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Augustus
A brilliant and beautifully written novel in the tradition of Robert Graves, Augustus is a sweeping narrative that brings vividly to life a compelling cast of historical figures through their letters, dispatches, and memoirs.
A mere eighteen years of age when his uncle, Julius Caesar, is murdered, Octavius Caesar prematurely inherits rule of the Roman Republic. Surrounded by men who are jockeying for power–Cicero, Brutus, Cassius, and Mark Antony–young Octavius must work against the powerful Roman political machinations to claim his destiny as first Roman emperor. Sprung from meticulous research and the pen of a true poet, Augustus tells the story of one man’s dream to liberate a corrupt Rome from the fancy of the capriciously crooked and the wildly wealthy.
A mere eighteen years of age when his uncle, Julius Caesar, is murdered, Octavius Caesar prematurely inherits rule of the Roman Republic. Surrounded by men who are jockeying for power–Cicero, Brutus, Cassius, and Mark Antony–young Octavius must work against the powerful Roman political machinations to claim his destiny as first Roman emperor. Sprung from meticulous research and the pen of a true poet, Augustus tells the story of one man’s dream to liberate a corrupt Rome from the fancy of the capriciously crooked and the wildly wealthy.
336 pages, Paperback
First published October 31, 1972
1,332 people are currently reading
33.3k people want to read
About the author
John Williams
9books2,130followersLibrarian Note: There is more than one author in the GoodReads database with this name.
John Edward Williams, Ph.D. (University of Missouri, 1954; M.A., University of Denver, 1950; B.A., U. of D., 1949), enlisted in the USAAF early in 1942, spending two and a half years as a sergeant in India and Burma. His first novel, Nothing But the Night, was published in 1948, and his first volume of poems, The Broken Landscape, appeared the following year.
In the fall of 1955, Williams took over the directorship of the creative writing program at the University of Denver, where he taught for more than 30 years.
After retiring from the University of Denver in 1986, Williams moved with his wife, Nancy, to Fayetteville, Arkansas, where he resided until he died of respiratory failure on March 3, 1994. A fifth novel, The Sleep of Reason, was left unfinished at the time of his death.
John Edward Williams, Ph.D. (University of Missouri, 1954; M.A., University of Denver, 1950; B.A., U. of D., 1949), enlisted in the USAAF early in 1942, spending two and a half years as a sergeant in India and Burma. His first novel, Nothing But the Night, was published in 1948, and his first volume of poems, The Broken Landscape, appeared the following year.
In the fall of 1955, Williams took over the directorship of the creative writing program at the University of Denver, where he taught for more than 30 years.
After retiring from the University of Denver in 1986, Williams moved with his wife, Nancy, to Fayetteville, Arkansas, where he resided until he died of respiratory failure on March 3, 1994. A fifth novel, The Sleep of Reason, was left unfinished at the time of his death.
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March 23, 2023
Augustus is written in lucid and colourful style. Inventing all those fictional letters and documents John Williams vividly caught the spirit of the whole historical era.
On arriving to power very young, Gaius Octavius Caesar hit the road lying across the endless battlefield�
Down through the ages the history of political power is a history of perfidy and treason�
Supreme power doesn’t make one happy but it offers an unrestricted ability to bring unhappiness to the others�
Perhaps we are wiser when we are young, though the philosopher would dispute with me. But I swear to you, we were friends from that moment onward; and that moment of foolish laughter was a bond stronger than anything that came between us later � victories or defeats, loyalties or betrayals, griefs or joys. But the days of youth go, and part of us goes with them, not to return.
On arriving to power very young, Gaius Octavius Caesar hit the road lying across the endless battlefield�
Down through the ages the history of political power is a history of perfidy and treason�
“Father,� I asked, “has it been worth it? Your authority, this Rome that you have saved, this Rome that you have built? Has it been worth all that you have had to do?�
My father looked at me for a long time, and then he looked away. “I must believe that it has,� he said. “We both must believe that it has.�
Supreme power doesn’t make one happy but it offers an unrestricted ability to bring unhappiness to the others�
February 21, 2019
How to describe this painstakingly detailed, compellingly readable, simply complex, fictionalised biography, that explores the high price of duty, and is set in ancient times but is painfully relevant in 2017? Not like that.
There are myriad perspectives: it’s like viewing the ancient world through a kaleidoscope or the facets of a gemstone.
Or maybe it’s more like a hall of mirrors and windows, where you’re barely sure which is which and what distortions there may be. Versailles, perhaps: another palace of opulence and intrigue.
It is non-linear: like a narrative tapestry, sewn with backstitch.
It’s a scrapbook of documents and fragments in different styles, and for different purposes (a little like the Bible).
There’s a woman’s sexual awakening: her acknowledgement and embracing of it, regardless of taboos and risks.
An adoring father ensures his daughter has the education usually denied to girls.
There is an agonising sacrifice, a cruel example of being hoist by one’s own petard.
The storytelling is like Charon’s gently rocking boat, like Augustus� final journey: the shimmering reflections are disorienting, and the direction is unpredictable, but the destination is sure.
Content and Structure
The story starts just before the murder of Julius Caesar, leaving his great nephew and adopted son, Gaius Octavius, as heir. He is young (18), academic rather than martial, with slightly poor health, quietly spoken, inscrutable, loyal to friends, but is shrewd. The story ends when Octavius, now Emperor Augustus, dies aged 76. In between there are complex machinations: rumours, political plots, wars, marriages and divorces of convenience, births, deaths, assassinations, friendships forged and broken, rituals, parties, and journeys - literal and metaphorical.
It is told via letters, memoirs, poems, military orders, doctor’s orders, journals, memos, senatorial proceedings, consular orders, petitions, and poems. They are from a wide variety of protagonists, some written at the time, and others with the benefit of hindsight: all the key events, and many apparently trivial ones, are described by friend and foe, as they happened, and immediately contrasted by another view, written decades later. No one is objective. (I have not investigated where it departs from or adds to authenticated history.)
There are three parts. The first is mostly political scheming and battle tactics, told and spun by men. The second gives voice to many of the women, especially Augustus� adult daughter, Julia. There’s still political and domestic intrigue, and some male narrative, but there’s a more human and intensely personal face as well. In the short third part, we finally hear from the eponymous emperor as he evaluates his long life and anticipates his imminent death and the consequences for his empire and people.
Julia
�I had been a wife, a goddess, and the second woman of Rome. If I felt anything [about being widowed]� it was relief.�
This book could just as easily have borne the name of Augustus� daughter. It’s almost as much about her, and we read far more of her words than his. She sometimes wields influence and lies to her own advantage (as well as being a victim of such), but because we hear her through her private journal, she seems the most honest of anyone. We understand her motives and her desires. Especially her desires. I came to love Julia.
�This body� began its service late, for it was told that it had no rights, and must by the nature of things be subservient to dictates other than its own.�
�A breeze� I could hear it rustle among the cypresses and plane trees as it touched my silken tunic like a caress.�
�This body� has served me, while seeming to serve others� and the lover to whom I gave pleasure was a victim of my own desire.�
Duty, Destiny, and Personal Pain
Power and wealth come with a price. The plot is full of manipulation, sometimes selfish and sometimes altruistic, but the deeper theme is the huge personal cost of submitting to fate and duty.
Augustus� sister Octavia, married and remarried at her brother’s dictat, says “I sometimes think that the meanest slave has more freedom than we women have known.� But another woman, closer to the emperor's heart suffers more. And Augustus himself, nearing death, believes his life “accommodated to� public necessity� and thus, “I have been more nearly ruled than ruler.� I'm not sure if he makes final peace with his role in the fate of his beloved daughter.
Truth and Lies: Then and in 2017
�How do you oppose a foe who is wholly irrational and unpredictable - and yet who, out of animal energy and the accident of circumstance, has attained the most frightening power?� (Maecenas of Marcus Antonius)
I read this as Donald Trump was inaugurated as President of the United States and when the news was full of discussion and fear about temperament, power, and truth versus
Sometimes people knowingly defend and spread outright lies for their own benefit. Here, that’s Augustus accepting Marcus Antonius’s description of his Parthian disaster as a triumph. The hope was that he would desert Egypt (and Cleopatra) to become a true Roman again, and the need was to inspire citizens ground down by years of war and civil war.
Everyone has an agenda, whether it be mere survival or something more selfish and acquisitive, and motives change with circumstances. How can one know what is true and who to trust?
No surprise that in old age, Augustus thinks all histories “are lies� There are no untruths� few errors of fact; but they are lies�. Reading of himself, he sees “a man who bore my name but a man I hardly know.� Thus, “All lives are mysterious, I suppose, even my own.�
"He discovered in all others those vices he would not recognise in himself."
Julia, on Livia's son, Tiberius. Or possibly contemporary political commentary.
Stoner and Butcher’s Crossing - and his fourth/first book
John Williams wrote three brilliant, but very different novels (plus a youthful novella he later disowned).
They’re ostensibly about complex relationships between men, but in utterly different settings. This is about politics and war in ancient Rome. Women’s power is mostly covert. Butcher’s Crossing is a bildungsroman about a privileged 19 century young man on a long and perilous buffalo hunt. Women barely feature. Stoner is about a quiet man who loves and lives for literature in academia. The few women in it are seen from the perspective of and in relation to men. That makes the strong female narrative in Augustus all the more surprising. But here, as in Stoner, the intense and devoted father-daughter relationship of childhood is tragically sacrificed: the lesser of several evils, for the greater good.
See the end of my review of his first (disowned) novel, Nothing But The Night, HERE, for a comparison of all four.
Philosophical Quotes
� “If it is one’s destiny to change the world, it is his necessity first to change himself.�
� “A man may live like a fool for a year, and become wise in a day.�
� “The death of an old enemy is curiously like the death of an old friend.�
� “To care not for oneself is of little moment, but to care not for those whom one has loved is another matter. All has become a matter of indifferent curiosity, and nothing is of consequence.�
� “Erotic love is the most unselfish� it seeks to become one with another, and hence to escape the self.�
� “A people may endure an almost incredible series of darkest failures without breaking; but give them respite and some hope for the future, and they may not endure an unexpected denial of that hope.�
� “Those [anti-adultery] laws� were not intended so much to be obeyed as to be followed; I believed that there was no possibility of virtue without the idea of virtue.�
� Perspective changes with maturity:
“The young man... sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey... where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality...
The man of middle years... sees life as a tragedy; for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail� and has learned that he is mortal...
But the man of age... must see life as a comedy. For his triumphs and failures merge.�
Quotes about Rome
� “Rome, where no man knows his enemy or his friend, where license is more admired than virtue, and where principle has become servant to self.�
� “The appearance of tradition and order cloaked the reality of corruption and chaos.�
� “Even their gods serve the state, rather than the other way round.�
� “Copulation has become an act designed to obtain power, either social or political; an adulterer may be more dangerous than a conspirator, both to your person and his country.�
� “I have conquered the world, and none of it is secure.� (Julius Caesar)
Other Quotes
� “We shall do the boy honor, we shall do him praise, and we shall do him in.�
� “History will not know the truth, if history ever can.�
� “I could trust the poets because I was unable to give them what they wanted.�
� “Thinking that allusive loquacity is subtlety.�
� “She was cold, and thus could feign warmth with utter success.�
There Could Have Been More
Apparently, the only writing advice his wife ever gave him was "You have gone on too long. You need to stop sooner." - about this book, and he took her advice! See this interview with Nancy Gardner Williams: .
There are myriad perspectives: it’s like viewing the ancient world through a kaleidoscope or the facets of a gemstone.
Or maybe it’s more like a hall of mirrors and windows, where you’re barely sure which is which and what distortions there may be. Versailles, perhaps: another palace of opulence and intrigue.
It is non-linear: like a narrative tapestry, sewn with backstitch.
It’s a scrapbook of documents and fragments in different styles, and for different purposes (a little like the Bible).
There’s a woman’s sexual awakening: her acknowledgement and embracing of it, regardless of taboos and risks.
An adoring father ensures his daughter has the education usually denied to girls.
There is an agonising sacrifice, a cruel example of being hoist by one’s own petard.
The storytelling is like Charon’s gently rocking boat, like Augustus� final journey: the shimmering reflections are disorienting, and the direction is unpredictable, but the destination is sure.
Content and Structure
The story starts just before the murder of Julius Caesar, leaving his great nephew and adopted son, Gaius Octavius, as heir. He is young (18), academic rather than martial, with slightly poor health, quietly spoken, inscrutable, loyal to friends, but is shrewd. The story ends when Octavius, now Emperor Augustus, dies aged 76. In between there are complex machinations: rumours, political plots, wars, marriages and divorces of convenience, births, deaths, assassinations, friendships forged and broken, rituals, parties, and journeys - literal and metaphorical.
