The scholar will find much to admire in this book, but, better still, the newcomer to ancient Rome will turn its pages with excitement, enlightenment - and sheer narrative suspense., Freeman gives his readers much to consider in learning about a totally alien world in an easy, uncomplicated lively prose about an epic tale., Freeman does not hero worship Alexander, and does not paper over his subject's many faults.

Freeman's ambition, he tells us in his introduction, was 'to write a biography of Alexander that is first and foremost a story.' It is one he splendidly fulfills., Philip Freeman takes the reader through every dizzying thrill. It is, as Freeman hopes, a history book for those readers who are not already experts on Alexander or his world., Here, in vivid and exciting detail, are all the familiar highlights of Alexander's career: the battles, the tempestuous relationships, the dazzling ambitions, the mysterious death in Babylon. This biography stands out from others written about Alexander thanks to its smooth flow and interesting narrative.

vivid, fast-moving account., Reading Philip Freeman's pacy and panoptic narrative of his life from unpromising early beginnings to the fateful Ides is one very rewarding approach to answering that perennially fascinating question., The greatest victory of the book, however, is Freeman's storytelling. Freeman ends with fascinating speculation on how the modern world would look if Hannibal had won. But what kind of person would dare to face the most relentless imperial power of the ancient world? How could Hannibal, consistently outnumbered and always deep in enemy territory, win battle after battle until he held the very fate of Rome within his grasp? Roman historians portray him as a cruel barbarian, but how does the story change if we look at Hannibal from the Carthaginian point of view? Can we search beneath the accounts of Roman writers who were eager to portray Hannibal as a monster and find a more human figure? Can we use the life of Hannibal to look at the Romans themselves in an unfamiliar way-not as the noble and benign defenders of civilization but as ruthless conquerors motivated by greed and conquest?įreeman offers a highly readable, well-organized military and personal biography of the Carthaginian general who nearly changed history, vividly revealing more amazing scenarios in Hannibal's life and battles than any writer could concoct in a novel. Hannibal, a daring African general from the city of Carthage, led an army of warriors and battle elephants over the snowy Alps to invade the very heart of Rome's growing empire. Over two thousand years ago one of the greatest military leaders in history almost destroyed Rome. Telling the story of a man who stood against the overwhelming power of the mighty Roman empire, Hannibal is the biography of a man who, against all odds, dared to change the course of history.

Hannibal by Philip Freeman