Adrian Goldsworthy is a leading historian of the ancient world and author of acclaimed biographies of Julius Caesar and Antony and Cleopatra among many other books. He lectures widely and consults on historical documentaries produced by the History Channel, National Geographic, and the BBC. He lives in the Vale of Glamorgan, UK.
"Superb. . . . Augustus is a first-rate popular biography by a
skilled and knowing hand, a fine companion to Goldsworthy’s
Caesar."—Steve Donoghue, Washington Post
"Impressive . . . Mr. Goldsworthy . . . moves nimbly around other
important evidence about Augustus’ life . . . The resulting life
is, in one sense, deeply unified. This is a welcome corrective to
traditional presentations."—Brendan Boyle, Wall Street Journal
"Goldsworthy's true expertise is as a military historian, and this
is what really gives his biography its strength and bite: his
depiction of Augustus's relationship with his legions is
masterly."—Robert Harris, London Sunday Times
"Goldsworthy capably guides us over the rapids of 'modern
scholarship.' He challenges stories that are repeated often but
never questioned, . . . [and] is particularly sound on senatorial
power struggles and the use of marriage to cement or break
political alliances. . . . [Augustus] is the most trustworthy
[portrait] we are likely to get."—Nicholas Shakespeare, Daily
Telegraph
"[Goldsworthy,] the author of the best-selling Caesar: The Life of
a Colossus, . . . relates [Augustus’] military victories, the
hairbreadth escapes, the diplomatic successes and the dark family
quarrels with a storyteller’s brio, bringing alive the empire’s
tense standoffs with Eastern kingdoms such as Parthia and along the
way giving us some quite wonderful readings of poets such as Virgil
and Horace. . . . [Goldsworthy’s] insights and inferences are
superb throughout. . . . Augustus is a first-rate popular biography
by a skilled and knowing hand, a fine companion to Goldsworthy’s
Caesar volume."—Steve Donoghue, Washington Post
"Historian and biographer Goldsworthy (Caesar) showcases his deep
knowledge of Ancient Rome in this masterful document of a life
whose themes still resonate in modern times. . . . A strong
narrative emphasis ties the work together and is enriched by
evocative details of Roman life. . . . The overall effect that
Goldsworthy generates is of meeting a man whose life seems hardly
distant from the modern experience. While ancient cultural
practices can often feel foreign, the political motivations and
machinations, the familial relations and emotions, ring as true
today as at the turn of the Common Era."—Publishers Weekly, starred
review
"Like Goldsworthy's biography of Julius Caesar, this is essential
reading for anyone interested in Ancient Rome."—Natalie Haynes, The
Independent
"A fascinating exploration of the life of one of Rome's most stable
and yet still mysterious emperors. . . . This vast accomplished
book . . . is a book to read avidly but also dip in to, to enjoy
the huge range of characters and events."—Jennifer Selway, Daily
Express
"An authoritative and always interesting new biography."—John Gray,
New Statesman
". . . Goldsworthy’s intended audience can be grateful for having
so measured a guide who has also provided them with excellent maps,
a glossary of terms and personalities, and an outline of the
senatorial career. Yale University Press must be congratulated for
high production values that make this book a pleasure to handle and
read."—S. J. V. Malloch,University of Nottingham
Won an Honorable Mention for the 2014 American Publishers Awards
for Professional and Scholarly Excellence (PROSE) in the Biography
& Autobiography category
"Goldsworthy peers like a master jeweler into the strange cold
diamond at the heart of Roman history—the emperor Augustus—and
reveals the whole Roman world reflected in its facets. But the book
itself is warm with human sympathy, elegant writing, and the sheer
joy and love of history it evokes in its reader."—J. E. Lendon,
author of Soldiers and Ghosts: A History of Battle in Classical
Antiquity and Song of Wrath: The Peloponnesian War Begins
"Goldsworthy has produced an elegantly written and well-argued
biography of Augustus that pulls no punches. Sifting through the
literature of the Augustan Age, he brings together the ancient
evidence with the best of modern scholarship, producing a
meticulously researched, but highly readable, volume on Rome’s
first emperor. The result is a study on the nature of leadership,
the wielding of power, and the price to be paid by both."—Col. Rose
Mary Sheldon, Virginia Military Institute
"For all his importance, Augustus is often an enigma behind a
classical façade. Goldsworthy’s Augustus reveals all the drama and
detail surrounding Rome’s first emperor. Brimming with energy,
scholarship, and wisdom, it is a history book to savor."—Barry
Strauss, author of Masters of Command: Alexander, Hannibal, Caesar
and the Genius of Leadership
"Augustus splendidly completes the trilogy that started with Caesar
and continued with Antony and Cleopatra. It is the best extended
treatment in English of Augustus' career and his many
contradictions."—Karl Galinsky, University of Texas at Austin
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