# Need 2 history book recommendations (Roman Empire and WWI) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [June 14, 2010, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110 "2010-06-14T06:20:38Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 6:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/1 "2010-06-14T06:20:38Z")
I am interested in these 2 topics and my knowledge on both is a bit lacking. For the book about Rome, I’m looking for something with high readability, but not quite as simple as “Rome for Dummies.” A fairly recent (last 15 years or so), ~400 page, “Rome from Roots to Fall” would be ideal. For the WWI book, I’m actually kind of looking for a specific book, but fire away if there are other must-reads. The one I’m looking for: awhile back I read a review of a WWI book that earned extremely high marks from critics and sounded very appealing to me. All I remember was that it was written by a woman. I think it’s a few decades old (~1960s?), but I could be wrong about that. I know it’s a shot in the dark but . . . anyone? Thanks in advance. ---
**Author:** ![cckerberos](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/f0a364/32.png) [@cckerberos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/cckerberos)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 6:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/2 "2010-06-14T06:44:58Z")
Could the WWI book be [The Guns of August](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Guns_of_august) by Barbara Tuchman? It won a Pulitzer in 1962, but only covers the period leading up to and the beginning of the war. ---
**Author:** ![Sampiro](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/2acd7d/32.png) [@Sampiro](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sampiro)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 6:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/3 "2010-06-14T06:55:03Z")
Any particular era of the Roman Empire? For primary sources it’s hard to beat Suetonius’s [The Twelve Caesars](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Twelve_Caesars) for both history and readability (and when you’re writing on papyrus scrolls you tend to be concise 😉 ), and there are several recent translations that are very good. Suetonius only goes from Julius Caesar to Domitian (d. 96 A.D.) and he died when Hadrian was only recently emperor and long before Heliogabalus and Diocletian and Constantine were born so he’s somewhat limited. An unconventional but very entertaining source about daily life in Rome is one I’ve posted several times so I’ll just find it and copy and paste it here as a rec that can be Netflixed: > [@](#): > > For anyone who hasn’t watched ROME on DVD it has possibly the best DVD extra of all time. It’s a feature called ALL ROADS LEAD TO ROME that gives ‘pop up video’ style bits (not as annoying as pop-up-video though) about Roman history and culture. It adds a lot to the series- if a character is praying it will have a pop up explaining what the prayer is and who the deity is and why they’re praying to him/her, etc., or if a sum of money is mentioned it will pop up with “This is more than Pullo would have earned in 2 years”, or if an object is shown it will explain what it is (ancestral masks, larariums, scythes, etc.). It’s well worth watching just for that. > > Historical inaccuracies and all though the thing I loved about ROME was that unlike Ben Hur and other epic movies it seems to get the attitudes right. These people are intelligent (or unintelligent depending on the character) but they don’t think with 21st century mindsets: not all people are created equal, there is absolutely nothing wrong with slaughtering or enslaving non Romans, polytheism is just good sense, bloody sports are just good entertainment, etc.. Nobody wants to reform it into DR. QUINNUS- even the most brilliant are products of their environment, which is something that’s far more important for believability than historical accuracies. ---
**Author:** ![Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Petrobey_Mavromihalis)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 9:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/4 "2010-06-14T09:23:49Z")
Not read it yet but [this](http://www.amazon.co.uk/Ancient-Rome-Rise-Fall-Empire/dp/1846072840/ref=cm_cr_pr_product_top) gets good reviews. And in an audible form I can’t recommend Mike Duncan’s [History of Rome](http://thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/) podcasts highly enough. Perfect mix of info and enetertainment. ---
**Author:** ![aldiboronti](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/9fc348/32.png) [@aldiboronti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aldiboronti)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 9:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/5 "2010-06-14T09:56:59Z")
I second the Suetonius recommendation. I know it’s not what you’re looking for now and the sheer size of it daunts some but Gibbon’s Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire really is the reading experience of a lifetime. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/6 "2010-06-14T10:02:19Z")
