Lives of the Caesars Book

In the beginning of Remus: A Roman Myth, Professor Wiseman poses an interesting question: Why did the Romans have a foundation myth involving twins? And why should one twin kill the other? He's right, it's an interesting-- even unique-- type of foundation myth. On that level, Wiseman had my complete attention.

On the other hand, this book was a laborious read. I like to read about antiquity, and I am open to new interpretations and speculations (always matched with a dose of criticism, but let's be honest, that's half the fun). Sometimes, this book supported Wiseman's speculations with some foggy details; I don't know enough about archaic Rome and the archaeological evidence to gainsay his claims. For example, the bronze mirror depicting the she-wolf and others seems radically reinterpreted where I was unfamiliar with the original interpretation; this was a difficult argument to follow.

By then end, this book made some interesting conclusions, but it felt like wading through quicksand to get there. I thought that the big-picture development could have been done differently, but that Wiseman was not going to leave scholars room to quibble about his argument. I will summarize by saying that this book has an interesting premise, is meticulously researched with copious end notes for the more-than-casual scholar, and summarizes with interesting albeit speculative conclusions. My hang-up was the density of the supporting details, as well as extended digressions. I appreciated this book, but cannot claim to have enjoyed it.