It is told via letters, memoirs, poems, military orders, doctor’s orders, journals, memos, senatorial proceedings, consular orders, petitions, and poems. They are from a wide variety of protagonists, some written at the time, and others with the benefit of hindsight: all the key events, and many apparently trivial ones, are described by friend and foe, as they happened, and immediately contrasted by another view, written decades later. No one is objective. (I have not investigated where it departs from or adds to authenticated history.)
There are three parts. The first is mostly political scheming and battle tactics, told and spun by men. The second gives voice to many of the women, especially Augustus� adult daughter, Julia. There’s still political and domestic intrigue, and some male narrative, but there’s a more human and intensely personal face as well. In the short third part, we finally hear from the eponymous emperor as he evaluates his long life and anticipates his imminent death and the consequences for his empire and people.
Julia
�I had been a wife, a goddess, and the second woman of Rome. If I felt anything [about being widowed]� it was relief.�
This book could just as easily have borne the name of Augustus� daughter. It’s almost as much about her, and we read far more of her words than his. She sometimes wields influence and lies to her own advantage (as well as being a victim of such), but because we hear her through her private journal, she seems the most honest of anyone. We understand her motives and her desires. Especially her desires. I came to love Julia.
�This body� began its service late, for it was told that it had no rights, and must by the nature of things be subservient to dictates other than its own.�
�A breeze� I could hear it rustle among the cypresses and plane trees as it touched my silken tunic like a caress.�
�This body� has served me, while seeming to serve others� and the lover to whom I gave pleasure was a victim of my own desire.�
Duty, Destiny, and Personal Pain
Power and wealth come with a price. The plot is full of manipulation, sometimes selfish and sometimes altruistic, but the deeper theme is the huge personal cost of submitting to fate and duty.
Augustus� sister Octavia, married and remarried at her brother’s dictat, says “I sometimes think that the meanest slave has more freedom than we women have known.� But another woman, closer to the emperor's heart suffers more. And Augustus himself, nearing death, believes his life “accommodated to� public necessity� and thus, “I have been more nearly ruled than ruler.� I'm not sure if he makes final peace with his role in the fate of his beloved daughter.
Truth and Lies: Then and in 2017
�How do you oppose a foe who is wholly irrational and unpredictable - and yet who, out of animal energy and the accident of circumstance, has attained the most frightening power?� (Maecenas of Marcus Antonius)
I read this as Donald Trump was inaugurated as President of the United States and when the news was full of discussion and fear about temperament, power, and truth versus
Sometimes people knowingly defend and spread outright lies for their own benefit. Here, that’s Augustus accepting Marcus Antonius’s description of his Parthian disaster as a triumph. The hope was that he would desert Egypt (and Cleopatra) to become a true Roman again, and the need was to inspire citizens ground down by years of war and civil war.
Everyone has an agenda, whether it be mere survival or something more selfish and acquisitive, and motives change with circumstances. How can one know what is true and who to trust?
No surprise that in old age, Augustus thinks all histories “are lies� There are no untruths� few errors of fact; but they are lies�. Reading of himself, he sees “a man who bore my name but a man I hardly know.� Thus, “All lives are mysterious, I suppose, even my own.�
"He discovered in all others those vices he would not recognise in himself."
Julia, on Livia's son, Tiberius. Or possibly contemporary political commentary.
Stoner and Butcher’s Crossing - and his fourth/first book
John Williams wrote three brilliant, but very different novels (plus a youthful novella he later disowned).
They’re ostensibly about complex relationships between men, but in utterly different settings. This is about politics and war in ancient Rome. Women’s power is mostly covert. Butcher’s Crossing is a bildungsroman about a privileged 19 century young man on a long and perilous buffalo hunt. Women barely feature. Stoner is about a quiet man who loves and lives for literature in academia. The few women in it are seen from the perspective of and in relation to men. That makes the strong female narrative in Augustus all the more surprising. But here, as in Stoner, the intense and devoted father-daughter relationship of childhood is tragically sacrificed: the lesser of several evils, for the greater good.
See the end of my review of his first (disowned) novel, Nothing But The Night, HERE, for a comparison of all four.
Philosophical Quotes
� “If it is one’s destiny to change the world, it is his necessity first to change himself.�
� “A man may live like a fool for a year, and become wise in a day.�
� “The death of an old enemy is curiously like the death of an old friend.�
� “To care not for oneself is of little moment, but to care not for those whom one has loved is another matter. All has become a matter of indifferent curiosity, and nothing is of consequence.�
� “Erotic love is the most unselfish� it seeks to become one with another, and hence to escape the self.�
� “A people may endure an almost incredible series of darkest failures without breaking; but give them respite and some hope for the future, and they may not endure an unexpected denial of that hope.�
� “Those [anti-adultery] laws� were not intended so much to be obeyed as to be followed; I believed that there was no possibility of virtue without the idea of virtue.�
� Perspective changes with maturity:
“The young man... sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey... where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality...
The man of middle years... sees life as a tragedy; for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail� and has learned that he is mortal...
But the man of age... must see life as a comedy. For his triumphs and failures merge.�
Quotes about Rome
� “Rome, where no man knows his enemy or his friend, where license is more admired than virtue, and where principle has become servant to self.�
� “The appearance of tradition and order cloaked the reality of corruption and chaos.�
� “Even their gods serve the state, rather than the other way round.�
� “Copulation has become an act designed to obtain power, either social or political; an adulterer may be more dangerous than a conspirator, both to your person and his country.�
� “I have conquered the world, and none of it is secure.� (Julius Caesar)
Other Quotes
� “We shall do the boy honor, we shall do him praise, and we shall do him in.�
� “History will not know the truth, if history ever can.�
� “I could trust the poets because I was unable to give them what they wanted.�
� “Thinking that allusive loquacity is subtlety.�
� “She was cold, and thus could feign warmth with utter success.�
There Could Have Been More
Apparently, the only writing advice his wife ever gave him was "You have gone on too long. You need to stop sooner." - about this book, and he took her advice! See this interview with Nancy Gardner Williams: .
December 7, 2022
I BARBARI ASPETTANO
Qui, e a seguire, rappresentazioni scultoree di Gaio Giulio Cesare Ottaviano Augusto, il primo imperatore romano, dal 27 A.C. al 14 D.C.
Dalle note d'autore:
Alcuni errori di fatto, in questo libro, sono voluti. Ho modificato l’ordine di numerosi avvenimenti. Ho inventato là dove i dati storici sono incerti o incompleti. E ho creato alcuni personaggi cui la Storia non fa cenno� Tranne poche eccezioni, i documenti che formano questo romanzo sono inventati� Ma se in questo lavoro sono presenti delle verità, sono le verità della narrativa più che della Storia. Sarò grato a quei lettori che lo accoglieranno per quello che vuole essere: un’opera dell’immaginazione.
Questo si legge all’inizio, e non alla fine, dell’opera.
E già questo dovrebbe convincere a lasciar perdere l’attendibilità storica, il confronto testo-a-fronte.
Come se non bastasse, Williams scrive:
Ma la Storia non conosce la verità, ammesso che la Storia possa mai conoscerla.
E forse è stato proprio questo a spingere il filologo e storico Luciano Canfora a bocciare il romanzo di Williams proprio sul piano della veridicità storica � con inutile puntiglio accademico, con una serie di motivazioni che lasciano il tempo che trovano.
Williams imbastisce la sua narrazione con una collazione di testi e fonti: carteggi, diari, testimonianze, documenti ufficiali.
Per oltre trecento pagine Augusto esiste solo attraverso quello che di lui riportano coloro che lo hanno conosciuto, frequentato, amato, servito, ubbidito, temuto, combattuto, tradito.
Il collage si compone di molte voci, sfalsate nel tempo, oppure contemporanee ai fatti: toni diversi, punti di vista diversi, angolazioni diverse, piani temporali diversi.
Un coro di voci che racconta bene il tempo e il protagonista, in certi momenti costruendo perfino suspense, in altri regalando autentiche sorprese (su tutte, la descrizione di Roma che fa Strabone al suo amico Nicolao di Damasco, una città 43 anni prima della nascita di cristo che fa venire in mente la Ville Lumière, e anche la Grande Mela).
Augusto fu investito dalla Storia che era ancora adolescente: il suo corpo fragile fu una costante che sconsigliava dal ritenerlo duraturo.
Eppure, nonostante le frequenti malattie, si sottopose a fatiche non comuni: oltre le battaglie, le vittorie, le conquiste, riport�� pace unità e diritto a Roma, donandole quarant’anni di stabilità e prosperità.
Questo, la lunga pace, fu il suo più grande successo: il suo poema, paragonabile a quelli degli amici poeti, letterati, filosofi con cui amava intrattenersi (Virgilio, Orazio, Ovidio�.).
Peccato che la terza parte del libro sia totalmente diversa dalle prime due, poliedriche, agili, leste, leggere, spedite, snelle� La terza è un blocco monolitico, un'unica lunga lettera di Augusto, quarantacinque pagine di cui davvero non sentivo il bisogno. C’era già tutto, non mi pare che la diretta voce di Augusto aggiunga dettagli o novità.
Come mi è già successo, un autore che mi ha regalato letture meravigliose (Stoner, Butcher’s Crossing) mi delude parzialmente proprio nella sua opera più famosa e premiata (National Book Award).
I barbari aspettano. Ma Roma non cadrà davanti a loro, cadrà alla fine davanti a quel barbaro cui nessuno si sottrae� il Tempo.
Qui, e a seguire, rappresentazioni scultoree di Gaio Giulio Cesare Ottaviano Augusto, il primo imperatore romano, dal 27 A.C. al 14 D.C.
Dalle note d'autore:
Alcuni errori di fatto, in questo libro, sono voluti. Ho modificato l’ordine di numerosi avvenimenti. Ho inventato là dove i dati storici sono incerti o incompleti. E ho creato alcuni personaggi cui la Storia non fa cenno� Tranne poche eccezioni, i documenti che formano questo romanzo sono inventati� Ma se in questo lavoro sono presenti delle verità, sono le verità della narrativa più che della Storia. Sarò grato a quei lettori che lo accoglieranno per quello che vuole essere: un’opera dell’immaginazione.
Questo si legge all’inizio, e non alla fine, dell’opera.
E già questo dovrebbe convincere a lasciar perdere l’attendibilità storica, il confronto testo-a-fronte.
Come se non bastasse, Williams scrive:
Ma la Storia non conosce la verità, ammesso che la Storia possa mai conoscerla.
E forse è stato proprio questo a spingere il filologo e storico Luciano Canfora a bocciare il romanzo di Williams proprio sul piano della veridicità storica � con inutile puntiglio accademico, con una serie di motivazioni che lasciano il tempo che trovano.
Williams imbastisce la sua narrazione con una collazione di testi e fonti: carteggi, diari, testimonianze, documenti ufficiali.
Per oltre trecento pagine Augusto esiste solo attraverso quello che di lui riportano coloro che lo hanno conosciuto, frequentato, amato, servito, ubbidito, temuto, combattuto, tradito.
Il collage si compone di molte voci, sfalsate nel tempo, oppure contemporanee ai fatti: toni diversi, punti di vista diversi, angolazioni diverse, piani temporali diversi.
Un coro di voci che racconta bene il tempo e il protagonista, in certi momenti costruendo perfino suspense, in altri regalando autentiche sorprese (su tutte, la descrizione di Roma che fa Strabone al suo amico Nicolao di Damasco, una città 43 anni prima della nascita di cristo che fa venire in mente la Ville Lumière, e anche la Grande Mela).
Augusto fu investito dalla Storia che era ancora adolescente: il suo corpo fragile fu una costante che sconsigliava dal ritenerlo duraturo.
Eppure, nonostante le frequenti malattie, si sottopose a fatiche non comuni: oltre le battaglie, le vittorie, le conquiste, riport�� pace unità e diritto a Roma, donandole quarant’anni di stabilità e prosperità.
Questo, la lunga pace, fu il suo più grande successo: il suo poema, paragonabile a quelli degli amici poeti, letterati, filosofi con cui amava intrattenersi (Virgilio, Orazio, Ovidio�.).
Peccato che la terza parte del libro sia totalmente diversa dalle prime due, poliedriche, agili, leste, leggere, spedite, snelle� La terza è un blocco monolitico, un'unica lunga lettera di Augusto, quarantacinque pagine di cui davvero non sentivo il bisogno. C’era già tutto, non mi pare che la diretta voce di Augusto aggiunga dettagli o novità.
Come mi è già successo, un autore che mi ha regalato letture meravigliose (Stoner, Butcher’s Crossing) mi delude parzialmente proprio nella sua opera più famosa e premiata (National Book Award).
I barbari aspettano. Ma Roma non cadrà davanti a loro, cadrà alla fine davanti a quel barbaro cui nessuno si sottrae� il Tempo.
