Emperor of Rome

Britain's most famous classicist [is] at the peak of her powers ... Even more interesting than the insight into the imperial elite is the light the book sheds on the modern world -- Sathnam Sanghera * The Times *
Lavishly illustrated ... erudite and entertaining ... Beard is so appealing and approachable that even the recalcitrant reader who previously gave not a single thought to the Roman Empire will warm to her subject -- Jennifer Szalai * New York Times *
A beautiful book ... [Beard is] really good at thinking about some of the echoes between Roman politics and British politics, including today -- Rory Stewart * The Rest is Politics *
The most famous historian of Rome sets the record straight -- Olivia B. Waxman * Time Magazine *
[Mary Beard is] the best in the business -- Dan Snow * History Hit *
Magisterial ... A beautifully written product of a lifetime of deep scholarly learning -- Martin Wolf * FT *
Impressively detailed ... there's an immediacy to it all, as if the ancient world were not so long ago and easily understood -- 'Best History Books of 2023' * The Times *
Mary Beard shows, through rich use of anecdote and decades of scholarship, what the traits and insecurities of the Roman emperors teach us about today -- 'The best history books of 2023' * Telegraph *
A masterly group portrait, an invitation to think skeptically but not contemptuously of a familiar civilization ... Ms. Beard punctuates her erudite but easy prose with striking turns of phrase and arresting observations -- Kyle Harper * WSJ *
An enthralling analysis of the wild stories that circulated about Rome's ruthless rulers ... Beard does a wonderful job of taking us into the maelstrom of fantasy, desire and projection that swirled around these rulers -- Kathryn Hughes * Guardian *
There have been many fine books about the Romans this year ... but Mary Beard's Emperor of Rome still stands out ... she draws not just on a career's worth of classical-historical knowledge, but on a career's worth of thinking about how classical history itself - with its truths, lies and unknowns - should be approached. The result could be a manifesto for the discipline's future -- 'Books of the Year 2023: History' * Prospect *
An erudite view on what it is to be an emperor on an everyday basis and how citizens experience life in an empire. As always with Beard, clichés are crushed. She debunks some of the most common myths about the Roman emperors, and her insights are relevant to our understanding of power and leadership today -- Romée de Goriainoff * Bloomberg *
An extraordinary investigation into the gulf between the experience and the narrative of Roman autocracy ... Beard weaves a deliciously varied tapestry of detail drawn from across nearly three centuries -- Honor Cargill-Martin * Telegraph *
Good emperors may not have been as virtuous as they were painted, nor bad ones so wicked ... all told in trademark exuberant Beard style ... Those familiar with her TV series can hear her voice in the way she writes, her passion for the subject oozing off the page -- Patrick Kidd * The Times *
Chatty, fun, argumentative, fearless, and ferociously well-informed -- Robert McCrum * Independent *
Fascinating ... hugely rewarding * Irish Times *
Imposing, colourful, entertaining ... Distils a vast amount of scholarship into 410 pages * Irish Independent *
Surprising and fascinating ... Explores what we can and can't know about the men who ruled the Roman Empire, and what the lurid stories about so many of them tell us about the anxieties and fantasies of Rome's ordinary citizens and the remarkable resilience of the regime -- Sam Leith * Spectator Book Club Podcast *
For once, the horse races and the Circus Maximus, the true centre of Roman popular culture, get their rightful pride of place ... [The Roman emperors] were bringers of peace and insatiable conquerors, monsters on display and civilised citizens, gods and frightened mortals ... Beard's book is alert to these different layers of meaning -- Georgy Kantor * Critic *
Endlessly entertaining ... A close-up examination of Rome's greatest or most notorious figures ... Beard is never afraid to hint of modern parallels with the world of Ancient Rome, which can superficially seem so remote from our own -- Christopher Hart * Mail on Sunday *
A colourful tour of 30 emperors spanning over 250 years [through] the glitz and gore of Rome * Economist *
[Mary Beard] has always had the sharpest eyes for telling detail and colourful anecdote * Sunday Times *
Vividly brings to life the history of Ancient Rome -- Jackie Brown * Good Housekeeping *
A masterful storyteller with a perfect sense of dramatic and comic timing ... Better than anyone else in her generation ... A wonderful narrative that enlivens, in brilliant color, the world of a group of Roman emperors that readers already fascinated by a classical version of Roman antiquity will certainly love -- Edward J. Watts * Los Angeles Review of Books *
[Mary Beard is] the reigning Queen of Classics -- Harry Mount * Spectator *
As always, Beard is a brilliant guide ... Emperor of Rome charts a very different path [to] imperial biographies -- Clifford Ando * TLS *
Beard [is] the rock star scholar of Ancient Rome -- Jo Ellison * Financial Times *
Eloquent, charming, exuberant ... [A] lively and engaging way of examining what the actions and "job description" of an emperor can reveal about the psychology of power -- Alexandra Pollard * i newspaper *
An erudite view on what it is to be an emperor on an everyday basis and how citizens experience life in an empire. As always with Beard, clichés are crushed. She debunks some of the most common myths about the Roman emperors, and her insights are relevant to our understanding of power and leadership today -- Romée de Goriainoff, 'Best Books of 2023' * Bloomberg *
It's vital to see these individuals not just as characters in macabre stories but as hard-working bureaucrats ... from the path to the top to the almost inevitable sticky end -- Matt Elton * BBC History Magazine *
A national treasure ... combining accessibility with profound knowledge lightly worn -- Harry Sidebottom * Literary Review *
A fascinating exploration of assumptions about how the emperors of Rome from Julius Caesar to Alexander Severus acceded to the throne, ruled over an empire [and] even became gods ... Beard has redefined what it meant to be an emperor of Rome -- Ming Kit Wong * Oxford Political Review *
Praise for Mary Beard: 'An accomplished scholar and lively debunker...Beard informs and entertains without ever patronising her readers. What she touches turns to light * Independent *
Mary Beard has pulled off that rare trick of becoming a don with a high media profile who hasn't sold out, who is absolutely respected by the academy for her scholarship ... what she says is always powerful and interesting * Guardian *
Dynamically, wittily and authoritatively brings the ancient world to life -- Simon Sebag Montefiore
An irrepressible enthusiast with a refreshing disregard for convention * FT *