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Comment on Pompey the Great: A Political Biography (Blackwell Ancient Lives) by Brian Hawkinson

Brian Hawkinson — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 18:36:57 +0000

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

A dry account of Pompey's political career..., July 25, 2010

Brian Hawkinson (San Jose, CA) -

This review is from: Pompey the Great: A Political Biography (Blackwell Ancient Lives) (Paperback)

I sure am going against the grain here. Although I believe Seager certainly is knowledgeable on Pompey, it wasn't presented to the reader in any way that could have been enjoyable.

Seager tackles a difficult subject on a very important Roman figure. It is difficult because of of the subject, which excludes his military exploits and focuses solely on his political accomplishment. Although this may be necessary area to focus on, it certainly is not interesting to read about. The fault lies in that the mechanism of the historical narrative was removed from the style of writing when you focus on something that involves the listing of names and laws passed. When you are constantly citing consuls and other political figures with little to no background you are left with nothing to sink your teeth in to. I found I was constantly unable to really get a good grasp on Pompey's political life because there were too many names thrown at me, and too many laws passed, that I was constantly playing catch up.

Not focusing on his military exploits is one thing, but you can certainly talk about them a little in order to build the greater picture. For example, the Battle of Pharsalus. It was basically talked about in about 2 sentences, saying nothing more than Pompey lost to Caesar. This all important clash between two of Rome's greatest generals was relegated to nothing more than a few words in passing. This to me is a huge oversight and something that certainly could have been expanded upon if only to talk more about the political ramifications more in depth.

Ultimately you have a subject and author that are both very in depth and knowledgeable, but didn't quite execute on the level that makes the subject accessible. Granted, maybe the book is intended for those who are already familiar with the subject in something more than passing, but background is always needed no matter the subject. Additionally, a little narrative history would have gone a long ways with making the book more enjoyable. We see a little bit of this when Caesar is talked about, but for the most part it is absent. Overall I was disappointed. Good for a serious scholar looking for an in-depth view of Pompey's political life, but not so good for an amateur historian or lay reader.

3 stars.

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Comment on Pompey the Great: A Political Biography (Blackwell Ancient Lives) by B. Blanchard

B. Blanchard — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 17:38:48 +0000

13 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

Firm grasp on the complexities of Pompey, November 13, 2005

B. Blanchard (California, USA) -

This review is from: Pompey the Great: A Political Biography (Blackwell Ancient Lives) (Paperback)

Seager's Pompey is an excellent book that is a necessity for anyone wanting to fully understand the political career of Pompey Magnus. Over the years, countless books have been written on Caesar and the fall of the Republic, and I find it interesting that very few (at least very few in English) book have been written on the life of Pompey.
Seager's book does a fantastic job of explaining how Pompey was able to rise to power through the use of the army and his military victories. An interesting point that Seager makes about Pompey's rise is that since Pompey skipped many of the offices that most Romans needed to obtain before becoming consul he did not have the political acumen of others in his position. This explanation does much for enlightening the reader as to why Pompey made some decisions (which in hindsight) which damaged his reputation within the Republic.
Another interesting point that Seager makes in his book is that he believes that Cicero may have exaggerated the threat of Catiline to galvanize the Republic against the return of Pompey. After all Sulla's return from the east was still fresh in many Romans' minds (the proscriptions had effected most of the patrician families in one way or another) and since Pompey had been a lieutenant of Sulla there was speculation that he too would make a grab at supreme power over the Republic.
Seager has produced a thorough biography of Pompey's life in this book and it should be read by those interested in the complexities of Pompey and the late Roman Republic. However, be aware that Pompey's military exploits are glossed over in this book and Seager's primary focus is on Pompey's political career.

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Comment on Pompey the Great: A Political Biography (Blackwell Ancient Lives) by BK

BK — Wed, 22 Feb 2012 16:50:55 +0000

21 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

An incredibly detailed look at a fascinating man and era, September 16, 2005

BK (Toronto, ON Canada) -

This review is from: Pompey the Great: A Political Biography (Blackwell Ancient Lives) (Paperback)

The story of the rise and fall of Pompey is the story of the fall of the Roman Republic and its eventual rebirth as an Imperial empire. Both coincide with each other with ones gains coming at the expense of the other. However, Pompey did not initiate the events that began the Republics downward spiral. Rather he helped hasten them to their inevitable conclusion. And so begins Robin Seager's historical biography on Pompey.

