Book Description
Spanning a thousand years, and following the shifting fortunes of two families though the ages, this is the epic saga of Rome, the city and its people.
Weaving history, legend, and new archaeological discoveries into a spellbinding narrative, critically acclaimed novelist Steven Saylor gives new life to the drama of the city’s first thousand years — from the founding of the city by the ill-fated twins Romulus and Remus, through Rome’s astonishing ascent to become the capitol of the most powerful empire in history. Roma recounts the tragedy of the hero-traitor Coriolanus, the capture of the city by the Gauls, the invasion of Hannibal, the bitter political struggles of the patricians and plebeians, and the ultimate death of Rome’s republic with the triumph, and assassination, of Julius Caesar.
Witnessing this history, and sometimes playing key roles, are the descendents of two of Rome’s first families, the Potitius and Pinarius clans: One is the confidant of Romulus. One is born a slave and tempts a Vestal virgin to break her vows. One becomes a mass murderer. And one becomes the heir of Julius Caesar. Linking the generations is a
mysterious talisman as ancient as the city itself.
Epic in every sense of the word, Roma is a panoramic historical saga and Saylor’s finest achievement to date.
Customer Reviews:
A great book for the beach or a hammock.......2007-10-01
This is the book I've been waiting for Saylor to write--a book that gives an overview of the Roman Republic. Is it great literature? Probably not. Is it great history? I would have to guess that historians might quibble. But it's a good read--I took it on vacation this summer and it was just perfect.
I think the reviewers who think poorly of this effort may be expecting a different book. I know that I'm getting a dose of general history in a fictional form. I also know that I'm not getting a literal history. I'm just glad to get a general idea of what historical persons lived in what period of Roman history and if I want to learn more there are scholarly books I could read.
I enjoyed the development of family histories here, and I think Saylor is a very clever writer. Relax and enjoy.
Does not do justice to Rome and the Romans.......2007-09-14
This book was an okay read, but is by no means a great work of historical fiction. The biggest problem is that the novel is meant to cover a thousand years of history in six hundred pages, and fails miserably. I myself am quite familiar with the history it covers, but I think that if I were not so conversant with Rome of the BCs I would find this book's way of telling it not only dull (as I did find it) but confusing. The fact is, people in real life do not just happen to review the past fifty years of history with each other every so often, and yet this is what happens again ... and again ... and again. I'd say that there is five times as much historical exposition in dialogue as there is in the narration itself, and it really cries out to be the other way round. Ugh. But the real problem here is that a novel of this length is biting off more than it can chew if it tries to cover a time period of this length and complexity. Saylor would have done better to write three six-hundred-page novels to cover Rome's first thousand years. Compare this with Colleen McCullough's superb Masters of Rome series, for example, each of which in eight hundred pages covers about twenty years of the late Republic, and conveys a real sense of the changes the society of Rome and the lives of the Romans change in that period. That's another thing completely lacking from 'Roma', by the way: Saylor tackles very little of the governmental, societal, and moralistic upheavals that shape the Republic's history, and when he does talk about them it's by and large in those unbearable, droning, boring, lacklustre expositional dialogues.
The frequent faux pas in grammar, spelling, style, etc., do not help either. Read something good instead.
From the fog of pre-history to Augustan times.......2007-09-14
The novel, which I think is the first one to cover such a time span in a single volume, is an excellent introduction to the early history of Rome and the republic, and it gives readers more than just politics, war and conquest. Mr. Saylor skillfully weaves ancient tradition and history into the story of Rome through major events, in eleven chapters.
Almost every chapter contains flash-backs or story-telling about the time span between chapters, thus linking it to the prior one. Well known single events or legends are mixed in, such as what's known as the rape of the Sabine women, the rape of Lucretia, the abduction of Verginia (a major event in itself in the novel), and more.
In the story ending, I smelled faint whiff of a sequel in the offing.
