And now for something completely, er, not exactly different

[annis]

In two weeks will be the 4th birthday of Aoidoi.org. I started my reacquaintance with Greek about two years before that, which means Smyth and the Middle Liddell have been my constant companions for nearly six years now. Honestly, I've gotten a bit tired of them.

Now, I can no more stop studying language, and Greek in particular, than I could stop breathing. But I am pulling back a bit on language studies for a good while. The only people likely to notice anything different are the few who pay close attention to the pace of publication at Aoidoi — new poems from me will be coming more slowly for a while.

Since I don't have a TV, much of my leisure time at home is spent reading. (Well, I can play DVDs on my computer, and I let friends tell me about the best TV shows, and watch them after the fact. A friend recently lent me the first season of "Deadwood" which I love absolutely. But now I have to be careful about what I call my coworkers.) Even though I'm less quick to seek out obscure monographs on, say, Greek verbs, I am reading a lot more history these days, and an awful lot of that is Greek and Roman history.

All of this is a long-winded way of asking if fellow Textkittens would be interested in reviews from me on classics related books I've read. Green's "Alexander to Actium" was my bedside reading for something like three months, and I recently finished "The Fall of Rome: And the End of Civilization" by Ward-Perkins. Anyone want to hear about them?

[Deses]

I have just finished Ward-Perkins. It would be interesting to hear your opinion. I am not really entitled to having one, since I rarely read anything on history. One could simply fool me into believing pretty much anything within this shifty domain of knowledge

[perispomenon]

I would be interested in your view on those books.

[Kopio]

I'd be interested in hearing about them. I am quite fond of Greek History. I've read a few books about the Caesars and about Alexander the Great (my second favorite character in history next to Jesus) and have found them fascinating and enriching.

Funny, I've recently read a couple of books that I've been thinking about interacting with people on the forum about. One was Darwin on Trial which I thought was pretty interesting. The guy who wrote it is a lawyer, and (P. Johnson) he looks at modern views on Darwinism, and what it lacks from an evidential standpoint. I don't think his point is to completely debunk it, but he has some serious questions about it. Right now I'm taking my college's Anthropology Course...ACS (Anthropology, Christology, and Soteriology). My prof is a former Darwinist who has a degree in forest ecology. He has done his best to set forth an unbiased display of current Darwinistic Theory, in cluding Neo-Darwinism, and Punctuated Equilibrium. I found it to be very interesting stuff.

Hmmmm......maybe I should start another thread....

Anyhow....review away William, I for one would love to hear it.

[William]

IAll of this is a long-winded way of asking if fellow Textkittens would be interested in reviews from me on classics related books I've read. Green's "Alexander to Actium" was my bedside reading for something like three months, and I recently finished "The Fall of Rome: And the End of Civilization" by Ward-Perkins. Anyone want to hear about them?

I read the mammoth Alexander to Actium and would be curious to hear your take.

WB

[Carola]

Very interested - and especially from someone with your background knowledge.

[Kopio]

Ok William...now that we are all waiting with baited breath......

[cdm2003]

A friend recently lent me the first season of "Deadwood" which I love absolutely. But now I have to be careful about what I call my coworkers.)

I love that show...you need to watch all three seasons (but not out of order!). I understand what you mean...too much of that show at once and it can irrevocably change your vocabulary!

[perispomenon]

Green's "Alexander to Actium" was my bedside reading for something like three months, and I recently finished "The Fall of Rome: And the End of Civilization" by Ward-Perkins.

I have time for new bedside reading. Which one do you recommend: Alexander or Rome?

To elaborate: both subjects are of interest to me, so my question would be which one is the better read, when it comes to style of writing etc..

[annis]

To elaborate: both subjects are of interest to me, so my question would be which one is the better read, when it comes to style of writing etc..

Green is a far more engaging writer. Which is good, since "Alexander to Actium" is the larger book by hundreds of pages.

[thesaurus]

Can you recommend any general histories of Ancient Rome and Greece? I have no experience in this area and I need a good introduction to it.

[swiftnicholas]

For Greece you might look at John Fine's "The Ancient Greeks: A Critical History". At 736 pages, it might be longer than what you're after, especially if you want to read on Rome too, but it's one of the best single volume histories that I've read (not quite done yet).

Best, N.

[thesaurus]

For Greece you might look at John Fine's "The Ancient Greeks: A Critical History". At 736 pages, it might be longer than what you're after, especially if you want to read on Rome too, but it's one of the best single volume histories that I've read (not quite done yet).

I'm willing to read a book on each period, and that one looks great. I'll probably look into it this winter.

[Episcopus]

annis you don't have a tv? that is odd but nor do i now. have you ever been inspired to do something crazy? like write a lot of verses, as you no doubt could?