Augustus, John Williams
Augustus, John Williams
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Augustus

Author: John Williams

Narrator: Robin Field

Unabridged: 14 hr 16 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Published: 01/26/2011

Synopsis

A brilliant and beautifully written novel in the tradition of Robert Graves I, Claudius, Augustus is a sweeping narrative that brings vividly to life a compelling cast of historical figures through their letters, dispatches, and memoirs. A mere eighteen years of age when his uncle, Julius Caesar, is murdered, Octavius Caesar prematurely inherits rule of the Roman Republic. Surrounded by men who are jockeying for powerCicero, Brutus, Cassius, and Mark Antonyyoung Octavius must work against the powerful Roman political machinations to claim his destiny as first Roman emperor. Sprung from meticulous research and the pen of a true poet, Augustus tells the story of one mans dream to liberate a corrupt Rome from the fancy of the capriciously crooked and the wildly wealthy.

About John Williams

John Williams (1922–1994) was an editor, professor, and author of several works, including two volumes of poetry and three novels, Butcher’s Crossing, Stoner, and the National Book Award–winning Augustus. He was born in Texas and received his PhD from the University of Missouri in the early 1950s, where he also was a professor. In 1955 he became the director of the University of Denver’s creative writing program, where he became the editor of the University of Denver Quarterly.

Reviews

Goodreads review by Vit on March 23, 2023

Augustus is written in lucid and colourful style. Inventing all those fictional letters and documents John Williams vividly caught the spirit of the whole historical era. Perhaps we are wiser when we are young, though the philosopher would dispute with me. But I swear to you, we were friends from tha......more

Goodreads review by Mark on January 21, 2025

Augustus by John Williams, is an epistolary account of the life of perhaps the greatest emperor of Ancient Rome. Born as Gaius Octavius he lived from 63 BCE – 14 CE. He ruled between 27 BCE – 14 CE. This book commences when Octavius was a boy, and the first letter is from Julius Caesar to Octavius’s......more

Goodreads review by Allen on December 31, 2022

Full review: [URL not allowed] 6⭐ for me. I'm not sure there's a book that has more things that are specifically for me than this one: epistolary format, ancient Roman history, John Williams's beautiful prose, complex themes and heartbreaking relationships. I completely understand how this......more

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