This book, obviously, is about Cleopatra. She was the last Pharaoh of Egypt before it became a province (or a part of, somehow) the Roman Empire. We all know about Cleopatra, right? The oversexed, manipulating seductress who was the lover of most of the men in the ancient world. She had 8 husbands, right? Or was that Liz Taylor? This book takes all of those misconceptions and, in retelling the story of Cleopatra's life, explains how our perception of her has been shaped by who wrote the history.
Of course, who wrote the history would be men. And not just any men, Roman men. They had no reason to like Cleopatra and a strong, intelligent woman would be anathema to them. Schiff has to fight through centuries of prejudicial interpretations of Cleopatra's life based upon antagonistic sources. Schiff does an excellent job of peeling back the layers of misogyny and showing us what Cleopatra may have been like.
Sources are a problem for this time period - there are not very many of them and they don't always agree on the facts, can be biased, and can be entirely untruthful as well. But Schiff perserveres and shows the reader what Cleopatra could have been like - indeed, what she should have been like, had we the proper sources and knowledge.
The test of a good non-fiction book is to be sad and slightly exhausted at the end. Sad because the book is over, exhausted by the journey you just took. You take that kind of journey here in Cleopatra. I really felt I had a better understanding of the Egyptian Queen and her place in the Ancient World. Schiff touches on her great romances with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony, as well as her children and family life. But Schiff also looks at Cleopatra as Queen and ruler - at the decisions she had to make, and the success she made of her reign. Schiff made ancient Alexandria come vibrantly alive - it's a place I would like to visit, if they ever invent time travel. (Actually, that's true for Egypt in general - it's really Ancient Egypt I want to visit.)
This is an excellent non-fiction book. I recommend it to any readers who want to learn more about Cleopatra and the drama of the ancient world. I thoroughly enjoyed every page of the book. Cleopatra did not come alive, exactly, in these pages (the sources are too limited and the distance in time too far), but I gained a better understanding of her and her life.
Two points to wrap up with: first, Hollywood has already optioned the book for a movie. Angelina Jolie will be playing the title role. It will be interesting to see if it ends up good, or very bad. Secondly, I would like to point out that Schiff thanks the Rutherford Library at the University of Alberta in her acknowledgements at the back. Thank you, Rutherford Library, for helping make this great book possible! Yay!
Sounds like a great read ... though I am more skeptical than you about the Hollywood biopic. Angelina Jolie seems like a cliched choice, though probably no more improbable a Cleopatra than "La Liz".
ReplyDeleteAnyway, I'm re-discovering historical non-fiction lately, so this book would be right up my alley. It's non-fiction, right? Or well=researched fiction? And yay for the Rutherford Library shout-out - I have fond memories of working there during my undergrad. It's a really great place for book lovers.
I should probably be more skeptical. These days, I'm almost happier that most of the books I read are too obscure to be made into movies - then Hollywood doesn't have a chance to step in and ruin it!
ReplyDeleteAnyway, yes, it is historical non-fiction and is excellent. I hadn't read any good historical non-fiction in a while, and this is excellent. I can easily see why it would be one of the Top 10 Non-Fiction books of the year.