January 21, 2025
Augustus by John Williams, is an epistolary account of the life of perhaps the greatest emperor of Ancient Rome. Born as Gaius Octavius he lived from 63 BCE � 14 CE. He ruled between 27 BCE � 14 CE. This book commences when Octavius was a boy, and the first letter is from Julius Caesar to Octavius’s mother, Atia � ordering her to send the boy to the military college at Apollonia.
We not only read the letters of people involved and close to the life of Augustus, we also read their memoirs, poems and official documents. The majority of these written accounts are by everyone other than Augustus. This way we see, how the world perceives the man. It is fascinating. Giants, such as Caesar, Agrippa, Mark Antony, Cleopatra, Piso, Seneca, Horace, Virgil and my favourite (swoon) Julia, Augustus’s daughter.
Augustus…………�.oh, err, I mean � the Beautiful, Julia the Elder ♥️
Notwithstanding the superb writing of Williams, at one stage I was a wee bit concerned this was more a story about Julia than Augustus. But John Williams eventually addresses this superbly, and this book well and truly deserves the title. Augustus’s wife, Livia is superbly cast as the pantomime villain, ably supported by her unpopular son, Tiberius.
If you have even the slightest bit of interest in this period of history, I strongly recommend you read this. It is a deeply immersive account of the man responsible for creating the Roman Imperial System. You will get a feel for how he did this. You will also see how his contemporaries feel and think about him (friend and foe), and importantly, you will take away some insight into the great man himself � how he lived, thought and loved. You may even reflect on your own life and loves � as I did.
These letters/writings, like any historical fiction, are based on real events and much is taken from real historical events. But they are fictional � like all good historical fiction, which breathes life into fascinating characters of the past � this is a brilliant way to learn about history.
The only slight misgiving I have is, the book does not cover the huge amount of changes Augustus implemented, to give the Senate and other officials the belief they still ran the show, when in fact he was the man in charge. He manhandled them with kid gloves � allowing for some atrocities of course. However, this book is not supposed to be a dry account of how good an administrator and leader he was � it is intended to be about him, the man. Other books serve that purpose.
Augustus was a man of his time, and a colossus of antiquity.
5 Stars
My enjoyment of this book was increased many times over by fellow buddy readers Emperor Dave (who ran the group) and fellow Plebians Lisa and Debi � all threw around perspectives that always seem to pass me by and made this experience so much richer.
My buddy’s reviews can be found here:
Lisa: /review/show...
Dave: /review/show...
Debi: /review/show...
We not only read the letters of people involved and close to the life of Augustus, we also read their memoirs, poems and official documents. The majority of these written accounts are by everyone other than Augustus. This way we see, how the world perceives the man. It is fascinating. Giants, such as Caesar, Agrippa, Mark Antony, Cleopatra, Piso, Seneca, Horace, Virgil and my favourite (swoon) Julia, Augustus’s daughter.
Augustus…………�.oh, err, I mean � the Beautiful, Julia the Elder ♥️
Notwithstanding the superb writing of Williams, at one stage I was a wee bit concerned this was more a story about Julia than Augustus. But John Williams eventually addresses this superbly, and this book well and truly deserves the title. Augustus’s wife, Livia is superbly cast as the pantomime villain, ably supported by her unpopular son, Tiberius.
If you have even the slightest bit of interest in this period of history, I strongly recommend you read this. It is a deeply immersive account of the man responsible for creating the Roman Imperial System. You will get a feel for how he did this. You will also see how his contemporaries feel and think about him (friend and foe), and importantly, you will take away some insight into the great man himself � how he lived, thought and loved. You may even reflect on your own life and loves � as I did.
These letters/writings, like any historical fiction, are based on real events and much is taken from real historical events. But they are fictional � like all good historical fiction, which breathes life into fascinating characters of the past � this is a brilliant way to learn about history.
The only slight misgiving I have is, the book does not cover the huge amount of changes Augustus implemented, to give the Senate and other officials the belief they still ran the show, when in fact he was the man in charge. He manhandled them with kid gloves � allowing for some atrocities of course. However, this book is not supposed to be a dry account of how good an administrator and leader he was � it is intended to be about him, the man. Other books serve that purpose.
Augustus was a man of his time, and a colossus of antiquity.
5 Stars
My enjoyment of this book was increased many times over by fellow buddy readers Emperor Dave (who ran the group) and fellow Plebians Lisa and Debi � all threw around perspectives that always seem to pass me by and made this experience so much richer.
My buddy’s reviews can be found here:
Lisa: /review/show...
Dave: /review/show...
Debi: /review/show...
June 25, 2023
“For no law may adequately determine a spirit, nor fulfill a desire for virtue…�
As I turned to the first pages of "Augustus", little did I know that I was about to embark on a remarkable journey through time and bear witness to the grand tapestry of Roman history. And so, I followed in the footsteps of Gaius Octavius, witnessing his transformation into the legendary Augustus. I watched the young and unassuming Octavius, his eyes burning with determination as he was poised to inherit the vast empire left by his great-uncle, Julius Caesar.
Through the distilled prose of the epistles, I found myself privy to the intimate exchanges between Augustus and his closest companions. I listened to their voices echoing through time, their words revealing the challenges of governance, the alliances forged, and the burdens borne by a leader. I became an unseen witness to the conversations between Augustus, Agrippa, Salvidienus and Maecenas, their friendship blooming amidst the complexities of power. I observed the delicate union between Augustus and his wife Livia; their love both tender and tempestuous, forged in the crucible of power, cast in the weight of their shared ambitions and the unspoken sacrifices made for the empire. I felt his sorrow for his beloved daughter Julia, exiled and imprisoned to save the State. I saw Mark Antony and Cleopatra burst into the narrative, their presence igniting passions and fuelling rivalries. Cicero the gifted consul entangled in a game of power and virtue. The eloquent words of Virgil and Horace echoed throughout, painting vivid pictures of a golden age and the quest for beauty.
“One does not deceive oneself about the consequences of one’s acts; one deceives oneself about the ease with which one can live with those consequences.�
"Augustus" is a mesmerizing travelog of a world long gone, revealing the timeless truths of human nature, the weight of power, and the ambivalence between public necessity and private want or need. Although the novel lacks the depth and lyrical quality of Yourcenar's "Memoirs of Hadrian", it is still inviting to ponder the existential questions that lie at the heart of the human condition.
“If it is one’s destiny to change the world, it is his necessity first to change himself.�
4.25/5
PS. Of time and age: “The young man, who does not know the future, sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey through strange seas and unknown islands, where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality. The man of middle years, who has lived the future that he once dreamed, sees life as a tragedy, for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail against those forces of accident and nature to which he gives the names of gods, and has learned that he is mortal. But the man of age, if he plays his assigned role properly, must see life as a comedy. For his triumphs and his failures merge, and one is no more the occasion for pride or shame than the other, and he is neither the hero who proves himself against those forces, nor the protagonist who is destroyed by them. Like any poor, pitiable shell of an actor, he comes to see that he has played so many parts that there no longer is himself.�
As I turned to the first pages of "Augustus", little did I know that I was about to embark on a remarkable journey through time and bear witness to the grand tapestry of Roman history. And so, I followed in the footsteps of Gaius Octavius, witnessing his transformation into the legendary Augustus. I watched the young and unassuming Octavius, his eyes burning with determination as he was poised to inherit the vast empire left by his great-uncle, Julius Caesar.
Through the distilled prose of the epistles, I found myself privy to the intimate exchanges between Augustus and his closest companions. I listened to their voices echoing through time, their words revealing the challenges of governance, the alliances forged, and the burdens borne by a leader. I became an unseen witness to the conversations between Augustus, Agrippa, Salvidienus and Maecenas, their friendship blooming amidst the complexities of power. I observed the delicate union between Augustus and his wife Livia; their love both tender and tempestuous, forged in the crucible of power, cast in the weight of their shared ambitions and the unspoken sacrifices made for the empire. I felt his sorrow for his beloved daughter Julia, exiled and imprisoned to save the State. I saw Mark Antony and Cleopatra burst into the narrative, their presence igniting passions and fuelling rivalries. Cicero the gifted consul entangled in a game of power and virtue. The eloquent words of Virgil and Horace echoed throughout, painting vivid pictures of a golden age and the quest for beauty.
“One does not deceive oneself about the consequences of one’s acts; one deceives oneself about the ease with which one can live with those consequences.�
"Augustus" is a mesmerizing travelog of a world long gone, revealing the timeless truths of human nature, the weight of power, and the ambivalence between public necessity and private want or need. Although the novel lacks the depth and lyrical quality of Yourcenar's "Memoirs of Hadrian", it is still inviting to ponder the existential questions that lie at the heart of the human condition.
“If it is one’s destiny to change the world, it is his necessity first to change himself.�
4.25/5
PS. Of time and age: “The young man, who does not know the future, sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey through strange seas and unknown islands, where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality. The man of middle years, who has lived the future that he once dreamed, sees life as a tragedy, for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail against those forces of accident and nature to which he gives the names of gods, and has learned that he is mortal. But the man of age, if he plays his assigned role properly, must see life as a comedy. For his triumphs and his failures merge, and one is no more the occasion for pride or shame than the other, and he is neither the hero who proves himself against those forces, nor the protagonist who is destroyed by them. Like any poor, pitiable shell of an actor, he comes to see that he has played so many parts that there no longer is himself.�
June 26, 2016
This is more than a lush recreation of the nuanced menace of diplomatic skirmishing and Machiavellian intrigue, public guilelessness and carnage that gave birth to the Roman Empire under the ruling of its first Emperor.
This is more than a walk through the path of history because it takes unusual detours of borrowed memories penned by secondary historical figures that surrounded Octavius Caesar Augustus.
Delivered in a non-chronological letters that carry moments of high pathos spanning over sixty years, the image of the Caesar is multi-dimensionally painted through the colorful tapestry of manifold perspectives, and his flaws, ambitions and human incongruities are so incredibly detailed that not much is left to the imagination.
The physical and psychological portrait of the two-faceted Emperor that Williams moulds with obsessive pulchritude; invincible earthly god and torn man, is not only convincing, but also devastatingly real.
To me, Williams� historical epic is the epitome of the epistolary genre and the resulting legacy of a supremely executed labor of love for words, poetry and humbling introspection.
“Inopem me copia fecit� , Ovid forewarns in his magnum opus Metamorphoses; something Octavius came to understand only too well right after Julius Caesar’s assassination, the fresh outbreak of civil war and the eventual foundation of the triumvirate composed of Octavius, Marcus Antonius and Aemilius Lepidus gave him the throne of the world. Besides presiding the altar of Rome Octavius was slave to his own notion of justice and freedom, becoming, in his self-demanding eyes, a botched caricature of the man he aspired to be.
Forty years of relative peace and Roman splendor ensued� but at what expense?
Can the man live up to the consequences of his acts and disguise his turmoil with the unflinching ease of the almighty sovereign?
Octavius had two lifelong love stories that cost him his soul and peace of mind.
His daughters: Rome and Julia.
The first deprived him of his free will, the second of his good judgement.
And they both ended up betraying him.
For the sake of a fiery passion, Julia conspired against her own father and was banished to the barren island of Pandeteria, condemned to become Octavius� particular Miranda. But unlike Prospero, the ruler of the Empire couldn’t save his daughter by renouncing to his power.
Time also turned Rome against its legitimate master. It fell under the dominion of barbarian hands that tainted Octavius� vision of a glorious future.
And yet, in the third and closing section of the book, where the aged Emperor writes to his old friend Nicolaus of Damascus, historian and philosopher, as he faces up his longest journey ever, as he recapitulates the undeniable triumphs accumulated during his public life, he embraces love as the most pure and enduring force of all without a shred of regret, spite, or self-pity.
Instead, as the sunlight caresses his wrinkled face and flecks of white foam sparkle the briny breeze, kissing the waves that slap gently against the deck of his ship, Octavius finds some symmetry in his uneven existence and reaches the comforting conclusion that like the poets Ovid, Virgil and Horace, whose artistry set them free, his torment was a privilege, his curse a blessing, and his unconditional love for Julia, and for Rome, in that precise order, were the secret catalyst that made him vulnerable� and invincible.
Like the poet for his words, like the philosopher for his doctrine, Octavius allowed himself to be disintegrated under the weight of his own contradictions for the sake of an ideal; that of peace and equal prosperity. Neither triumphant nor defeated, the man touches the divine when he is moved by the beauty of his Arcadian dreams, but never by his achievements.
This is more than a walk through the path of history because it takes unusual detours of borrowed memories penned by secondary historical figures that surrounded Octavius Caesar Augustus.
Delivered in a non-chronological letters that carry moments of high pathos spanning over sixty years, the image of the Caesar is multi-dimensionally painted through the colorful tapestry of manifold perspectives, and his flaws, ambitions and human incongruities are so incredibly detailed that not much is left to the imagination.
