Author: Emma Southon
Genre: History, Nonfiction, Biography
Publisher: Abrams Press
Publication Date: 2023
Pages: 415
Source: Netgalley/Publisher in exchange for an honest review
Synopsis: This wildly entertaining new history of Rome uses the lives of 21 women to upend our understanding of the ancient world, from the acclaimed author of A Fatal Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum.
This is a history of women who caused outrage, led armies in rebellion, wrote poetry; who lived independently or under the thumb of emperors. Told with humor and verve as well as a deep scholarly background, A Rome of One’s Own highlights women overlooked and misunderstood, and through them offers a fascinating and groundbreaking chronicle of the ancient world.
The history of Rome has long been narrow and one-sided, essentially a history of “the Doing of Important Things.” And as far as Roman historians have been concerned, women don’t make that history.
From Romulus through the political stab-fest of the late Republic, and then on to all the emperors, Roman historians may deign to give you a wife or a mother to show how bad things become when women get out of control, but history is more than that.
Emma Southon’s A Rome of One’s Own is the best kind of correction. This is a retelling of the history of Rome with all the things Roman history writers have relegated to the background, or designated as domestic, feminine, or worthless.
My Review: The ancient Roman chronicles rarely mention women in their histories. This book attempts to give Roman women their due place in Roman history. This book covers twenty-one biographies of women who made important contributions to Rome. Some of these women were mythological. Other women were famous and some of them were forgotten. Yet, each of them are important in understanding ancient Roman history.
I found all these women mentioned in Emma Southon’s biography to be utterly fascinating. Some of these women I have heard of were Julia Ceasar, Perpetua, Cartimandua, Boudica, Julia Maesa, Zenobia and Galla Placida. The rest of the women I have never heard of before. My favorite women were Julia Felix (who was a businesswoman in Pompeii), Julia Balbila (who was a poet), and Turia (who was the wife of Pompeii’s allies. Each of these women’s stories were very enlightening and made me want to research more about them!
Overall, this was a very comprehensive and enjoyable biography! I loved the author’s writing style and how she made the story engaging to the general reader! The only thing I did not like about this book was that there were some connections to popular culture that I did not understand, for instance the references to the Green Lantern superhero. Still, it was a very enjoyable and informative read! I could not put it down! A Rome of One’s Own is perfect for fans of ancient Roman history! I recommend this book for those who love Caesar's Wives, Rome’s Christian Empress, and Cleopatra’s Daughter!
Rating: 4 out of 5 stars
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