Cannonball Read 18

Sticking It to Cancer One Book at a Time
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Empress

Agrippina: The Most Extraordinary Woman of the Roman World by Emma Southon

March 14, 2024 by Jake Leave a Comment

Happy Women’s History Month! What better way to observe it than celebrating the most powerful woman in Roman history? I’ve read a lot of books on the Julio-Claudians recently and this is probably the best. Maybe not even “probably.” Emma Southon does a great job explaining how Agrippina’s life was the fabric that wove the narrative of the dynasty together. She was born the year after Augustus’ death and she died during the reign of her son, the last of the family line. She held […]

Filed Under: Biography/Memoir, History Tagged With: #biography, Agrippina, Emma Southon, roman empire, Rome

Jake's CBR16 Review No:24 · Genres: Biography/Memoir, History · Tags: #biography, Agrippina, Emma Southon, roman empire, Rome ·
Rating:
· 0 Comments

Women In Power

The Great Mrs. Elias by Barbara Chase-Riboud

Domina: The Women Who Made Imperial Rome by Guy de la Bédoyère

February 25, 2024 by Jake 2 Comments

Over the week, I read two great accountings of women in power in very different contexts. It felt natural to include them both in one review. The Great Mrs. Elias **** I knew very little about Hannah Davis going into this, which helped as it read like a page-turner. Barbara Chase-Riboud does a great job in story form of presenting Hannah’s plight and the tough choices she had to make. The dialogue could’ve used some sprucing up, but otherwise, I really enjoyed this quality work of […]

Filed Under: Fiction, History, Non-Fiction Tagged With: Agrippina, Augustus, Barbara Chase-Riboud, Domina, Guy de la Bédoyère, Hannah Elias, historical fiction, Livia, New York City, roman empire, Rome, sex work, The Great Mrs. Elias

Jake's CBR16 Review No:19 · Genres: Fiction, History, Non-Fiction · Tags: Agrippina, Augustus, Barbara Chase-Riboud, Domina, Guy de la Bédoyère, Hannah Elias, historical fiction, Livia, New York City, roman empire, Rome, sex work, The Great Mrs. Elias ·
· 2 Comments


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