A suggestion: don't read the book to quickly, I liked it better on the second read-through, when I took more time. The prose is uneven in places but soars in others, and the dialogues tend to get a bit stilted. All in all it's a good read indeed.
A helpful graphic matches the family tree to the corresponding chapters, and each chapter is preceded by a map of Rome as it was at the time. In his Author's Note, Mr. Saylor provides a useful bibliography.
Personal review of "Roma: The Novel of Ancient Rome".......2007-09-11
This book, just like other Steven Saylor novels, really kept my interest. I finished it in two days. Couldn't stop reading. This one, as usual, is up to his standard of excellent writing. I only hope that Steven keeps writing more novels of Ancient Rome, especially the Goridanus the Finder stories. If you never read the Sub Rosa series, after reading the above mentioned novel, definitely try the others. You'll be glad you did.
A fascinating journey through the history of Rome.......2007-08-29
- This review first appeared in the August 2007 issue of the Historical Novels Review (http://www.historicalnovelsociety.org)-
Steven Saylor, the award-winning mystery writer of the Roma Sub Rosa series, undertakes the multigenerational historical saga in his latest novel ROMA. Pioneered by the late James Michener and current purview of novelist Edward Rutherford, Saylor's entry into the genre is a noteworthy one. With his meticulous knowledge of ancient Rome, the subject matter seems a perfect match for someone of his impressive talent---a centuries-long journey from the founding of Rome to the rise and fall of the Republic and the assassination of Julius Caesar.
Saylor frames his compelling, fast-moving narrative in elegant prose, using the device of a fictional family whose fates are closely interwoven with the vicissitudes and fortunes of the city. The cast is large and varied, beginning with a salt trader's daughter in 1000 BC who receives a mysterious gold talisman that will become a family heirloom. Through the eyes of her descendants, the Potitius family, we witness the city's founding by Romulus and Remus, the struggles and intrigues of plebeians and patricians, Hannibal's invasion, a mass murderer's scheme to wipe out a competing dynasty, a vestal virgin's sacrifice, and the tragic attempt of two sibling politicians to revolutionize Roman society. Throughout we are regaled with the aspirations, delusions, brutal expediencies and hunger for immortality that permeated the struggle to build what arguably became history's most powerful empire.
Readers seeking a central character to identify with may be thwarted by the swift passage of years and events; those who persist will find themselves in awe of Saylor's command of his sprawling storyline, his penchant for detail, as well as his evident passion for what is truly his book's only central character--Rome herself, a city whose complex grandeur and enigmatic allure continue to entice our collective imagination.
Amazon.com
Lily storms home to her mother one day, demanding a real family. It's Family Fun Night at school, and she's positive they'll be the weirdest family there. Her single-parent mom doesn't seem overly fazed, reminding her daughter that they are a "small kind" of family, but real nonetheless. Lily isn't convinced. She seeks refuge in the noise and pillow fights of her friend Melissa's crowded house until it's time for the school event, where, surprise! it turns out her little family isn't unusual at all. Remi lives with just her dad--her mom died and she has no siblings. Tamika is adopted and has a puppy. Josh and Tony live with their grandparents. By the end of the evening, Lily understands that "Love is what makes a family."
Devoted followers of TV's Touched by an Angel star, Roma Downey, will be thrilled to see "Monica" has written her first children's book. Any child who has ever felt mortified at the quirks of his or her family will find solace in Lily's revelation. Of course, all the families in Lily's classroom seem highly functional, as well as heterosexual. In the litany of differences ("They saw families with step-dads and step-moms and half-sisters and half-brothers. There were single moms and single dads and families made up of different colors of skin."), readers who anticipate something along the lines of "and families with two mommies" will be disappointed. But that's what Heather Has Two Mommies is for. Justine Gasquet's colorful, almost cartoonish illustrations will be another bonus for Roma Downey fans--the mom looks just like Downey! (Ages 5 to 8) --Emilie Coulter
Customer Reviews:
Modern Families.......2003-01-16
A beautiful and tender look into the "modern" structure of the family through the eyes of a child who realizes that a family doesn't require a particular "shape" or "number" to make it any more real. As a city librarian, I deeply appreciate an author sensitive enough to present a story capable of being read to ANY group of children without pushing political or "alternative lifestyles".