Seager begins first at the events that set in motion the decline of the Republic and the rise of Pompey (and others sharing the same limitless ambitions) by discussing the popular reforms attempted by the Gracchi brothers to return land to the landless. Over the years, war service and an influx of slaves through military conquests had led to many Romans losing their farm lands and losing the ability to work in the agricultural sector. On top of this, once Romans lost their land, they no longer qualified for military service and thus the state lost a soldier. The reforms attempted to correct this reality by providing recently conquered land to the landless. The Senate, greatly opposing this as it would affect them financially, ensured that the reforms failed. This event marked the growing conflict between the Senate and the Tribunes (who directly represented the peoples interest, theoretically) over control of the Republic. An event that sparked bitter rivalries between equites (a sort of merchant class who were wealthy but until recently stayed out of politics) who demanded recognition and respect from the Senate and the aristocrats who believed it was their innate right to govern through exclusion.

Seager continues to set the stage for Pompey's entrance by discussing his father (Pompeius Strabo) and Sulla, both of whom had strong influences on Pompey. They reinforced the value of loyal troops and the value of maintaining multiple connections in the Senate, something Pompey would never forget (although he wasn't very skilful in the latter leading to problems later on). Over time, as Pompey built a reputation for himself, he won numerous accolades from the Senate on his victories in Spain, his successful war against the Mediterranean pirates and his accomplishments in the East against Mithradates. He also shrewdly took credit for the defeat of Spartacus even though he arrived too late for the final battle. With these victories he expected to be no less then worshipped by the people and the Senate. However, the reality proved different. Being humiliated and shunned, as the Senate wanted to ensure Pompey understood his rightful place in the Republic's hierarchy (he was from a relatively young wealthy family and thus did not have the long-established family history other Senators had); Pompey allied himself with another brash rising star, Caesar. All these events, as Seager discussed, amplified the decay of the Republic's core foundations. Rather then upholding the Republics values (regardless of how suspect and imaginative they were), these men began placing their importance and prestige first. With this change in focus, it would only be a matter of time when the Republic would be torn apart into rival factions vying for its crown. Seager brilliantly brings all these events to light. He covers every step of the deterioration through the life of Pompey who had an integral part in ushering in this new era. From his first salute to Sulla as imperator to his final stand in Greece, Seager, in a comprehensive narrative, outlines Pompey's many decisions, the reasoning behind them and their eventual consequences to himself and the Republic.

Although I strongly recommend this book (6 stars if it existed), a prospective reader needs to keep a few things in mind before purchasing this book. The books, at-many-times, excessive details does have its failings mainly being that the book can at times drag on. Add in Seager's obsession with including every Consul's name (many which are similar to others via familial relationships) and you can easily have one chaotic and confusing mess. I should know as I threw down this book in frustration on my first attempt at a read-through. This book needs to be read careful paying attention to the fine detail Seager adds in as most of it ties into later parts of his book. Doing this rewards the reader with an essential and absorbing look at the later Republics political life with all its rewards and treachery. As well, Seager's primary focus is on Pompey's political achievements and failures with a nod towards his campaigns, hence the books subtitle: A Political Biography. As you can probably tell at this point, this is a scholarly work with its main focus being on providing and critiquing information and sources rather then providing a quick and exciting narrative (see Tom Holland's excellent book, Rubicon: the Last Years of the Roman Republic for that).

If one wants a simple... Read more

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Comment on In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir by S. Peek

S. Peek — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 08:32:52 +0000

20 of 29 people found the following review helpful:

Interesting, Informative, and Well Written, September 18, 2011

S. Peek (Rocky Mountains, USA) -

This review is from: In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir (Hardcover)

I am not usually one who reads biographies of politicians. This is the first one I have read in a long time and I am glad that I did.

Love him or hate him, former Vice President Dick Cheney is a compelling figure who has had a front seat to history for several decades including being the youngest White House Chief of Staff ever (Ford), the Defense Secretary (Bush I), and Vice President (Bush II). Additionally he was a member of the House of Representatives for a decade and was in the minority leadership for several of those.

The history contained in this book is fascinating including inside views on the Nixon pardon, the Ford campaign against Carter, the Gulf War, the fall of the Soviet Union, the abrogation of the ABM treaty, the 'enhanced interrogation program, the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as some of the internal differences he had with Colin Powell, Condoleeza Rice, and George W. Bush. Those parts will likely be of interest to most readers, even if they are not fans of Cheney. One thing is crystal clear about the former Veep: He is very firm in his positions.