The physical and psychological portrait of the two-faceted Emperor that Williams moulds with obsessive pulchritude; invincible earthly god and torn man, is not only convincing, but also devastatingly real.
To me, Williams� historical epic is the epitome of the epistolary genre and the resulting legacy of a supremely executed labor of love for words, poetry and humbling introspection.
“Inopem me copia fecit� , Ovid forewarns in his magnum opus Metamorphoses; something Octavius came to understand only too well right after Julius Caesar’s assassination, the fresh outbreak of civil war and the eventual foundation of the triumvirate composed of Octavius, Marcus Antonius and Aemilius Lepidus gave him the throne of the world. Besides presiding the altar of Rome Octavius was slave to his own notion of justice and freedom, becoming, in his self-demanding eyes, a botched caricature of the man he aspired to be.
Forty years of relative peace and Roman splendor ensued� but at what expense?
Can the man live up to the consequences of his acts and disguise his turmoil with the unflinching ease of the almighty sovereign?
Octavius had two lifelong love stories that cost him his soul and peace of mind.
His daughters: Rome and Julia.
The first deprived him of his free will, the second of his good judgement.
And they both ended up betraying him.
For the sake of a fiery passion, Julia conspired against her own father and was banished to the barren island of Pandeteria, condemned to become Octavius� particular Miranda. But unlike Prospero, the ruler of the Empire couldn’t save his daughter by renouncing to his power.
Time also turned Rome against its legitimate master. It fell under the dominion of barbarian hands that tainted Octavius� vision of a glorious future.
And yet, in the third and closing section of the book, where the aged Emperor writes to his old friend Nicolaus of Damascus, historian and philosopher, as he faces up his longest journey ever, as he recapitulates the undeniable triumphs accumulated during his public life, he embraces love as the most pure and enduring force of all without a shred of regret, spite, or self-pity.
Instead, as the sunlight caresses his wrinkled face and flecks of white foam sparkle the briny breeze, kissing the waves that slap gently against the deck of his ship, Octavius finds some symmetry in his uneven existence and reaches the comforting conclusion that like the poets Ovid, Virgil and Horace, whose artistry set them free, his torment was a privilege, his curse a blessing, and his unconditional love for Julia, and for Rome, in that precise order, were the secret catalyst that made him vulnerable� and invincible.
Like the poet for his words, like the philosopher for his doctrine, Octavius allowed himself to be disintegrated under the weight of his own contradictions for the sake of an ideal; that of peace and equal prosperity. Neither triumphant nor defeated, the man touches the divine when he is moved by the beauty of his Arcadian dreams, but never by his achievements.
April 17, 2022
“Gracias a la labor de Octavio, Roma es ahora la ciudad más bella del mundo. ¿Por qué no van a disfrutar sus ciudadanos, llevados por los deseos de su corazón, de esa misma belleza y elegancia desconocidas hasta ahora?�
Carta de Publio Ovidio Nasón a Sexto Propertio (10 a. C.)
“El hijo de César� está narrada de principio a fin en forma de epístolas. Pero ojo, ni ordenadas cronológicamente ni por personajes. Podemos saltar del año 4 d. C. al año 39 a. C. de una página a otra. Podemos pasar de una epístola de Nicolás de Damasco dirigida a Mecenas en una página, a pasar a otra de Livia a su hijo Tiberio en la siguiente, o al diario de Julia escrito en Pandataria en el mismo capítulo. Es decir, que si esperas orden y cronología, en esta novela no lo vas a encontrar.
Suena caótico, ¿verdad? Pues al principio lo es, y mucho. Hay que darle unas cuantas páginas e incluso capítulos para poder ir pillando el hilo conductor pretendido por Williams. Pero hete aquí que, en medio de todo este caos y batiburrillo, llega un momento en el que te das cuenta que te resistes a cerrar el libro. Te ha enganchado, y ya no quieres parar de leer.
Todo comienza con la misiva de Julio César a Antia, madre de Octavio. En ella le conmina a que saque a su hijo de la vida licenciosa que lleva en Roma, enviándolo a Apolonia a estudiar con los preceptores elegidos por el propio César.
Pasamos a continuación a conocer a los amigos del alma de Octavio: Agripa, Rufo y Mecenas. Con ellos está cuando le llegan las nuevas del fallecimiento de su padre adoptivo, y del testamento en el que declara a Octavio su heredero. Sin embargo, deben de obrar con cautela. El cadáver de Julio César está aún caliente, y son muchos y muy poderosos los que intentan restaurar la república a toda costa. La vida de Octavio no vale un sestercio, salvo que sepa maniobrar con maestría y regresar a Roma de forma que nadie le pueda negar lo que por testamento le corresponde.
De ahí en adelante conoceremos su relación de amor y odio con Marco Antonio, su triunvirato junto a Lépido, y el trágico desenlace que aguarda al mencionado Marco Antonio tras su unión con Cleopatra y su derrota a manos de Octavio en Actium. A partir de ahí, Octavio ya será Augusto, y aunque intentará poner paz en el Imperio y en la propia ciudad de Roma, muchas serán las confabulaciones que intentarán que sus intenciones no lleguen a cuajar.
Entre las numerosas epístolas que componen esta maravillosa novela, me he sentido especialmente atraído por las que componen el diario de Julia (conocida como la Mayor), hija de Augusto y de su segunda esposa, Escribonia. A pesar del cariño que su padre le profesaba, se sirvió de su vida para contraer alianzas que le beneficiaban (lo lógico de la época). Primero la prometió al hijo de Marco Antonio, con el que no llegó a casarse por causa de la guerra civil entre ambos. Luego la casaría con su yerno Marco Marcelo. Más tarde con su propio amigo del alma Agripa, con el que sí tuvo descendencia y parece que le dio algo de felicidad. Finalmente, a la muerte de Agripa, la casaría con su hijastro Tiberio (futuro sucesor de Octavio). Matrimonio infeliz donde los haya, pues ni se querían ni podían verse mutuamente. Para colmo, tuvieron un hijo que no prosperó. En esa época, y a raíz de un viaje iniciático de Julia por Oriente, parece ser que comenzó la disipada vida de este desgraciado personaje, que culminaría con su destierro en Pandataria, acompañada por su madre, Escribonia. Allí, y una vez fallecido Octavio, parece ser que Tiberio pudo vengarse de ella a placer, dejándola morir por desnutrición. Su diario no tiene desperdicio.
Novela que me ha recordado enormemente al “Yo, Claudio� de Graves. Williams consigue crear de un (en principio) caótico desorden de notas un entramado de personajes y situaciones que te mete de lleno en la época. Que te arrastra inexorablemente a vivir las situaciones descritas, y a disfrutar de poco más de 300 páginas, revolcándote en ellas como cerdo en un lodazal. Magnífica novela. Cinco estrellas como cinco dioses romanos.
� —Padre —pregunté�, ¿ha merecido la pena? Quiero decir, el poder, esta Roma a la que has salvado, esta Roma que has construido� ¿Ha merecido la pena todo lo que has tenido que hacer?
Mi padre me miró durante un largo tiempo, y después desvió la mirada.
—Debo creer que sí —dijo�. Los dos debemos creer que sí�.
Diario de Julia, Pandateria (4 d. C.)
Carta de Publio Ovidio Nasón a Sexto Propertio (10 a. C.)
“El hijo de César� está narrada de principio a fin en forma de epístolas. Pero ojo, ni ordenadas cronológicamente ni por personajes. Podemos saltar del año 4 d. C. al año 39 a. C. de una página a otra. Podemos pasar de una epístola de Nicolás de Damasco dirigida a Mecenas en una página, a pasar a otra de Livia a su hijo Tiberio en la siguiente, o al diario de Julia escrito en Pandataria en el mismo capítulo. Es decir, que si esperas orden y cronología, en esta novela no lo vas a encontrar.
Suena caótico, ¿verdad? Pues al principio lo es, y mucho. Hay que darle unas cuantas páginas e incluso capítulos para poder ir pillando el hilo conductor pretendido por Williams. Pero hete aquí que, en medio de todo este caos y batiburrillo, llega un momento en el que te das cuenta que te resistes a cerrar el libro. Te ha enganchado, y ya no quieres parar de leer.
Todo comienza con la misiva de Julio César a Antia, madre de Octavio. En ella le conmina a que saque a su hijo de la vida licenciosa que lleva en Roma, enviándolo a Apolonia a estudiar con los preceptores elegidos por el propio César.
Pasamos a continuación a conocer a los amigos del alma de Octavio: Agripa, Rufo y Mecenas. Con ellos está cuando le llegan las nuevas del fallecimiento de su padre adoptivo, y del testamento en el que declara a Octavio su heredero. Sin embargo, deben de obrar con cautela. El cadáver de Julio César está aún caliente, y son muchos y muy poderosos los que intentan restaurar la república a toda costa. La vida de Octavio no vale un sestercio, salvo que sepa maniobrar con maestría y regresar a Roma de forma que nadie le pueda negar lo que por testamento le corresponde.
De ahí en adelante conoceremos su relación de amor y odio con Marco Antonio, su triunvirato junto a Lépido, y el trágico desenlace que aguarda al mencionado Marco Antonio tras su unión con Cleopatra y su derrota a manos de Octavio en Actium. A partir de ahí, Octavio ya será Augusto, y aunque intentará poner paz en el Imperio y en la propia ciudad de Roma, muchas serán las confabulaciones que intentarán que sus intenciones no lleguen a cuajar.
Entre las numerosas epístolas que componen esta maravillosa novela, me he sentido especialmente atraído por las que componen el diario de Julia (conocida como la Mayor), hija de Augusto y de su segunda esposa, Escribonia. A pesar del cariño que su padre le profesaba, se sirvió de su vida para contraer alianzas que le beneficiaban (lo lógico de la época). Primero la prometió al hijo de Marco Antonio, con el que no llegó a casarse por causa de la guerra civil entre ambos. Luego la casaría con su yerno Marco Marcelo. Más tarde con su propio amigo del alma Agripa, con el que sí tuvo descendencia y parece que le dio algo de felicidad. Finalmente, a la muerte de Agripa, la casaría con su hijastro Tiberio (futuro sucesor de Octavio). Matrimonio infeliz donde los haya, pues ni se querían ni podían verse mutuamente. Para colmo, tuvieron un hijo que no prosperó. En esa época, y a raíz de un viaje iniciático de Julia por Oriente, parece ser que comenzó la disipada vida de este desgraciado personaje, que culminaría con su destierro en Pandataria, acompañada por su madre, Escribonia. Allí, y una vez fallecido Octavio, parece ser que Tiberio pudo vengarse de ella a placer, dejándola morir por desnutrición. Su diario no tiene desperdicio.
Novela que me ha recordado enormemente al “Yo, Claudio� de Graves. Williams consigue crear de un (en principio) caótico desorden de notas un entramado de personajes y situaciones que te mete de lleno en la época. Que te arrastra inexorablemente a vivir las situaciones descritas, y a disfrutar de poco más de 300 páginas, revolcándote en ellas como cerdo en un lodazal. Magnífica novela. Cinco estrellas como cinco dioses romanos.
� —Padre —pregunté�, ¿ha merecido la pena? Quiero decir, el poder, esta Roma a la que has salvado, esta Roma que has construido� ¿Ha merecido la pena todo lo que has tenido que hacer?
Mi padre me miró durante un largo tiempo, y después desvió la mirada.
—Debo creer que sí —dijo�. Los dos debemos creer que sí�.
Diario de Julia, Pandateria (4 d. C.)
March 10, 2025
Augustus by John Williams is one of the best books I have read. I have grown more stingy with my rating lately, but I was completely overwhelmed by this novel that I had to award it 5 full stars. It is my first 5-star read in more than two years.
Augustus is a work of fiction. Williams has done a thorough research of the historical facts, events, and characters that covered the period of life of Octavius Caesar the August until his death, but he specifically states that the book is a "work of imagination". "With a few exceptions, the documents that constitute this novel are of my own invention...But if there are truths in this work, they are the truths of fiction rather than of history." He also emphasizes that Augustus is NOT a work of historical fiction. "I didn’t want it to sound historical. Those people were very real and contemporaneous to me." His take on the novel intrigued me, and from the outset, I felt that I'd be in for a rare treat.
