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What books DON'T you want to see?

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A couple of years ago I asked members for suggestions regarding what biographies they would like to see written. Many thanks for your ideas!

 

Reading recent reviews I've noticed the slow emergence of a recurring phrase, something along the lines of: 'This book does little to add to our knowledge of a man who is already covered extensively in the literature'.

 

With this in mind, what is the view of members? Is there any historical person where, if a new 'biography' was available, you'd just ignore it completely?

 

I must admit I'm half-expecting the response to be 'Hannibal', but maybe I am just being pessimistic!

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With this in mind, what is the view of members? Is there any historical person where, if a new 'biography' was available, you'd just ignore it completely?

 

Caesar and Augustus come immediately to mind.

 

Actually, if there is a decent biography of someone - anyone - written in the last 20 years or so, and the proposed new biography adds little to what is already known, I'm not sure what it would bring to the table.

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I'm not a great one for biographies anyway but I'd probably run a mile from any more iterations of Boudicca's 'life' that were much longer than the two sections in Tacitus.

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I've noticed that since I started this topic there are even more books on Constantine being published.  I'm even thinking of doing one myself at some point!  I'm just not sure what angle to take.

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There seems to be quite few big biographies about Spartacus on the market ( I don't count works of fiction here, they are alright). Which is astonishing when we know very little about the man. Wasn't it Mary Beard who stated that the bigger the book on Spartacus, the less likely it is to be truthful?

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Cleopatra seems to be the focus of some recent biographies. Frankly I can't be bothered. Even when a favorite author like Adrian Goldsworthy puts out a bio I won't read it.

Edited by Virgil61

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Actually the Goldsworthy book has a lot to recommend it. It concentrates of dispelling some of the myths surrounding Antony and Cleopatra - for example I was rather surprised to note that an analysis of Antony's early career shows that he did not actually have much military experience before he became a triumvir.

 

Cleopatra as a feminist 'African' icon does not do well under his scrutiny either.

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Cleopatra as a feminist 'African' icon does not do well under his scrutiny either.

 

You mean because of all the drugs and the throwing herself at anything in a toga, right?  And that she probably considered herself more Greek than African?

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Cleopatra as a feminist 'African' icon does not do well under his scrutiny either.

 

You mean because of all the drugs and the throwing herself at anything in a toga, right?  And that she probably considered herself more Greek than African?

Oh come on, two Romans who made a useful alliance for Egypt. Can we now talk about that 'slut' Caesar and him throwing himself at anyone with a pair if breasts.

 

On topic, nothing more on Caligula please.

He was mad.

He wasn't mad just testing the limits of absolute power.

He was mad and we know what with (diagnosis from some scant passages written two millennia ago)

He wasn't mad but one can understand him having some scores to settle

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No more Alexander the Great biographies, please!

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OK, but what if an author you trusted and had written books you liked came up with a new biography on Alexander? 

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