Although I generally like Cheney, there are some issues about which I think he is very much in error. One is his view that the president can take us into a war without a Congressional declaration. Even though it has been done too many times to count by many presidents, it is clearly unconstitutional. The United States is not a dictatorship where one individual is allowed to make such a weighty decision involving countless lives. Unfortunately in this area, Cheney seems to be a good example of Lord Acton's maxim: "Power tends to corrupt, and absolute power corrupts absolutely."

In spite of my disagreement with the author in this area and a few others, this book is a very enjoyable read.

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Comment on In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir by A Customer

A Customer — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 07:52:31 +0000

503 of 731 people found the following review helpful:

Like Him or Dislike Him - You Will Want to Read His Story - 5 STARS !!!!, August 30, 2011

A Customer (Westport, CT) -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir (Hardcover)

History can be a very strange subject. First of all, it is written by the victors, secondly time has a strange effect on history. Harry Truman was vilified during his years as President. When he left the White House on January 20, 1953 there was no one to say good bye to him. Arriving at Union Station for the long train trip back to Independence, Missouri there were no crowds, no bands. America was glad to be rid of him and welcome Ike into their arms. As it was then, perhaps is how it is now. A half century later Truman is lauded for making extraordinary decisions with neither the experience nor the advice of his predecessor. It is the subject of numerous revisionist biographies.

Dick Cheney and President Bush have taken tremendous heat from just about everybody who holds both of them accountable for what seems like some poor decision making although history will have something to say about that. The lens through which we see history has a strange way of changing the facts and the conclusions, once the distance brought by time goes into effect and it will be the same for Vice President Cheney. We don't know if history will be kind or angry with the Vice President, we do know it will be different.

In his book "In Our Time", the Vice President gives his side of the story. Like all biography it is both self-serving, and overly complementary. Let us make no mistake about it, you expect bias in an autobiography as opposed to the pen of an historian, and so let us begin. This is the story of an extraordinary American who has led an extraordinary life experiencing world changing events first hand where he had influence. Having been a player in many of these same events I can attest that Dick Cheney is one of the smartest men to occupy public life in the last half century. I have seen him in action. The mind is razor sharp, his decision making capacity is unparalleled, and he has an innate ability to work through a problem in lightening speed, cutting right to the chase. Few men can stand with him, let alone match him, and then there's the influence.

At the same time we must recognized that such comments have been said about others such as Robert McNamara, Clark Clifford, McGeorge Bundy, and all of them got their Presidents into trouble as well, namely Kennedy and Johnson. "In My Time" lays out 40 years of service to his country. The book gives us 519 pages of narrative outlined in sixteen chapters. Cheney has appropriately begun Chapter I with Beginnings, and finishes the book with Chapter 16 Endings. The entire book evokes emotion in the reader. You are in the arena, feeling the heat, and watching the story unfold in front of you.

He covers everything that he feels is pertinent to getting his story out there. For me the chapters dealing with him becoming the youngest Chief of Staff to a President (Ford) in history are absolutely instrumental to understanding all consequent events in his life. For it is here that he forms a strong friendship and working relationship with a young Donald Rumsfeld, and a now retired General Brent Scowcroft. It is Scowcroft who has never received credit for perhaps being the indispensible player among the three of them for 40 years.

These three men, Cheney, Rumsfeld, and Scowcroft would together as a team render tremendous service to their country in several administrations and make history together. It is interesting to note that it is only when Scowcroft is missing from the three advisors during George W. Bush's administration that things seem to go awry. During the Bush I administration, it is Scowcroft who warns the first President Bush, beware of invading Baghdad, once in, you may not get out. During the Bush II administration, it is Scowcroft, now an outsider who urges Cheney to re-think this invasion of Iraq. It is Scowcroft who tells his friends, "Dick has changed." None of us understood it at the time.

It is Cheney on the inside who squelches all outside opinion and advice, and determines that once the course is set - STAY THE COURSE. It's all here and more. The book speaks for itself. You will read the story for yourself from his side of the table, and it is a fascinating read. Cheney did not write this book in his own hand. It is obvious that Liz Cheney who knows the Vice-President as well as anyone had a very big hand in the actual writing of this book, and that's okay. It is Cheney's thinking, and his personality that comes through the book. You feel what he feels as he is feeling it. You understand the process he is going through to make decisions, and see those feelings and decisions filtered through a politically conservative philosophy that has evolved for the Vice President over a lifetime of being in the arena.