The novel is written in the epistolary style. Through the use of letters, memoirs, and dispatches William tells the story of Gaius Octavius Caesar - "a sensitive and scholarly a sensitive and scholarly nineteen-year-old" - who finds him suddenly thrust into the centre of power as the heir of his great-uncle Julius Caesar who was murdered. Young Octavius has two tasks - to avenge the murder of his great-uncle, Julius Caesar, and to fulfill his dream of building the Roman Empire. It is not an easy task with many opposing his authority to rule. But with his intelligence, political diplomacy, and occasional ruthlessness, he successfully establishes a peaceful and prosperous Roman Empire and becomes its first emperor. The story proceeds till Octavius Caesar's death and we read about all the political maneuvering he undertakes to preserve the stability and integrity of the Roman Empire even to the extent of personal sacrifice. I enjoyed every part of the story - from the adventurous acquisition of power to the quiet establishment of the Empire, and finally the ruminations of an old man who partly pleased and partly doubtful if he is done alright. But what fascinated me the most was the women's role in the power game, especially Octavius's wife, Livia, and daughter, Julia. They willingly become sacrificial pawns to achieve their own political ambitions.
When I first realised that the story was narrated in epistolary form, a doubt clouded my mind as to its suitability. I wondered whether it wouldn't have been better if a narrator had presented the story rather than this usage of various letters, fragments from memoirs, notes from journals, etc. In his defence, the author states that "I wanted a kind of immediacy in it...I also knew that all educated Romans were great letter-writers...I wanted the characters to present themselves. I didn’t want to try to explain them. I didn’t want to have a twentieth-century vision of the Roman times. So the epistolary form lets the people speak for themselves." While his explanation reassured me, I also felt that epistolary style gave the story a forward drive and made it a page-turner.
This is my first novel by John Williams and I was amazed by his impeccable writing. He brings to life his characters, the events with honesty and simplicity so as to be unable to question their truthfulness. He treats his characters with sympathy that even in their ruthlessness, they win the readers' hearts. What is most fascinating about his writing is the lighter tone he adopts throughout the story while employing a sort of "semi-classical" language that is suitable to the time period described. I found this combination vastly satisfying. It helped me to read faster as well as fully engage with the story and its characters.
Augustus is the sort of perfect read that one has the pleasure of discovering in her reading life. John Williams decidedly is a brilliant storyteller and Augustus is his "living proof".
More of my reviews can be found at
Augustus is a work of fiction. Williams has done a thorough research of the historical facts, events, and characters that covered the period of life of Octavius Caesar the August until his death, but he specifically states that the book is a "work of imagination". "With a few exceptions, the documents that constitute this novel are of my own invention...But if there are truths in this work, they are the truths of fiction rather than of history." He also emphasizes that Augustus is NOT a work of historical fiction. "I didn’t want it to sound historical. Those people were very real and contemporaneous to me." His take on the novel intrigued me, and from the outset, I felt that I'd be in for a rare treat.
The novel is written in the epistolary style. Through the use of letters, memoirs, and dispatches William tells the story of Gaius Octavius Caesar - "a sensitive and scholarly a sensitive and scholarly nineteen-year-old" - who finds him suddenly thrust into the centre of power as the heir of his great-uncle Julius Caesar who was murdered. Young Octavius has two tasks - to avenge the murder of his great-uncle, Julius Caesar, and to fulfill his dream of building the Roman Empire. It is not an easy task with many opposing his authority to rule. But with his intelligence, political diplomacy, and occasional ruthlessness, he successfully establishes a peaceful and prosperous Roman Empire and becomes its first emperor. The story proceeds till Octavius Caesar's death and we read about all the political maneuvering he undertakes to preserve the stability and integrity of the Roman Empire even to the extent of personal sacrifice. I enjoyed every part of the story - from the adventurous acquisition of power to the quiet establishment of the Empire, and finally the ruminations of an old man who partly pleased and partly doubtful if he is done alright. But what fascinated me the most was the women's role in the power game, especially Octavius's wife, Livia, and daughter, Julia. They willingly become sacrificial pawns to achieve their own political ambitions.
When I first realised that the story was narrated in epistolary form, a doubt clouded my mind as to its suitability. I wondered whether it wouldn't have been better if a narrator had presented the story rather than this usage of various letters, fragments from memoirs, notes from journals, etc. In his defence, the author states that "I wanted a kind of immediacy in it...I also knew that all educated Romans were great letter-writers...I wanted the characters to present themselves. I didn’t want to try to explain them. I didn’t want to have a twentieth-century vision of the Roman times. So the epistolary form lets the people speak for themselves." While his explanation reassured me, I also felt that epistolary style gave the story a forward drive and made it a page-turner.
This is my first novel by John Williams and I was amazed by his impeccable writing. He brings to life his characters, the events with honesty and simplicity so as to be unable to question their truthfulness. He treats his characters with sympathy that even in their ruthlessness, they win the readers' hearts. What is most fascinating about his writing is the lighter tone he adopts throughout the story while employing a sort of "semi-classical" language that is suitable to the time period described. I found this combination vastly satisfying. It helped me to read faster as well as fully engage with the story and its characters.
Augustus is the sort of perfect read that one has the pleasure of discovering in her reading life. John Williams decidedly is a brilliant storyteller and Augustus is his "living proof".
More of my reviews can be found at
January 1, 2023
Full review:
6� for me. I'm not sure there's a book that has more things that are specifically for me than this one: epistolary format, ancient Roman history, John Williams's beautiful prose, complex themes and heartbreaking relationships.
I completely understand how this book would not be for everyone but for me--magnificent. Full review to come.
6� for me. I'm not sure there's a book that has more things that are specifically for me than this one: epistolary format, ancient Roman history, John Williams's beautiful prose, complex themes and heartbreaking relationships.
I completely understand how this book would not be for everyone but for me--magnificent. Full review to come.
September 21, 2021
“Nٳ Stoner [1965] nor Augustus [1972] is any less or more achieved than the other; they are simply different works by a remarkable writer working at the very height of his powers.� � John McGahern, introduction to Augustus
Where to begin? I guess the place to begin would be to explain why I read this book. I chose it because it was on our friend Ted’s TBR list. I sincerely wish that he had read it and that I in turn could have enjoyed one of his unique and entertaining reviews.
I should also say that I agree with what John McGahern wrote above, but adding Butcher’s Crossing (1960) to the mix. That would cover all the novels that John Williams wrote, with one exception, that being his debut novel, Nothing But the Night (1948), which I have never read, and probably never will. Since he disowned the book I’ll take his word that it isn’t worth my time.
It is not surprising that today Williams is highly respected and that three of his four novels are best-sellers. The irony, however, is that he published his last novel in 1972, but the respect and popularity that he finally received did not take place until forty years later. It finally occurred when Stoner was reissued by the New York Review of Books (NYRB) in 2013. It was at that point that the book finally found an audience and it became a publishing phenomenon that led to a reappraisal of Williams� work.
A year later, NYRB reissued Augustus. That novel, at the time that it was originally published, did garner some notice, certainly more than the others when they were first published, for it won the National Book Award for fiction in 1973, though it had to share the honor with John Barth’s Chimera. The publicity he received was fleeting, however, and the honor did nothing to increase his popularity or to promote book sales (upon release it had sold under 2,000 copies and no more than 10,000 after winning the award). That only came about when Stoner was reissued forty years later. Unfortunately, Williams never personally experienced his newfound fame for he had died almost twenty years earlier.
Critics have pointed out that all four of his novels are so different that they could have been written by four different writers. He wrote his debut novel, Nothing But the Night, during his down time while serving as a radio operator in the Army Air Corps during WWII. According to the publisher’s blurb, “[i]n the person of Arthur Maxley, Williams investigates the terror and the waywardness of a man who has suffered an early traumatic experience. As a child, Maxley witnessed a scene of such violence and of such a nature that the evocation of Greek tragedy is inescapable.�
Butcher’s Crossing is about a mythic buffalo hunt in the nineteenth century American West, while Stoner is a quiet book about a quiet man, a University of Missouri professor in the mid-twentieth century, an everyman who soldiers on no matter what heartbreak and disappointment comes his way.
And then there is Augustus, set in ancient Rome during the reign of the first Emperor of the Roman Empire. The book is set in a totally different time and setting that certainly differentiates it from the other books, but it is its style and structure that makes it unique and sets it even more apart.
“[Augustus] is a feast of research and a triumph of style; as serious, restrained, and magisterial a voice as any in American fiction.� � Hannah Niemeier, The New Criterion
Augustus is unlike any work of fiction that I have ever read. And that isn’t because it is an epistolary novel based on letters, journal entries, military reports and orders, because I have read a handful of those, it is because it is an epistolary novel that is so epic in scope. It is an account of the forty-year reign of Augustus, an era in which the Roman Empire nearly doubled in size, extending all the way from Britain to India.
It is a tribute to the audacity of Williams that he thought such a book was possible. He wrote in a short Author’s Note that:
Anyone, however, who wants to do a little investigating, will discover that the fiction is solidly grounded in fact. For Williams did the necessary research � much of it in Rome � and labored over the book for seven years before it was published.
His decision to suppress his own voice and let the people speak for themselves has the effect of humanizing the large number of characters who populate the story. In an interview, Williams said, “I wanted the characters to present themselves. I didn’t want to try to explain them. I didn’t want to have a twentieth-century vision of the Roman times. So the epistolary form lets the people speak for themselves.�
A Washington Post critic called Augustus “the finest historical novel ever written by an American.� Williams was only fifty-years old when the book was published and he lived another twenty years, but he never wrote another book.
Thank you, Ted.
Where to begin? I guess the place to begin would be to explain why I read this book. I chose it because it was on our friend Ted’s TBR list. I sincerely wish that he had read it and that I in turn could have enjoyed one of his unique and entertaining reviews.
I should also say that I agree with what John McGahern wrote above, but adding Butcher’s Crossing (1960) to the mix. That would cover all the novels that John Williams wrote, with one exception, that being his debut novel, Nothing But the Night (1948), which I have never read, and probably never will. Since he disowned the book I’ll take his word that it isn’t worth my time.
It is not surprising that today Williams is highly respected and that three of his four novels are best-sellers. The irony, however, is that he published his last novel in 1972, but the respect and popularity that he finally received did not take place until forty years later. It finally occurred when Stoner was reissued by the New York Review of Books (NYRB) in 2013. It was at that point that the book finally found an audience and it became a publishing phenomenon that led to a reappraisal of Williams� work.
A year later, NYRB reissued Augustus. That novel, at the time that it was originally published, did garner some notice, certainly more than the others when they were first published, for it won the National Book Award for fiction in 1973, though it had to share the honor with John Barth’s Chimera. The publicity he received was fleeting, however, and the honor did nothing to increase his popularity or to promote book sales (upon release it had sold under 2,000 copies and no more than 10,000 after winning the award). That only came about when Stoner was reissued forty years later. Unfortunately, Williams never personally experienced his newfound fame for he had died almost twenty years earlier.
Critics have pointed out that all four of his novels are so different that they could have been written by four different writers. He wrote his debut novel, Nothing But the Night, during his down time while serving as a radio operator in the Army Air Corps during WWII. According to the publisher’s blurb, “[i]n the person of Arthur Maxley, Williams investigates the terror and the waywardness of a man who has suffered an early traumatic experience. As a child, Maxley witnessed a scene of such violence and of such a nature that the evocation of Greek tragedy is inescapable.�
Butcher’s Crossing is about a mythic buffalo hunt in the nineteenth century American West, while Stoner is a quiet book about a quiet man, a University of Missouri professor in the mid-twentieth century, an everyman who soldiers on no matter what heartbreak and disappointment comes his way.
And then there is Augustus, set in ancient Rome during the reign of the first Emperor of the Roman Empire. The book is set in a totally different time and setting that certainly differentiates it from the other books, but it is its style and structure that makes it unique and sets it even more apart.
“[Augustus] is a feast of research and a triumph of style; as serious, restrained, and magisterial a voice as any in American fiction.� � Hannah Niemeier, The New Criterion
Augustus is unlike any work of fiction that I have ever read. And that isn’t because it is an epistolary novel based on letters, journal entries, military reports and orders, because I have read a handful of those, it is because it is an epistolary novel that is so epic in scope. It is an account of the forty-year reign of Augustus, an era in which the Roman Empire nearly doubled in size, extending all the way from Britain to India.
It is a tribute to the audacity of Williams that he thought such a book was possible. He wrote in a short Author’s Note that:
[S]ome of the errors of fact in this book are deliberate. I have changed the order of several events; I have invented where the record is incomplete or uncertain; and I have given identities to a few characters whom history has failed to mention�.With a few exceptions, the documents that constitute this novel are of my own invention�. But if there are truths in this work, they are truths of fiction rather than of history. I shall be grateful to those readers who will take it as it is intended � a work of imagination.
Anyone, however, who wants to do a little investigating, will discover that the fiction is solidly grounded in fact. For Williams did the necessary research � much of it in Rome � and labored over the book for seven years before it was published.
His decision to suppress his own voice and let the people speak for themselves has the effect of humanizing the large number of characters who populate the story. In an interview, Williams said, “I wanted the characters to present themselves. I didn’t want to try to explain them. I didn’t want to have a twentieth-century vision of the Roman times. So the epistolary form lets the people speak for themselves.�
A Washington Post critic called Augustus “the finest historical novel ever written by an American.� Williams was only fifty-years old when the book was published and he lived another twenty years, but he never wrote another book.
