the ancient Roman epic of goddess-born Aeneas, who, following his fate, fled from the burning Troy and founded Rome.

4-The Secrets of Rome, Love and Death in the Eternal City by Corrado Augias (2007) –
The 15 chapters cover 2700 years of Roman life. Fascinating tales presented in an interesting fashion: “The Most Beautiful Lady of Rome” tells the story of Lucretia Borgia; “The Other Michelangelo,” of Caravaggio.