Whether it is discussing being Secretary of Defense during the Bush I Administration in Chapter... Read more

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Comment on In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir by V. L. Wilson "V. L. Wilson"

V. L. Wilson "V. L. Wilson" — Fri, 17 Feb 2012 07:21:50 +0000

89 of 116 people found the following review helpful:

DON'T JUDGE THIS BOOK BY ITS COVER - READ THE BOOK, THEN JUDGE, September 9, 2011

V. L. Wilson "V. L. Wilson" (Millville, New Jersey United States) -

Amazon Verified Purchase(What's this?)

This review is from: In My Time: A Personal and Political Memoir (Hardcover)

I invite curious people who take American history seriously to read this 527 page memoir by the 46th. vice-president of the U.S. from start to finish, just as I did. Forget what you've heard about the controversial Dick Cheny. Allow him to explain his life story. At age 70, having spent 40 years in Washington, D.C. serving 10 years in Congress and then holding various key positions under 4 Republican presidents (including being Secretary of Defense altho he is not a veteran,) he has plenty to explain.

There are 16 interesting chapters, some riveting, some exasperating, some will make you mad, plus excellent pictures. An epilogue and notes for fact-checking are included. The tragic events of 9/11 changed our country and President Bush and his cabinet. Dick Cheney has earned the right to defend himself from years of media bashing so the average person (like me) can be the judge of him, to some degree. I certainly feel he loves this country.

Many questions remain unanswered. There is very little about Cheney's years with Halliburton. He discusses his family, travels, fishing and hunting hobbies, and his "best friends". He begins his memoir with 9/11 and the awfulness of it - the shock of it - and how he and everyone in the administration reacted in the emergency. It isn't until much later in the memoir as the "road to Iraq" is explained from his point of view, that you will perhaps have questions still needing answers. He explains also how both parties worked together on the "war on terror". Prepare for surprises. Both parties are first of all, Americans.

Having also lived 70 years and having read dozens of books about every administration since Washington, I compared this memoir to previously published books by Bush administration staff. Surprise! Cheney was highly esteemed by most everyone he worked with. I dare you to tackle this book and see why - and also why I'm unhappy that Cheney chose to change the tone of the book after 300 pages or so. As Scowcroft said "Cheney changed." After reading his memoir there is no doubt some of his friends will have second thoughts about their association with Dick Cheney, or maybe not. I wasn't there.

5 stars because this memoir held my interest to the end. Try and remember he was only one of many advisors to the presidents - his advice was not always heeded (fortunately in some cases). He is an ambitious man with a supportive wife and family and unafraid to speak his mind. History will judge him just as it has every other public servant. Hopefully, Joe Biden is keeping a journal.

I am an independent voter. For a more perfect review of this book, please check out Richard Stoyeck's review. I discovered his review reflects my own thinking.
Thank you for reading mine.

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Comment on Napoleon: A Political Life by Joshua Keyes

Joshua Keyes — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:31:27 +0000

11 of 11 people found the following review helpful:

A flawed, but human Emperor, February 4, 2004

Joshua Keyes (Glendora, CA United States) -

This review is from: Napoleon: A Political Life (Hardcover)

Breaking from the common theme of Napoleonic biographies, Englund ditches miltary strategy, tactics and love affairs, preferring to focus on the political man behind the throne. For Englund, Napoleon is not the idealistic conqueror, but neither is he the tyrannical imperialist. He is, instead, a work in progress, influenced and shaped not only by philosophers like Rousseau and political figures like Paoli and Robespierre, but also by the turbulent events through which he lived. Englund does a great job of illustrating Napoleon's transition from a young, impressionable patriot and idealist, into a pragmatic and efficient ruler, a product of his many influences and encounters.

While exposing many of Napoleon's faults as a ruler, Englund makes no qualms about also recognizing the successes he achieved, first as consul, and later as Emperor. The end result seems to cover both viewpoints effectively. All the better is that Napoleon becomes "human," and like all of us, he has his triumphs and his faults. While one can easily want to yell at the dead Emperor for his persistent antagonizing of the European continent, one can also see him as a man who feels as though he carried the weight of France on his shoulders, and his alone. Englund does a fantastic job attempting to balance the pro/con approaches to Napoleonic study. Great read. Definitely worth checking out for anyone wanting a fresh look at l'Empereur.

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Comment on Napoleon: A Political Life by David Keymer "David Keymer"

David Keymer "David Keymer" — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 14:03:42 +0000

12 of 12 people found the following review helpful:

An Exemplary Political Biography of an Exceptional Man, July 9, 2006

David Keymer "David Keymer" (Modesto CA) -

This review is from: Napoleon: A Political Life (Paperback)

Steven Englund's Napoleon: A Political Life (available in paperback from Harvard) is a book that should satisfy both the interested lay reader and the professional historian.