Thank you, Ted.
February 1, 2016
“One does not deceive oneself about the consequences of one's acts; one deceives oneself about the ease with which one can live with those consequences.�
� John Williams, Augustus
John Williams read some Robert Graves and said, "Yeah, I got this Roman. I can do this." I'm trying to think of equivalent historical fiction that orbits the same level of prose mastery: Norman Mailer, Robert Graves, Hilary Mantel, E. L. Doctorow and a few others belong on this very short list.
There are some writers (like Pynchon, etc) who seem to find their groove and mine that style/approach for all it is worth. Others like Williams just appear to get bored with one style, form, or approach to literature. They want to master all. John Williams who is also known for his college novel and his Western decided to give writing an epistolary, historical novel a try. What he created is one of the greatest historical novels of all time. Probably not as good as Robert Graves (or dare I say Hilary Mantel), but damn close.
� John Williams, Augustus
John Williams read some Robert Graves and said, "Yeah, I got this Roman. I can do this." I'm trying to think of equivalent historical fiction that orbits the same level of prose mastery: Norman Mailer, Robert Graves, Hilary Mantel, E. L. Doctorow and a few others belong on this very short list.
There are some writers (like Pynchon, etc) who seem to find their groove and mine that style/approach for all it is worth. Others like Williams just appear to get bored with one style, form, or approach to literature. They want to master all. John Williams who is also known for his college novel and his Western decided to give writing an epistolary, historical novel a try. What he created is one of the greatest historical novels of all time. Probably not as good as Robert Graves (or dare I say Hilary Mantel), but damn close.
January 21, 2021
One of the most beautiful gestures John Williams extends his readers in Augustus consists of taking for granted that they can picture the fabled city of Rome and the occasional countryside location.
I find we all have adequate images in our mind’s eye of a place like ancient Rome, if not in minute detail at least in a general sense, and as a gift from the author’s intelligence to yours, there are no tedious descriptions in this book; whenever I encounter something like this in fine literature, I feel like a kindness was done to me.
Distracting you from the official scenes and sun-kissed settings, which remain no less present and inspiring, Williams suggests instead that readers turn their gaze elsewhere and reflect, with Augustus Caesar and his entourage, on the human condition. Many people take turns expressing themselves in Augustus and they all come alive with natural ease. A soft-spoken wit ripples across exchanges, a smooth cut to the chase often ends things brilliantly. This is the John Williams I loved in Stoner, but even better. Needless to say, Augustus is a huge success with me.
Making this an epistolary novel means a succession of documents comes into play to give the story wings. Again, Williams takes pains to keep things tidy and on the move, setting up a sustained and engaging flurry of fragments of memoirs, notes from journals, extracts of official reports and, most of all, adequately short letters. Perfectly accessible yet deliciously written, these documents are fictional, the vast majority of them. They manage not to come in the way of talented storytelling � who wants a bureaucratic novel? � and personalities quickly expand.
In Augustus, young Gaius Octavius inherits the reins of the Roman empire from Julius Caesar, his great-uncle and daily mentor, an event precipitated by the powerful ruler’s assassination. Not yet twenty years of age, educated in the matters of the Legion and the Senate but not especially eager and certainly not ready to take over anything of such magnitude as Rome itself, our modest hero makes a brusque new entrance into a world of expansionist politics and old family money, to become in fact its very focal point. He considers matters as coldly as he can, says little at first, looks within himself, finds in there a regular man and not a superhero, and keeps around his person a handful of lifelong friends. He would, in time, succeed in bringing peace to Rome. He would also become a father, among other things. Octavius, growing into Augustus Caesar, develops a very human presence, thanks to John Williams. Essentially, the man puts one foot in front of the other and makes his way up; this is less the spectacle of it than its miracle.
John Williams proves rock solid, once again. But also tender, once more. He's at the top of his game in Augustus. Five stars.
The young man, who does not know the future, sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey through strange seas and unknown islands, where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality. The man of middle years, who has lived the future that he once dreamed, sees life as a tragedy; for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail against those forces of accident and nature to which he gives the names of gods, and has learned that he is mortal. But the man of age, if he plays his assigned role properly, must see life as a comedy.
Do not mistake me. I have never had that sentimental and rhetorical love for the common people that was in my youth (and is even now) so fashionable. Mankind in the aggregate I have found to be brutish, ignorant, and unkind, whether those qualities were covered by the coarse tunic of the peasant or the white and purple toga of a senator. And yet in the weakest of men, in moments when they are alone and themselves, I have found veins of strength like gold in decaying rock; in the cruelest of men flashes of tenderness and compassion; and in the vainest of men moments of simplicity and grace.
I find we all have adequate images in our mind’s eye of a place like ancient Rome, if not in minute detail at least in a general sense, and as a gift from the author’s intelligence to yours, there are no tedious descriptions in this book; whenever I encounter something like this in fine literature, I feel like a kindness was done to me.
Distracting you from the official scenes and sun-kissed settings, which remain no less present and inspiring, Williams suggests instead that readers turn their gaze elsewhere and reflect, with Augustus Caesar and his entourage, on the human condition. Many people take turns expressing themselves in Augustus and they all come alive with natural ease. A soft-spoken wit ripples across exchanges, a smooth cut to the chase often ends things brilliantly. This is the John Williams I loved in Stoner, but even better. Needless to say, Augustus is a huge success with me.
Making this an epistolary novel means a succession of documents comes into play to give the story wings. Again, Williams takes pains to keep things tidy and on the move, setting up a sustained and engaging flurry of fragments of memoirs, notes from journals, extracts of official reports and, most of all, adequately short letters. Perfectly accessible yet deliciously written, these documents are fictional, the vast majority of them. They manage not to come in the way of talented storytelling � who wants a bureaucratic novel? � and personalities quickly expand.
In Augustus, young Gaius Octavius inherits the reins of the Roman empire from Julius Caesar, his great-uncle and daily mentor, an event precipitated by the powerful ruler’s assassination. Not yet twenty years of age, educated in the matters of the Legion and the Senate but not especially eager and certainly not ready to take over anything of such magnitude as Rome itself, our modest hero makes a brusque new entrance into a world of expansionist politics and old family money, to become in fact its very focal point. He considers matters as coldly as he can, says little at first, looks within himself, finds in there a regular man and not a superhero, and keeps around his person a handful of lifelong friends. He would, in time, succeed in bringing peace to Rome. He would also become a father, among other things. Octavius, growing into Augustus Caesar, develops a very human presence, thanks to John Williams. Essentially, the man puts one foot in front of the other and makes his way up; this is less the spectacle of it than its miracle.
John Williams proves rock solid, once again. But also tender, once more. He's at the top of his game in Augustus. Five stars.
The young man, who does not know the future, sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey through strange seas and unknown islands, where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality. The man of middle years, who has lived the future that he once dreamed, sees life as a tragedy; for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail against those forces of accident and nature to which he gives the names of gods, and has learned that he is mortal. But the man of age, if he plays his assigned role properly, must see life as a comedy.
Do not mistake me. I have never had that sentimental and rhetorical love for the common people that was in my youth (and is even now) so fashionable. Mankind in the aggregate I have found to be brutish, ignorant, and unkind, whether those qualities were covered by the coarse tunic of the peasant or the white and purple toga of a senator. And yet in the weakest of men, in moments when they are alone and themselves, I have found veins of strength like gold in decaying rock; in the cruelest of men flashes of tenderness and compassion; and in the vainest of men moments of simplicity and grace.
September 2, 2015
And yet a third perfect book by this inimitable author who was working at the very height of his powers. I now know that I will never again come across a book such as this. I actually didn’t want to finish it as I felt that I had to continue in this enthralling dream. What disturbs me, however, is the downside that when one has loved something/someone so much, those following, well to my mind anyway, will only be substitutes which in itself is rather a sad state of affairs.
As I read this book I was transported back to my university days when I was constantly taking notes but it is different here because I have resorted to 3M post- it notes which practically cover every page whenever an appropriate sentence or word has struck me.
Where can one possibly begin with this remarkable individual? This is the life of Augustus as can be seen by the cover but this isn’t an ordinary novel as it is written in the epistolary style and for the first page this did concern me but as the book progresses and develops, the fictitious memories, letters and dispatches describe a more intimate aspect of the life of the first Roman Emperor which suits this work exactly. In fact, I do not believe that this could have been achieved in any other way.
When I recall studying this period whilst at school, I found it all rather heavy to take in and actually rather bland and the textbooks were often rather tedious, the only exception being the battle of Atrium. Now that was a splendid battle indeed.
Williams admitted that he did change certain historical events from this period but he also stressed that this was a novel of his own invention. Individuals who were not covered in depth in everyday history were also brought in, such as Julia, the daughter of Augustus.
As I read Julia’s journal written on the island of Pandateria where she was in exile, the intimacy of her writing in parts was so touching that it was difficult to continue reading the text. For such a spirited and passionate woman as Julia, she must have suffered to be forced to marry three times for the convenience of Rome and for her father. Two husbands died and she was very fond of Marcus Agrippa but because of his death, she was forced to marry Tiberius. She detested him with a passion. Thus it took a while for her to conceive and shortly after the child was born, a boy, it died. After this Tiberius and Julia went their separate ways.
Julia was never to experience any form of a sensual, idealistic love and a meeting of the minds until finally a man came into her life that brought such love and passion, but who regrettably would be responsible for bringing about her own ruin.
The comment that Julia made here was so poignant for me after meeting this particular man:
No man has touched me since that afternoon. No man shall touch me for as long as I shall live.
And she would remember that up until her death.
VI. The Journal of Julia, Pandateria (A.D. 4)
In the consulships of Octavius Caesar, the August, and Marcus Plautius Silvanus, I, Julia, daughter of the Emperor, was accused before the Senate convening in Rome of adultery, and hence of the abrogation of the marriage and adultery laws that my father had passed by edict some fifteen years before. My accuser was my father. He went into great detail about my transgressions; he named my lovers, my places of assignation, the dates. In the main, the details were correct, thought there were a few unimportant names that he omitted…�..He described drunken revels in the Forum and debaucheries upon the very rostrum from which he had first delivered his laws; he spoke of my frequentation of various houses of prostitution, implying that out of perversity I sold myself to anyone who would have me; and he described my visits to those unsavory bath establishments which permitted mixed bathing and encouraged all manner of licentiousness. These were exaggerated, but there was enough truth in them to make them persuasive. And at last he demanded that, in accordance with his Julian Laws, I be exiled forever from the precincts of Rome, and requested the Senate to order me placed on this Island of Pandateria, to live out the rest of my life in contemplation of my vices.
If history remembers me at all, history will remember me so. But history will not know the truth, if history ever can.
It was because Octavious Caesar truly loved his daughter and because of laws initiated by him that he had to denounce her himself, thus saving her from being executed as the Senate would have ensured. He never spoke to her again and she was never allowed to be discussed in his presence. It is not until we come to Book 3 when Octavious writes a rather long letter to an old friend, Nicolaus of Damascus (A.D. 14) that the true reasons are exposed for his behaviour towards his daughter.
As with Greek tragedies, Williams’s novels expose the process by which “what you could have done� is gradually stripped away from a character, leaving only what he did do - which is to say, the residue that is “yourself.�
The memoirs of Marcus Agrippa, a friend of Octavious for many years, are a tour de force but I was particularly taken with the correspondence of Mark Antony. His love for Cleopatra was evident but it wasn’t until the battle of Actium that he realized what she was when she saw the way the battle was turning and departed with her fleet. The following was written in one of Marcus Agrippa’s memoirs:
It was one of those curious moments in the confusion of warfare with which all soldiers are familiar. The vessel which carried Caesar Augustus and my own ship had come so close together that we could look into each other’s eyes and could even shout to be heard above the furor; not thirty yards away, where it had been pursued and then left, was the ship of Marcus Antonius. I believe that all three of us saw the purple sail of Cleopatra’s departing flagship at the same time. None of us moved; Antonious stood at the prow of his ship as if he were a carven figurehead, looking after his departing Queen. And then he turned to us, though whether he recognized either of us I do not know. His face was without expression, as if it were that of a corpse. Then his arm lifted stiffly, and dropped; and the sails were thrust into the wind, and the great ship turned slowly and gathered speed, and Marcus Antonius followed after his Queen. We watched the pitiful remains of his own ships that escaped the slaughter, and we did not attempt to pursue. I did not see Marcus Antonius again.
Maecenas introduced Octavious to poets that he would never ordinarily have met. Vergil, Horace, Cicero, etc. and this led to my searching through all my reference books for further information on them. And as for Cicero’s death, undoubtedly a very unpleasant end but I was full of admiration for this individual on how he handled this. He had style in the face of adversity.