A Glaring Omission.......2002-01-08
This book initially delights the eye, especially if you are familar with and fond of Downey's TV character, and draws the reader in to a story in which every child is sure to find themselves and their family represented. Almost.
The absence of same-sex parent families is so obvious that it seems a deliberate act of exclusion. This is heartbreaking when the book is chosen by a child of such a family specifically in hopes of seeing a family similar to their own. There are so few books available for children of gay families that it seems a shame to have missed such an obvious opportunity to help meet that need.
Aside from this omission, the book itself is a simple story that can be shared with children of nontraditional, hetero parent families. With so many families today that don't fit the mom/dad/child stereotype, there is certainly a large potential audience for the book. The illustrations are colorful but somewhat dark throughout, and the author clearly received an ego stroke when the illustrator chose to portray her face so clearly as one of the main characters.
Overall, this book fails in what appears to be its primary goal: To be a resource for children of non-traditional families and to show the value of all families, whatever their makeup.
Book Description
Holly Keller has created vivacious new paintings for this favorite Reading Rainbow title about geology. Readers follow two enthusiastic rock hounds around the globe as they add to their collection. Along the way they will learn how sedimentary, metamorphic, and igneous rocks are formed. From the Egyptian pyramids to Roman roads, from the diamond ring on your finger to the pebbles under your feet'rocks are everywhere!
Customer Reviews:
Top Grade!.......2007-09-01
Let's Go Rock Collecting is an excellent book in the Let's Read and Find Out Science Series. My son started with this book when he was 4 (he's now 5). It has great illustrations that capture a child's attention and actual photos of the various rocks described so that the child (and parent) can identify a few basic rocks.
One thing that is really great about this book is the simple illustrations to educate the reader about the Earth's Crust and Solid Rock Layer. There are simple diagrams of:
1. The components of a Volcano
2. Moh's Scale of hardness
3. The formation of sedimentary rocks
4. Metamorphic rock process
The book also ends with a practical suggestion that kids will love and that's how to begin your own rock collection and start to identify the rocks you have.
NOTE: Depending on your view of the age of the earth, you may like to know that this book utilizes millions of years in its descriptions.
Rock Collecting Fun.......2006-11-03
My son and I used this book to suplement our study of rocks. We ejoyed the artwork. The writing was engaging. This book is good for children in primary grades 1-3.
Lots of age-appropriate information.......2006-02-28
I am a huge fan of the Let's Read and Find Out science series of books, and this one doesn't disappoint. Clearly written information, great photographs, and wonderful illustrations educate the K-2 science student in an enjoyable way.
Nicely Done.......2006-02-23
My husband and daughter are both geologist and they thought this book was well written. My bright 3 year old grandson enjoys having it read to him. Usually it would be enjoyed by an older child, but he enjoys it.
Simple and easily observable science concepts.......2000-05-09
This book is part of the Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science series, which has more than 80 titles. The Stage 1 books explain simple and easily observable science concepts for preschool- and kindergarten-age children. Stage 2 books, which includes this title, explore more challenging concepts for children in the primary grades and include hands-on activities that children can do themselves. "Let's Go Rock Collecting" is suitable for young children.
Average customer rating:
- High Flying Science Discovery
- Pretty Birds
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How Do Birds Find Their Way? (Let's-Read-and-Find-Out Science 2)
Roma Gans
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ASIN: 006445150X |
Book Description
Many birds travel thousands of miles each year, migrating between summer and winter homes. Just how they find their way back and forth, sometimes returning to the exact same nesting grounds each year, has puzzled ornithologists for years. Roma Gans details the many theories scientists have proposed to explain the mysteries of migration.
