Book description
The Roman Republic was the most remarkable state in history. What began
as a small community of peasants camped among marshes and hills ended up
ruling the known world. Rubicon paints a vivid portrait of the Republic
at the climax of its greatness - the same greatness which would herald
the catastrophe of its fall. It is a story of incomparable drama. This
was the century of Julius Caesar, the gambler whose addiction to glory
led him to the banks of the Rubicon, and beyond; of Cicero, whose
defence of freedom would make him a byword for eloquence; of Spartacus,
the slave who dared to challenge a superpower; of Cleopatra, the queen
who did the same. Tom Holland brings to life this strange and unsettling
civilization, with its extremes of ambition and self-sacrifice,
bloodshed and desire. Yet alien as it was, the Republic still holds up a
mirror to us. Its citizens were obsessed by celebrity chefs, all-night
dancing and exotic pets; they fought elections in law courts and were
addicted to spin; they toppled foreign tyrants in the name of
self-defence. Two thousand years may have passed, but we remain the
Romans' heirs. Tom Holland received a double first from Cambridge. He
has adapted Homer, Herodotus, Thucydides and Virgil for BBC Radio. His
scholarly style is perfect to reposition him as a writer of non-fiction
as well as fiction.