If you have access to NetLibrary via your local library, it has a couple Modern Scholar lecture series about Roman history. Nothing that I recall about WWI, though. The best book I’ve read about Rome-- nonfiction, anyway-- is Tom Holland’s _Rubicon_. [Amazon link.](http://www.amazon.com/Rubicon-Triumph-Tragedy-Roman-Republic/dp/034911563X/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276508451&sr=8-3) It covers a smaller period than what the OP asked for. One that more closely matches the request is Cyril Robinson’s _A History of Rome_. Audible has it as a two volume audiobook, which was well done IMO. The recommendation of the HBO series is one I’ll echo. The end of the Republic is the most interesting stage of Roman history. Hew Strachan’s _The First World War_ is my favorite nonfiction book on the war, but yeah, you probably mean _The Guns of August_. ---
**Author:** ![Dave\_Hartwick](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/7feea3/32.png) [@Dave\_Hartwick](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dave_Hartwick)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 1:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/7 "2010-06-14T13:08:29Z")
> [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](#): > > And in an audible form I can’t recommend Mike Duncan’s [History of Rome](http://thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/) podcasts highly enough. Perfect mix of info and enetertainment. I’m interested in those podcasts and podcasts in general, but I usually listen to lectures and audiobooks on my mp3 player, not on the computer. Is there a convenient way to download Duncan’s podcasts? I did a save as of the first one but it took quite a few minutes. ---
**Author:** ![Quartz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/quartz/32/267_2.png) [@Quartz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quartz)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 1:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/8 "2010-06-14T13:27:33Z")
> [@Cisco](#): > > For the book about Rome, I’m looking for something with high readability, but not quite as simple as “Rome for Dummies.” A fairly recent (last 15 years or so), ~400 page, “Rome from Roots to Fall” would be ideal. Are you interested in stories or archaeology? If the former, you’ll be hard put to do better to start than reading a good translation of Livy’s [History of Rome](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ab_Urbe_Condita_(book)). ---
**Author:** ![Grey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/b782af/32.png) [@Grey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Grey)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 2:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/9 "2010-06-14T14:03:05Z")
Tom Holland’s [Rubicon](http://www.amazon.ca/Rubicon-Last-Years-Roman-Republic/dp/1400078970/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276523970&sr=8-3) is a good read for late Republic Rome. [The Fall of the Roman Empire](http://www.amazon.ca/Fall-Roman-Empire-History-Barbarians/dp/0195325419/ref=pd_ys_iyr21) by Peter Heather is another one I liked. ---
**Author:** ![Quimby](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/q/22d042/32.png) [@Quimby](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Quimby)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 2:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/10 "2010-06-14T14:14:25Z")
For the history of the entire world, including both Rome and WWI I would recommend Mental Floss’ History of the World. Very readable and interesting. Rome is covered quite extensively as you could imagine and WWI is covered as well although admittedly not as thoroughly. You can find it here: [here](http://www.amazon.com/Mental-Floss-History-World-Civilizations/dp/0061842672/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276524545&sr=8-1) ---
**Author:** ![In\_Winnipeg](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/a8b319/32.png) [@In\_Winnipeg](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/In_Winnipeg)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 2:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/11 "2010-06-14T14:42:57Z")
Yep, the WWI book you’re looking for is Barbara Tuchman’s. Still highly recommended. ---
**Author:** ![Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/bcef8e/32.png) [@Petrobey\_Mavromihalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Petrobey_Mavromihalis)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 4:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/12 "2010-06-14T16:57:19Z")
> [@Dave\_Hartwick](#): > > I’m interested in those podcasts and podcasts in general, but I usually listen to lectures and audiobooks on my mp3 player, not on the computer. Is there a convenient way to download Duncan’s podcasts? I did a save as of the first one but it took quite a few minutes. I use a Mac. I subscribed to the podcast via iTunes, so new episodes download automatically. They then sync with my iPod whenever I plug it in. I then listen in the car. ---