Customer Reviews:
High Flying Science Discovery.......2007-09-03
Children are naturally curious about nature. This book, among many of the Let's Read and Find Out Science books, is a wonderful book that helps children learn more about the world around them.
As with most of the books in this series, it opens with a story-line to which kids can easily relate, like watching birds go from tree to tree. Beautiful illustrations which also label the birds will assist children in beginning to identify birds.
Children are introduced to vocabulary such as:
1. migrating
2. Ornithologist
Children will learn about a widely held past theory about why birds seemed to "disappear" in the winter. They will discover a few leading theories as to how birds currently "find their way," including directional navigation (North, East, West, South) and the possible use of the Earth's magnetic field.
There is a wonderful chart at the end of the book which illustrates the various heights at which birds and aircraft fly.
This book is sure to delight, and educate.
Pretty Birds.......2003-03-22
This is a good book because the birds are pretty. I liked the arctic terns in the book.
Average customer rating:
- Thomas Roma's Photographic Discovery of Brooklyn
- An average time in Brooklyn
- Roma Has Found Brooklyn
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Found in Brooklyn
Manufacturer: W. W. Norton & Company
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Customer Reviews:
Thomas Roma's Photographic Discovery of Brooklyn.......2007-07-13
Starting in 1974 photographer Thomas Roma began capturing a diverse range of images for 16 years from architecture to daily life on the streets of Brooklyn. "Found in Brooklyn" was my introduction to Roma's keen eye for detail and superb usage of light, rendering Brooklyn in a warm white glow that reminded me most of the deep-blue skies of the Southwestern United States (Though I would agree with another reviewer that his usage of light has Brooklyn depicted as though it was located somewhere along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea.). It still remains one of my two favorite photography books from his work, and the one which shows the substantial breadth and depth of his subjects. Stylistically, Roma's work in black and white reminds me most of Stephen Shore's contemporaneous color landscapes, with regards to his usage of both the frame and placement of subjects; surprisingly there isn't much here that more closely resembles Lee Friedlander's work (It is a surprise only since his father-in-law is Friedlander.).
An average time in Brooklyn.......2007-05-30
I thought this would be worth adding to my collection of American commonplace photobooks but it turns out to be a very mediocre set of photos. I'm sure any Brooklyn residence would say it looks just like the place though anybody could have taken the photos for that reaction.
There are just too few images that made me stop and study what was on the page. For instance on page nineteen there is a really wonderful shot looking down a street with a tree almost central in the image with its branches segmenting buildings and sky, the sidewalk disappears into the distance. The whole photo is really rich in detail but unfortunately that is about the only one that works for me.
Another problem with the book is the total absence of any information about the forty-four photos, apart from the date they were taken. Roma spend many years taking these scenes and frequently I just wondered what was happening in this or that photo. It seems just too easy to see something visually interesting, photograph it and that's it, fine if it's an abstract image of shapes or texture where the photo is really no more than a pattern but photos of people and locations mostly need some sort of explanation for them to really work for the viewer.
I think it is worth adding that this is the second book I've bought recently of Roma's work, both have been new copies and cost very little and in the case of the Brooklyn book it was less than the mailing cost.
***FOR AN INSIDE LOOK click 'customer images' under the cover.
Roma Has Found Brooklyn.......2000-10-29
In "Found In Brooklyn," Thomas Roma focuses his camera on this borough of New York that has been his home for most of his life. Shooting in a tradition that is most noticeably reminiscent of Lee Friedlander's work from the 60s, Roma has an individual style all his own. Taken over a sixteen-year span beginning in 1974, Roma's photographs alternate between odd juxtapositions of street life, and eccentric and eclectic architecture and environments. Another thing Roma has found in Brooklyn is a wonderful, warm light that makes you feel like you're across the Mediterranean and not across the East River. While Roma has now dedicated four recent books to a variety of subjects on Brooklyn life, none of them is as comprehensive and all-encompassing as this title.