There is no doubt that Williams has succeeded admirably by writing an epistolary novel and bringing to life this remarkable and yet very unusual Roman of his time. I’m sad though that there is only one more book of Williams to be read . His first novel, of which he was somewhat dismissive, and of which I have ordered a copy and his poetry, which regrettably I am unable to find.
As stated before, a perfect book and yet so difficult to describe. It never ceases to amaze me that when one truly loves something, it is so, so difficult to find the right words. As if it is of such a private nature, that one cannot enter within and that is indeed true of Williams, who had his own inner sanctum.
As I read this book I was transported back to my university days when I was constantly taking notes but it is different here because I have resorted to 3M post- it notes which practically cover every page whenever an appropriate sentence or word has struck me.
Where can one possibly begin with this remarkable individual? This is the life of Augustus as can be seen by the cover but this isn’t an ordinary novel as it is written in the epistolary style and for the first page this did concern me but as the book progresses and develops, the fictitious memories, letters and dispatches describe a more intimate aspect of the life of the first Roman Emperor which suits this work exactly. In fact, I do not believe that this could have been achieved in any other way.
When I recall studying this period whilst at school, I found it all rather heavy to take in and actually rather bland and the textbooks were often rather tedious, the only exception being the battle of Atrium. Now that was a splendid battle indeed.
Williams admitted that he did change certain historical events from this period but he also stressed that this was a novel of his own invention. Individuals who were not covered in depth in everyday history were also brought in, such as Julia, the daughter of Augustus.
As I read Julia’s journal written on the island of Pandateria where she was in exile, the intimacy of her writing in parts was so touching that it was difficult to continue reading the text. For such a spirited and passionate woman as Julia, she must have suffered to be forced to marry three times for the convenience of Rome and for her father. Two husbands died and she was very fond of Marcus Agrippa but because of his death, she was forced to marry Tiberius. She detested him with a passion. Thus it took a while for her to conceive and shortly after the child was born, a boy, it died. After this Tiberius and Julia went their separate ways.
Julia was never to experience any form of a sensual, idealistic love and a meeting of the minds until finally a man came into her life that brought such love and passion, but who regrettably would be responsible for bringing about her own ruin.
The comment that Julia made here was so poignant for me after meeting this particular man:
No man has touched me since that afternoon. No man shall touch me for as long as I shall live.
And she would remember that up until her death.
VI. The Journal of Julia, Pandateria (A.D. 4)
In the consulships of Octavius Caesar, the August, and Marcus Plautius Silvanus, I, Julia, daughter of the Emperor, was accused before the Senate convening in Rome of adultery, and hence of the abrogation of the marriage and adultery laws that my father had passed by edict some fifteen years before. My accuser was my father. He went into great detail about my transgressions; he named my lovers, my places of assignation, the dates. In the main, the details were correct, thought there were a few unimportant names that he omitted…�..He described drunken revels in the Forum and debaucheries upon the very rostrum from which he had first delivered his laws; he spoke of my frequentation of various houses of prostitution, implying that out of perversity I sold myself to anyone who would have me; and he described my visits to those unsavory bath establishments which permitted mixed bathing and encouraged all manner of licentiousness. These were exaggerated, but there was enough truth in them to make them persuasive. And at last he demanded that, in accordance with his Julian Laws, I be exiled forever from the precincts of Rome, and requested the Senate to order me placed on this Island of Pandateria, to live out the rest of my life in contemplation of my vices.
If history remembers me at all, history will remember me so. But history will not know the truth, if history ever can.
It was because Octavious Caesar truly loved his daughter and because of laws initiated by him that he had to denounce her himself, thus saving her from being executed as the Senate would have ensured. He never spoke to her again and she was never allowed to be discussed in his presence. It is not until we come to Book 3 when Octavious writes a rather long letter to an old friend, Nicolaus of Damascus (A.D. 14) that the true reasons are exposed for his behaviour towards his daughter.
As with Greek tragedies, Williams’s novels expose the process by which “what you could have done� is gradually stripped away from a character, leaving only what he did do - which is to say, the residue that is “yourself.�
The memoirs of Marcus Agrippa, a friend of Octavious for many years, are a tour de force but I was particularly taken with the correspondence of Mark Antony. His love for Cleopatra was evident but it wasn’t until the battle of Actium that he realized what she was when she saw the way the battle was turning and departed with her fleet. The following was written in one of Marcus Agrippa’s memoirs:
It was one of those curious moments in the confusion of warfare with which all soldiers are familiar. The vessel which carried Caesar Augustus and my own ship had come so close together that we could look into each other’s eyes and could even shout to be heard above the furor; not thirty yards away, where it had been pursued and then left, was the ship of Marcus Antonius. I believe that all three of us saw the purple sail of Cleopatra’s departing flagship at the same time. None of us moved; Antonious stood at the prow of his ship as if he were a carven figurehead, looking after his departing Queen. And then he turned to us, though whether he recognized either of us I do not know. His face was without expression, as if it were that of a corpse. Then his arm lifted stiffly, and dropped; and the sails were thrust into the wind, and the great ship turned slowly and gathered speed, and Marcus Antonius followed after his Queen. We watched the pitiful remains of his own ships that escaped the slaughter, and we did not attempt to pursue. I did not see Marcus Antonius again.
Maecenas introduced Octavious to poets that he would never ordinarily have met. Vergil, Horace, Cicero, etc. and this led to my searching through all my reference books for further information on them. And as for Cicero’s death, undoubtedly a very unpleasant end but I was full of admiration for this individual on how he handled this. He had style in the face of adversity.
There is no doubt that Williams has succeeded admirably by writing an epistolary novel and bringing to life this remarkable and yet very unusual Roman of his time. I’m sad though that there is only one more book of Williams to be read . His first novel, of which he was somewhat dismissive, and of which I have ordered a copy and his poetry, which regrettably I am unable to find.
As stated before, a perfect book and yet so difficult to describe. It never ceases to amaze me that when one truly loves something, it is so, so difficult to find the right words. As if it is of such a private nature, that one cannot enter within and that is indeed true of Williams, who had his own inner sanctum.
April 16, 2023
Found a new favourite! The writing was wonderful!
The talent, creativity and ingenuity of the author deserve all the applause that can be showered upon him!
I have noticed, that the more I like a book, the less I feel I have to say about it. Still, I will try my best to note down my thoughts to give some semblance of a review.
This is an epistolary novel which follows the life and reign of Octavian or Augustus, the first emperor of Rome, from when he was a shy youth of nineteen to the ruler of world in his seventies.
You know his appearance now; it has not changed much. But now he is Emperor of the world, and I must look beyond that to see him as he was then; and I swear to you that I, whose service to him has been my knowledge of the hearts of both his friends and enemies, could not have foreseen what he was to become. I thought him a pleasant stripling, no more, with a face too delicate to receive the blows of fate, with a manner too diffident to achieve purpose, and with a voice too gentle to utter the ruthless words that a leader of men must utter. I thought that he might become a scholar of leisure, or a man of letters; I did not think that he had the energy to become even a senator, to which his name and wealth entitled him
We start following Octavian’s journey, when he is being trained by his uncle Julius Caesar, who plans on adopting him. We see him through the eyes of his closest friends, Marcus Agrippa, Quintus Salvidienus Rufus, and Gaius Cilnius Maecenas, who were his friends before he came into any power.
But I swear to you, we were friends from that moment onward; and that moment of foolish laughter was a bond stronger than anything that came between us later--victories or defeats, loyalties or betrayals, griefs, or joys.
But the days of youth go, and part of us goes with them, not to return.
Then after the sudden and brutal murder of Caesar, his destiny calls to him and he chooses to answer. That choice, at that moment, will come to change the face of the world and his life beyond recognition.
only one with contempt for power could have used it so well.
The political intrigues, the schemes, the betrayals, the murders, and the thirst for power, all of it plays like a political Godfather. We explore many characters through these letters, or journal entries. Naturally, many famous characters of history play an important role or make an appearance, like Horace, Ovid, Marcus Antonius, Cleopatra, Cicero, Brutus, and most importantly Julia, the daughter of Octavius. There was a lot of emphasis on her character development.
We understand the nature of power, and how it manipulates the lives of people. It dictates marriages, alliances, children, friendships, and so on. Every action has an ulterior motive.
My father has it all written down, so that one might always know to whom one is married.
(The Wikipedia page to follow the marriages in Julio-Claudian bloodline will give one a headache for sure lol)
We see Octavius leading Rome through Civil wars and factions. We see his many military campaigns, victories, defeats, alliances, and betrayals.
But we may like him or dislike him, he undeniably did create a Roman Empire as it has stood out in that period of world history.
Yet the Empire of Rome that he created has endured the harshness of a Tiberius, the monstrous cruelty of a Caligula, and the ineptness of a Claudius.
I loved reading this. I will highly recommend it.
I would also like to highlight some general quotes I enjoyed.
perhaps there is but one god. But if that is true, you have misnamed him. He is Accident, and his priest is man, and that priest's only victim must be at last himself, his poor divided self.
I decide to make a poem when I am compelled by some strong feeling to do so but I wait until the feeling hardens into a resolve; then I conceive an end, as simple as I can make it, toward which that feeling might progress, though often I cannot see how it will do so. And then I compose my poem, using whatever means are at my command. I borrow from others if I have to no matter. I invent if I have to-no matter. I use the language that I know, and I work within its limits. But the point is this: the end that I discover at last is not the end that I conceived at first. For every solution entails new choices, and every choice made poses new problems to which solutions must be found, and so on and on. Deep in his heart, the poet is always surprised at where his poem has gone.
The winds and rains of time will at last crumble the most solid stone, and there is no wall that can be built to protect the human heart from its own weakness.
I am sure that you have had, as we all have, that mysterious experience of prescience a moment when, beyond reason and cause, at a word, or at the flicker of an eyelid, or at anything at all, one has a sudden foreboding of what, one does not know. 1am not a religious man; but I am sometimes nearly tempted to believe that the gods do speak to us, and that only in unguarded moments will we listen.
The talent, creativity and ingenuity of the author deserve all the applause that can be showered upon him!
I have noticed, that the more I like a book, the less I feel I have to say about it. Still, I will try my best to note down my thoughts to give some semblance of a review.
This is an epistolary novel which follows the life and reign of Octavian or Augustus, the first emperor of Rome, from when he was a shy youth of nineteen to the ruler of world in his seventies.
You know his appearance now; it has not changed much. But now he is Emperor of the world, and I must look beyond that to see him as he was then; and I swear to you that I, whose service to him has been my knowledge of the hearts of both his friends and enemies, could not have foreseen what he was to become. I thought him a pleasant stripling, no more, with a face too delicate to receive the blows of fate, with a manner too diffident to achieve purpose, and with a voice too gentle to utter the ruthless words that a leader of men must utter. I thought that he might become a scholar of leisure, or a man of letters; I did not think that he had the energy to become even a senator, to which his name and wealth entitled him
We start following Octavian’s journey, when he is being trained by his uncle Julius Caesar, who plans on adopting him. We see him through the eyes of his closest friends, Marcus Agrippa, Quintus Salvidienus Rufus, and Gaius Cilnius Maecenas, who were his friends before he came into any power.
But I swear to you, we were friends from that moment onward; and that moment of foolish laughter was a bond stronger than anything that came between us later--victories or defeats, loyalties or betrayals, griefs, or joys.
But the days of youth go, and part of us goes with them, not to return.
Then after the sudden and brutal murder of Caesar, his destiny calls to him and he chooses to answer. That choice, at that moment, will come to change the face of the world and his life beyond recognition.
only one with contempt for power could have used it so well.
The political intrigues, the schemes, the betrayals, the murders, and the thirst for power, all of it plays like a political Godfather. We explore many characters through these letters, or journal entries. Naturally, many famous characters of history play an important role or make an appearance, like Horace, Ovid, Marcus Antonius, Cleopatra, Cicero, Brutus, and most importantly Julia, the daughter of Octavius. There was a lot of emphasis on her character development.
We understand the nature of power, and how it manipulates the lives of people. It dictates marriages, alliances, children, friendships, and so on. Every action has an ulterior motive.
My father has it all written down, so that one might always know to whom one is married.
(The Wikipedia page to follow the marriages in Julio-Claudian bloodline will give one a headache for sure lol)
We see Octavius leading Rome through Civil wars and factions. We see his many military campaigns, victories, defeats, alliances, and betrayals.
But we may like him or dislike him, he undeniably did create a Roman Empire as it has stood out in that period of world history.
Yet the Empire of Rome that he created has endured the harshness of a Tiberius, the monstrous cruelty of a Caligula, and the ineptness of a Claudius.
I loved reading this. I will highly recommend it.
I would also like to highlight some general quotes I enjoyed.
perhaps there is but one god. But if that is true, you have misnamed him. He is Accident, and his priest is man, and that priest's only victim must be at last himself, his poor divided self.