**Author:** ![History\_Geek](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/b19c9b/32.png) [@History\_Geek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/History_Geek)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 7:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/13 "2010-06-14T19:03:06Z")
I’ll second [Strachan’s book](http://www.amazon.com/First-World-War-Hew-Strachan/dp/0143035185/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276541915&sr=8-1). For fiction I’d recommend both [_All Quiet on the Western Front_](http://www.amazon.com/Quiet-Western-Front-Market-Paperback/dp/B0032NZI0Y/ref=sr_1_8?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276541973&sr=1-8) and [_Not So Quiet…_](http://www.amazon.com/Not-So-Quiet-Stepdaughters/dp/093531282X/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1276542023&sr=1-1) by Helen Zenna Smith. Both novels were written by veterans, so there’s a memoir flavor to them. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 14, 2010, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/14 "2010-06-14T19:59:30Z")
Tuchman’s book is excellent but, as others have noted, it doesn’t cover the entire war. If you’re looking for a good overall history, you might try _World War I_ by S.L.A. Marshall. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/15 "2010-06-17T17:03:39Z")
Yes! The Guns of August is indeed the book I was thinking of. I have checked it out from the library and will be reading it soon. Thank you all. Looks like I’ll need a follow-up book, too, to cover the war itself and the aftermath. None of the books about Rome that I’ve been able to find, or have been recommended here, have really blown my hair back so far. There seems to be a million books about the fall of Rome, but I guess if there isn’t a “from roots to fall”-type book, then I’d prefer starting with a “roots/early history” book. Thanks again. ---
**Author:** ![Tamerlane](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tamerlane/32/7602_2.png) [@Tamerlane](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tamerlane)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 5:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/16 "2010-06-17T17:41:26Z")
[This](http://www.amazon.com/Roman-Empire-Second-Colin-Wells/dp/0674777700) one is a decent concise survey of just about exactly the size you asked for ( well, actually only 270 pages of text, plus nearly another 100 pages of index, cites and “further reading” notes ). But note it is specifically about the _Empire_ - it starts with Augustus, not the Republic. Further it is about the empire to the end of the Severan period ~235 A.D., so hardly a complete survey. Still, it’s a decent college textbook-style intro to the period it covers. ---
**Author:** ![Little\_Nemo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/little_nemo/32/3120_2.png) [@Little\_Nemo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Little_Nemo)\ **Post date:** [June 17, 2010, 6:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/17 "2010-06-17T18:51:29Z")
> [@](#): > > There seems to be a million books about the fall of Rome, but I guess if there isn’t a “from roots to fall”-type book, then I’d prefer starting with a “roots/early history” book. _Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republic_ by Tom Holland is a good general history on that period. eta: I see Dave Hartwick and Grey already mentioned this book. So I guess I’m thirding it. ---
**Author:** ![Cisco](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ccd318/32.png) [@Cisco](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cisco)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 12:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/18 "2010-06-18T00:35:02Z")
> [@Little\_Nemo](#): > > _Rubicon: The Last Years of the Roman Republic_ by Tom Holland is a good general history on that period. I’m either way more ignorant on this topic than even I realize, or I’m communicating poorly. Either way I acknowledge that it’s probably my fault. What I’m looking for is a book that starts with the earliest seeds of Roman civilization. My brain is telling me that I’m not going to find this in a book titled “The Last Years.” What am I missing? ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 12:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/19 "2010-06-18T00:58:39Z")
A second here for the [Rome podcast,](http://thehistoryofrome.typepad.com/) it is just great. Just subscribe to it through iTunes, For the WW1 book I’m going somewhere quite different: [Cataclysm: The First World War As Political Tragedy](http://www.amazon.com/Cataclysm-First-World-Political-Tragedy/dp/0465081843) by **David Stevenson**. Aside from being a comprehensive history of the war as a war, it has extensive treatment of the political side - what were both sides in it for at all? Under what conditions would they have made peace earlier? ---
**Author:** ![DrDeth](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/d/b487fb/32.png) [@DrDeth](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DrDeth)\ **Post date:** [June 18, 2010, 2:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110/20 "2010-06-18T02:50:14Z")
Some good Fiction for Rome- the McCullough’s The First Man in Rome series and the SPQR mystery series. Both are solidly history based and the The First Man in Rome series is pretty much the history as we know it, enlivened with some made up dialog. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/need-2-history-book-recommendations-roman-empire-and-wwi/543110.md?page=2)