It will satisfy the lay person because it tells a fascinating story about one of history's most interesting and influential human beings, and it tells it exceptionally well. In the process, the reader will gain insights into how a topflight scholar advances his or her field of knowledge.

It will please academics because Englund presents a nuanced revision of the current myths about Napoleon, who, after two hundred years, still stirs passions among his admirers and detractors as though he were living today. The author focuses on Napoleon's evolving political thought and strategy and how his contemporaries actually responded to him, not how we wished they had responded to him. A virtue is that Englund avoids smoothing out Napoleon's past choices and actions through hindsight: Englund emphasizes that actual history is messy; it doesn't come in tidy packages.

The greatest of men, the very few like Napoleon, leave behind an altered world. Englund draws on Christian Meier's masterful biography of Caesar. He frequently compares Napoleon to Caesar, but Napoleon left behind many more permanent structures in France and across Europe thna Caesar did Rome: law code, a system to govern the localities from the center, the Legion of Honor, and in Paris, monuments and buildings and sewer system and roads.

People who won't like the book will most likely object to two things.

(1) It's not a history primer. Englund assumes the reader is conversant with eighteenth-century history history though not at the level of the professional historian.

(2) Englund devotes almost as much time to wars and battles as he does to other issues, both domestic and international. But, especially when discussing Napoleon and his times, Clausewitz was right: war is an extension ofpolitics.

Another objection may be that Englund doesn't condemn Napoleon roundly enough. He admires him but sees what disaster his overweening ambition led him to in the
end.

Highly recommended.

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Comment on Napoleon: A Political Life by Sean Brocklebank

Sean Brocklebank — Wed, 15 Feb 2012 13:28:56 +0000

24 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

Less political than you might think, April 23, 2005

Sean Brocklebank (Edinburgh) -

This review is from: Napoleon: A Political Life (Hardcover)

I came to this book thinking that it would focus entirely on the political dimension of Napoleon's life. This is not the case. Napoleon: A Political Life might exclude the word 'political' from its title and be just as fitting, for Englund spends a great deal of time on Napoleon's relations with Josephine, his brothers, the exiles, etc.. In fact, in the introduction (at the end of the book), Englund states that he almost subtitled the book "Empire of Circumstance."

The great strength of the book is its writing style. Englund really captures the drama of the Little Corsican's life, and he sweeps the reader up in it. All of the politics of Napoleon's life is, as you would expect, well covered, but so is his personal and military life. Never did I feel overburdened with detail, and never was the text wanting for humour.

There is, however, some merit in the argument posted by some of the other reviewers that the book assumes too much in the way of background knowledge. This is not an introduction to Napoleon for the novice. While I would not go so far as to say that you need have already read another book on Napoleon to enjoy Englund's work, you should certainly have a reasonable idea of the political zeitgeist he worked in, particularly the French revolution and the foreign (especially British) reaction to it. Ideally, you should also have taken a course in French at some point in your life (and not completely forgotten it). Englund has a somewhat irritating habit of dropping les mots francais at random, and often without translation (although most of the more important French phrases are translated, most of the minor ones are not). C'est la vie.

One of my favourite parts of the book was the analysis of Napoleon's legacy: his admirers and detractors, whence he is glorified, and whence he is ignored. Englund is the most balanced Napoleonic author I have yet encountered, seeming to genuinely sympathize with (and synthesize from) those who love and those who hate the l'Empereur.

Perhaps the highest compliment for a book, I plan to reread this one.

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Comment on Brother Number One: A Political Biography Of Pol Pot by Al Kihano

Al Kihano — Mon, 13 Feb 2012 19:02:41 +0000

9 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

best source of pol pot information, November 30, 1999

Al Kihano (Iskandria) -

This review is from: Brother Number One: A Political Biography Of Pol Pot (Paperback)

...such as it is. The few known details of Pol POt's life can be found in this slim biography. Chandler's _The Tragedy of Cambodian History_ has better information on the Democratic Kampuchea movement in general, but if you're looking for the nitty gritty on this one person, this (to my knowledge) the only place to find it.

Unfortunately, _Brother Number One_ was written before the capture of Pol Pot and Nate Thayer's subsequent interview. Hence the modern period is neglected and a conscientious reader will have to seek out that information on his own.

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