Rating: 
Summary: History Began at Marathon
Review: The Graeco-Persian Wars were arguably the first conflict in the Western world to be related in truly "historical" terms. Herodotus, its chronicler, is the father of ancient history. Our modern-day narrator, Peter Green is multi-talented. Not only does he reinterpret the conflict in terms a twentieth-century reader can understand, he also writes with astonishing clarity. I especially like the subliminal comparisons of Themistocles with Churchill: an inevitable result, perhaps, of Green's post-war perspective. The parallels, however, are valid: as the fate of the perimeter troops at Dunkirk attests, France of 1940 was not without its Thermopylaes. And, like Winston, Themistocles was a good Admiralty man - it was the Greek navy that finally beat off the Great King and his Barbarians.
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic...........
Review: The Greco-Persian Wars reads like a novel, but presents its' thesis in a most thorough, analytical manner. Green is, perhaps, the most easily read scholar on ancient Greece which is evident in this effort as well as his "Alexander of Macedon". The Greco-Persian Wars masterfully recounts Xerxes' march through Greece, the heroic battle of Thermopylae, the miraculous Greek naval victory at Salamis, and the subsequent withdrawal of Persian forces. Interwoven among this narrative is excellent insight into the political machinations present among the vying city-states of Greece. Green resurrects Themistocles, in all his martial splendor, from the elitist dismissals of Herodotus, to show that Themistocles' naval genius and personal courage saved the day despite the intense and ongoing city-state rivalries and a monied and powerful Athenian majority which preferred a Marathon-like ground engagement. The Greco-Persian Wars, despite its' generic title, is an outstanding tale of heroism, bravery, and perserverence that deserves the attention of any history connoisseur. Read this book. It is outstanding!
Rating:
Summary: Fantastic...........
Review: The Greco-Persian Wars reads like a novel, but presents its' thesis in a most thorough, analytical manner. Green is, perhaps, the most easily read scholar on ancient Greece which is evident in this effort as well as his "Alexander of Macedon". The Greco-Persian Wars masterfully recounts Xerxes' march through Greece, the heroic battle of Thermopylae, the miraculous Greek naval victory at Salamis, and the subsequent withdrawal of Persian forces. Interwoven among this narrative is excellent insight into the political machinations present among the vying city-states of Greece. Green resurrects Themistocles, in all his martial splendor, from the elitist dismissals of Herodotus, to show that Themistocles' naval genius and personal courage saved the day despite the intense and ongoing city-state rivalries and a monied and powerful Athenian majority which preferred a Marathon-like ground engagement. The Greco-Persian Wars, despite its' generic title, is an outstanding tale of heroism, bravery, and perserverence that deserves the attention of any history connoisseur. Read this book. It is outstanding!
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