Book Description
'Look at it This Way' is one volume out of the 'Play Can Help' series which has been derived from the fourth edition of Play Helps. It is a series of books for children with a whole range of disabilities including:
* visual impairment
* cerebral palsy
* learning difficulties
* loss of hand function
* frailness.
This volume will be dedicated to children with visual impairment and will add an element of fun and variety to the playtime of children with special needs.
Book Description
Part II deals with Roman history. A description of the city of Rome is followed by a prose version of Vergil's Aeneid I-IV, with some passages in the original, and Livy's Book I supplemented with extracts from Ovid. At first Livy's prose is gently adapted, but the book contains mostly unadpted texts by Livy, Aulus Gellius, Nepos, Sallust, Cicero and Horace.
Customer Reviews:
Hans Orberg's Roma Aeterna.......2005-08-20
This book, Vol. II of Hans Orberg's Lingua Latina, along with Volume I, is an excellent text for serious students of Latin, and I recommend it most highly.
Average customer rating:
- A good edition to teach from
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Henry V (Oxford School Shakespeare Series)
William Shakespeare
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ASIN: 0198320337 |
Book Description
Our well established and popular series which helps all your students to understand and enjoy Shakespeare's plays, has been improved even further. BLRevised students' notes are clearer, with detailed explanations of difficult words and passages, plot synopses, summaries of individual scenes,and notes on the main characters BLFeaturing a host of new phototgraphs of stage productions BLNew,attractive cover design BLComplete and unabridged texts
Customer Reviews:
A good edition to teach from.......2005-08-04
I've taught with this series in small classes of teens and find it useful. First, the page layout is good: ample margins, notes in a separate column alongside the text so they are easy to refer to, and a font that is not too small.
Second, the helps are good:
clear side notes,
illustrations,
photos from various productions,
front material includes good synopsis, character descriptions,
and in the back of the book are Plutarch excerpts, good exam and discussion questions, and background notes.
Average customer rating:
- A long ride, not always rewarding, but not a complet loss
- Riveting and memorable...definitely worth your time
- Terrific Darkover trilogy!
- More than a fantastic novel, a manifesto
- Better on rereading
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The Saga of the Renunciates (The Shattered Chain, Thendara House, City of Sorcery) (Darkover)
Marion Zimmer Bradley
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The Forbidden Circle
ASIN: 0756400929
Release Date: 2002-08-06 |
Book Description
Long out of print, these three Darkover books tell the tale of two Free Amazon women whose lives are irrevocably entwined.
"Literate and exciting." (The New York Times Book Review)
Customer Reviews:
A long ride, not always rewarding, but not a complet loss.......2006-12-08
This Saga of the Renunciates, makes only any sense if read all togheter. Dismiss all those comments that say you can enter Darkover at any novel.
And this books are a proof of that. "Shattered" is a short novel, almost nothing realy important happens, is just an introduction for the characters. "Thendara" is long book about the lead roles, Lorne and Jael, and as all this saga, this is a story about two particular beings, and has no impact on big planetary scale, or in Darkover history. Altough very long, I found the books very adult oriented, and heartbroken, wich made me feel the troubles and sorrows of this two girls. I was amaze how Bradley managed to pull me inn with her view of the woman`s world. "Sorcery" on the other hand is an adventure driven story, and is very entertaining. (spoilers head) But the end is somehow dissapointing, more even so, considering that is the end of all the saga. It took some time to read them all, (one after the other, I might add) and I felt exausted at end, but somehow altough this is not best on Darkover, I end up missing those the girls.
Riveting and memorable...definitely worth your time.......2006-08-07
I wasn't sure what to expect going into this book - I loved Mists of Avalon, but wasn't fond of the other Avalon books. I wanted to like Darkover, but the two other Darkover novels I read (Stormqueen and Hawkmistress) didn't appeal to me much.
And then I began The Shattered Chain.
It started off exactly as I'd feared it would - a band of Amazons (just...read the other reviews for technical details) walk into a town and are laughed and jeered at by the men and treated with greater hostility by the women. I thought at this point that the book would be full of "Woman Power" and show how strong these Independent Women had to be to exist on a world like Darkover.
