Augustus
First Emperor of Rome

Quotes

“Superb…. Augustus is a first-rate popular biography by a skilled and knowing hand, a fine companion to Goldsworthy’s Caesar.”—Washington Post

“Impressive…. This is a welcome corrective to traditional presentations.”—Wall Street Journal

“The dramatic rise and long rule of Caesar Augustus is the subject of Adrian Goldsworthy’s substantial new biography, Augustus: First Emperor of Rome. The book is a fascinating study of political life in ancient Rome, and the parallels with our own political system are numerous and interesting. But the discontinuities between America and the Roman Empire are just as revealing.”—Christian Science Monitor

“In too many of the numerous histories of this period, Augustus as an individual is blurred, if not overlooked, as strange as that may seem. Goldsworthy’s goal is to rescue the life of Augustus from the history, limning the passions, cruelty, and wiliness that made up that often-dismissed character….Adrian Goldsworthy’s fine new biography tells the founder’s story as it deserves to be told.”—National Review

“Augustus is revealing of its subject’s character and the time in which he lived, judicious on his shortcomings, and rich in portraits of secondary figures—everything a biography should be… Augustus is the best sort of biography… It deserves wide readership, and, in the best way, demonstrates the truth of Petrarch’s famous query: “What else is all history, but the praise of Rome?’”—Washington Free Beacon

“Goldsworthy’s prodigious biography of this first and greatest Roman emperor is thorough and well-researched…. Goldsworthy is a superb historian and talented writer…. Augustus cultivated what passed for the Roman media as assiduously as any American politician today woos Fox News or CNN. One gets the impression that Augustus would have adapted well to 21st-century politics while still ruling wisely.”—Washington Times

“Historian and biographer Goldsworthy (Caesar) showcases his deep knowledge of Ancient Rome in this masterful document of a life whose themes still resonate in modern times…. A strong narrative emphasis ties the work together and is enriched by evocative details of Roman life…. The overall effect that Goldsworthy generates is of meeting a man whose life seems hardly distant from the modern experience. While ancient cultural practices can often feel foreign, the political motivations and machinations, the familial relations and emotions, ring as true today as at the turn of the Common Era.”—Publishers Weekly (starred)

“Goldsworthy (Caesar: Life of a Colossus, 2008, etc.) obviously has ancient Rome in his bones, and his biography of Augustus is also a solid chronicle of Rome and its development…. Goldsworthy questions why Augustus has slipped off of many historians’ lists of great leaders, which include Julius Caesar, Alexander, Hannibal, and Hadrian. He provides plenty of reasons why he should be at the top of those lists.”—Kirkus

“Goldsworthy is a master storyteller ... This is the account of the man who remade Rome in his image ... it's a tale that never loses its appeal.”—BBC History Magazine (UK)

“Goldsworthy’s true expertise is as a military historian, and this is what really gives his biography its strength and bite: his depiction of Augustus’s relationship with his legions is masterly.”—Sunday Times (UK)