But the novel quickly became something more than that. I felt that it greatly picked up when we were introduced to Magda, the Terran - because for the Terrans, men and women are pretty much equal. And this viewpoint GREATLY helped balance out the supressing Darkover views, and made them not just bearable, but interesting. The resulting main plotline between the Terrans and Darkover people, with the Amazons building the bridge between the two worlds...it was pretty awesome. And of course there's all the subplots, and the huge personal developments taking place within the two main characters: the Terran woman and the Amazon one.
This book has some good action scenes, but the major focus is definitely on the characters themselves, and their relationships to one another and the world. Normally I would stay away from something like that, but the Terran/Darkover worlds created here are so interesting that it's pretty much impossible to not be caught up in it.
It had great, memorable characters, a great plot, and scenes you'll remember for a long, long time. I'd say it's definitely worth a read for anybody who likes fantasy/sci-fi...and books in general.
Terrific Darkover trilogy!.......2005-10-16
I've read most of the Darkover series during the last five yrs. I started off with MZBs Avalon books & ended up hooked on the Darkover series.
In many the Darkover books the renunciates (free amazons) are mentioned, but usually not in much detail. It was wonderful to stumble upon a whole trilogy of books about them. They explain
how & why the group started, and how they worked out a way to marginally fit into the society by being of service to both Darkovans & Terrans. I thoroughly enjoyed this series & would highly recommend it to any MZB fan.
More than a fantastic novel, a manifesto.......2005-07-28
I am an avid MZB fan and have read most of her novels, but the Darkover series is the closest to my heart and The Saga of the Renunciates stands above all. This novel is more than just a story, deconstructing femininity is a central part of this trilogy: as a reader I found myself pondering the same questions that trouble the women on Darkover and thinking that eventhough they are only sci-fi characters, their insigth would change a lot of women.
The first novel is about a group of mercenary warrior women who hire themselves out to Lady Rohana to rescue her cousin from the Dry Towns, a country where married women are kept in chains. Rohana's cousin never makes it but she does bring back Jaelle, her 12 year old niece and a very unconfortable awareness of the invisible chains she has fashioned for herself.
In the 2nd part we meet Magda and Peter, two Darkover-born Terranan and the best spies the Empire has on Cottman 4. Altough Magda is the better agent, as a woman there is not much she can do outside HQ. When Peter goes missing on a mission and his superiors have no plans to rescue him Magda disguises herself as an Amazon and goes looking for him. All goes well until she meets some real Amazons whose leader is none other than a grown up Jaelle.
The final chapter in this story is about a journey to a mythical city in the enormous mountains of Darkover where an all-knowing sisterhood of wise women is supposed to be hidden from all but those by whom they wish to be seen. Jaelle leaves everything behind for even a chance to get there and Magda has no choice but to follow.
Better on rereading.......2005-01-01
I read these 3 novels in the late 70's-early 80's and loved them...recently found the 3 novel compendium and enjoyed it more the second time around. What a wonderfully imagined world!! How I wish we had something like the Guild here on Earth! As an old feminist in my 70's, I cannot recommend them more highly...READ!!
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A Midsummer Night's Dream (Oxford School Shakespeare)
William Shakespeare
Manufacturer: Oxford University Press, USA
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Binding: Paperback
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ASIN: 0198321503 |
Book Description
Oxford School Shakespeare is an acclaimed edition especially designed for students, with accessible on-page notes and explanatory illustrations, clear background information, and rigorous but accessible scholarly credentials. In this edition of A Midsummer Night's Dream, illustrations have been extended and updated; the preliminary notes have been expanded; reading lists have been updated, and include websites; and the classroom notes have been brought in line with recent practice. A Midsummer Night's Dream is a set text for 11-14 year olds in England and remains one of the most accessible and popular of Shakespeare's plays for secondary students the world over.
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