I decide to make a poem when I am compelled by some strong feeling to do so but I wait until the feeling hardens into a resolve; then I conceive an end, as simple as I can make it, toward which that feeling might progress, though often I cannot see how it will do so. And then I compose my poem, using whatever means are at my command. I borrow from others if I have to no matter. I invent if I have to-no matter. I use the language that I know, and I work within its limits. But the point is this: the end that I discover at last is not the end that I conceived at first. For every solution entails new choices, and every choice made poses new problems to which solutions must be found, and so on and on. Deep in his heart, the poet is always surprised at where his poem has gone.
The winds and rains of time will at last crumble the most solid stone, and there is no wall that can be built to protect the human heart from its own weakness.
I am sure that you have had, as we all have, that mysterious experience of prescience a moment when, beyond reason and cause, at a word, or at the flicker of an eyelid, or at anything at all, one has a sudden foreboding of what, one does not know. 1am not a religious man; but I am sometimes nearly tempted to believe that the gods do speak to us, and that only in unguarded moments will we listen.
January 19, 2025
While John Williams' novel Augustus can be read as a brilliant work of historical fiction, it is also a master work of literary fiction. As Williams points out in his Author's Note: "...if there are truths in this work, they are truths of fiction rather than of history."
Williams writes this work in an epistolary format--letters, journals, proclamations, and bits of histories. I get a good sense of the characters through their writings. I also see many different views of Octavius (Augustus), all the various roles he must play to achieve and hold his place in Rome. I assemble these pieces in order to try and grasp who Octavius really is. These writings also give the work an intimate feel. I am completely drawn in and engaged.
While the bones of the history are there, from the death of Julius Caesar when Octavius was 19 through the death of Octavius at age 76, Williams puts the flesh on the bones. He puts the words in their mouths and writings, as well as creating and conveying the emotions/feelings of his characters.
Some of the themes Williams explores are power--the desire for and use of, public necessity/good vs. personal happiness, friendship and enmity, and aging.
"Perhaps we are wiser when we are young, though the philosopher would dispute with me. But I swear to you, we were friends from that moment onward; and that moment of foolish laughter was a bond stronger than anything that came between us later . . ."
Williams has a good grasp of people, and basic human nature doesn't change over time. I think those bonds we form in our youth are some of our strongest. My closest friend today is a woman I met when I was 20. We have remained close for 4 decades. We bonded over studying together for a statistics course, and our friendship grew from there. I have wonderful friends I have made since, and no one else has as long a history and knows me in this same way.
Julia to her father, Octavius, when informed of her upcoming marriage to Tiberius:
"So once again I'm to be the brood sow for the pleasure of Rome."
Political marriage is a fact of life. There is no bargaining for a life of joy or contentment.
Julia asks: " 'Father, . . . has it been worth it? Your authority, this Rome that you have saved, this Rome that you have built? Has it been worth all that you have had to do?
My father looked at me for a long time, and then he looked away. 'I must believe that it has. . . . We both must believe that it has.' "
Once you head down a path and are entrenched, it's almost impossible to change course. If Octavius had wanted to abdicate, the mess he would have left behind would have been horrendous. Even for the sake of his happiness or that of his beloved daughter, he sees no alternative. I am left to ponder this same question.
"Octavius Caesar is alone. No one from his youth remains alive, and therefore there is no one whom he feels that he can trust, no one to whom he can talk about those things that are nearest to him."
I cannot imagine. My grandfather was the last of his generation--family and friends--to pass. He often pined for a peer to converse with in those last two years of his life, so I have a tiny glimpse of what may have been felt. Add to that the feeling that Octavius has that he can't trust anyone in his present, and I am weighed down by the burden on his heart and psyche.
"I do not believe that Rome can endure the death of Octavius Caesar, and I do not believe that Octavius Caesar can endure the death of his soul."
This novel is divided into 3 Books and an Epilogue. Book 1 details Octavius' rise to power, Book 2 conveys the disintegration of his family and personal happiness, and Book 3 portrays Octavius as an old man reflecting back on his life.
I appreciate the choice to keep Augustus' inner thoughts out of the narrative until the very end. It is so impactful to read after having pieced together an idea of who he is. We, my buddy readers and I, all noted its absence. Looking for Octavius' voice created a tension/suspense that added to the pull of the book.
Williams is a masterful writer--not only the structure he chooses, but also his prose. He sees and understands people and their motivations and conveys that clearly on the page.
For a piece of literary fiction that sings, you couldn't make a better choice.
A shout out to my Buddy Readers who contributed greatly to this magnificent reading experience! See their wonderful reviews:
.
Publication 1972
Williams writes this work in an epistolary format--letters, journals, proclamations, and bits of histories. I get a good sense of the characters through their writings. I also see many different views of Octavius (Augustus), all the various roles he must play to achieve and hold his place in Rome. I assemble these pieces in order to try and grasp who Octavius really is. These writings also give the work an intimate feel. I am completely drawn in and engaged.
While the bones of the history are there, from the death of Julius Caesar when Octavius was 19 through the death of Octavius at age 76, Williams puts the flesh on the bones. He puts the words in their mouths and writings, as well as creating and conveying the emotions/feelings of his characters.
Some of the themes Williams explores are power--the desire for and use of, public necessity/good vs. personal happiness, friendship and enmity, and aging.
"Perhaps we are wiser when we are young, though the philosopher would dispute with me. But I swear to you, we were friends from that moment onward; and that moment of foolish laughter was a bond stronger than anything that came between us later . . ."
Williams has a good grasp of people, and basic human nature doesn't change over time. I think those bonds we form in our youth are some of our strongest. My closest friend today is a woman I met when I was 20. We have remained close for 4 decades. We bonded over studying together for a statistics course, and our friendship grew from there. I have wonderful friends I have made since, and no one else has as long a history and knows me in this same way.
Julia to her father, Octavius, when informed of her upcoming marriage to Tiberius:
"So once again I'm to be the brood sow for the pleasure of Rome."
Political marriage is a fact of life. There is no bargaining for a life of joy or contentment.
Julia asks: " 'Father, . . . has it been worth it? Your authority, this Rome that you have saved, this Rome that you have built? Has it been worth all that you have had to do?
My father looked at me for a long time, and then he looked away. 'I must believe that it has. . . . We both must believe that it has.' "
Once you head down a path and are entrenched, it's almost impossible to change course. If Octavius had wanted to abdicate, the mess he would have left behind would have been horrendous. Even for the sake of his happiness or that of his beloved daughter, he sees no alternative. I am left to ponder this same question.
"Octavius Caesar is alone. No one from his youth remains alive, and therefore there is no one whom he feels that he can trust, no one to whom he can talk about those things that are nearest to him."
I cannot imagine. My grandfather was the last of his generation--family and friends--to pass. He often pined for a peer to converse with in those last two years of his life, so I have a tiny glimpse of what may have been felt. Add to that the feeling that Octavius has that he can't trust anyone in his present, and I am weighed down by the burden on his heart and psyche.
"I do not believe that Rome can endure the death of Octavius Caesar, and I do not believe that Octavius Caesar can endure the death of his soul."
This novel is divided into 3 Books and an Epilogue. Book 1 details Octavius' rise to power, Book 2 conveys the disintegration of his family and personal happiness, and Book 3 portrays Octavius as an old man reflecting back on his life.
I appreciate the choice to keep Augustus' inner thoughts out of the narrative until the very end. It is so impactful to read after having pieced together an idea of who he is. We, my buddy readers and I, all noted its absence. Looking for Octavius' voice created a tension/suspense that added to the pull of the book.
Williams is a masterful writer--not only the structure he chooses, but also his prose. He sees and understands people and their motivations and conveys that clearly on the page.
For a piece of literary fiction that sings, you couldn't make a better choice.
A shout out to my Buddy Readers who contributed greatly to this magnificent reading experience! See their wonderful reviews:
.
Publication 1972
August 12, 2019
ΘΡΙΑΜΒΟΣ!
Δεν ξέρω ποιά είναι τα συστατικά που κάνουν ένα βιβλίο ξεχωριστό, λογικά κάθε αναγνώστης έχει τα δικά του ιδιαίτερα κριτήρια, αλλά επιτρέψτε μου να πω, ο Αύγουστος είναι ένα από τα σημαντικότερα ιστορικά μυθιστορήματα που γράφτηκαν ποτέ. Θές που έχω έναν έρωτα στη Ρώμη και στα μνημεία της; Θες που έχω άλλον έναν στο μύθο της Κλεοπάτρας και την Αίγυπτο; Ή στο τέλος τέλος, δείξτε μου έναν άνθρωπο που δεν τρελαίνεται για μια δυνατή ιστορία αγάπης. Γιατί μη σας ξενίζει ο τίτλος ή το οπισθόφυλλο, ο Αύγουστος είναι πολλές ξεχωριστές ιστορίες αγάπης ραμμένες μαεστρικά σε μία απολαυστική ιστορική αφήγηση. Αγάπης προς την οικογένεια, αγάπης προς τις τέχνες τα γράμματα και τον πολιτισμό, αγάπης προς το καθήκον και τους πολίτες οι ζωές των οποίων κρέμονται από τα χέρια του κυβερνήτη τους, αγάπης προς τη μαγική φύση του άνθρωπο που ερωτεύεται διαρκώς πολεμώντας μανιασμένα στο όνομα του (κάθε φορά) μοναδικού, τρομαγμένος στην ιδέα και μόνο της μοναξιά του και της φθαρτότητα της ύλης του.
Ονόματα όπως Ιούλιος Καίσαρας, Βρούτος, Μάρκος Αντώνιος, Βιργίλιος, Νέρωνας, Ηρώδης, Δαμασκηνός, Οκτάβιος και φυσικά αυτό της Κλεοπάτρας, παρελάζουν μπροστά στα μάτια του μαγεμένου αναγνώστη μέσω επιστολών που γράφουν ο ένας προς τον άλλο. Επιστολές δολοπλόκων, κατασκόπων, φίλων αλλά και εχθρών, εξομολογήσεις φθόνου και μίσους αλλά φυσικά και άσβεστου έρωτα και πάθους. Όσο ψηλά και αν βρίσκεται κανείς στη σκάλα της εξουσίας, δε διαφέρει σε αντιδράσεις και αισθήματα με αυτόν που βρίσκεται στην άλλη μεριά της σκάλας. Τα πάντα γίνονται για τη συντριπτική κατάκτηση του αντικειμένου του πόθου που είναι κάθε φορά και άλλο. Για τον πλούτο, για την δόξα, για την οικογένεια. Για το καλό της Ρώμης.
Και εγώ δε σταμάτησα να γυρίζω τις σελίδες. Γρήγορα στην αρχή αλλά με σύνεση και προσοχή στο τέλος κάνοντας κάτι σαν οικονομία στις σελίδες του Αύγουστου για να μη μου τελειώσει!
Συγχαρητήρια στις εκδόσεις Gutenberg που έκριναν σωστά και μετέφρασαν για τη σειρά Aldina τόσο το Stoner όσο και τον Αύγουστο, κατάφεραν έτσι σε ένα μήνα μέσα να τοποθετήσω τον John Williams στους αγαπημένους μου συγγραφείς όλων των εποχών. Περιμένω με αγωνία και τα άλλα δύο του μυθιστορήματα στα Ελληνικά.
Δεν ξέρω ποιά είναι τα συστατικά που κάνουν ένα βιβλίο ξεχωριστό, λογικά κάθε αναγνώστης έχει τα δικά του ιδιαίτερα κριτήρια, αλλά επιτρέψτε μου να πω, ο Αύγουστος είναι ένα από τα σημαντικότερα ιστορικά μυθιστορήματα που γράφτηκαν ποτέ. Θές που έχω έναν έρωτα στη Ρώμη και στα μνημεία της; Θες που έχω άλλον έναν στο μύθο της Κλεοπάτρας και την Αίγυπτο; Ή στο τέλος τέλος, δείξτε μου έναν άνθρωπο που δεν τρελαίνεται για μια δυνατή ιστορία αγάπης. Γιατί μη σας ξενίζει ο τίτλος ή το οπισθόφυλλο, ο Αύγουστος είναι πολλές ξεχωριστές ιστορίες αγάπης ραμμένες μαεστρικά σε μία απολαυστική ιστορική αφήγηση. Αγάπης προς την οικογένεια, αγάπης προς τις τέχνες τα γράμματα και τον πολιτισμό, αγάπης προς το καθήκον και τους πολίτες οι ζωές των οποίων κρέμονται από τα χέρια του κυβερνήτη τους, αγάπης προς τη μαγική φύση του άνθρωπο που ερωτεύεται διαρκώς πολεμώντας μανιασμένα στο όνομα του (κάθε φορά) μοναδικού, τρομαγμένος στην ιδέα και μόνο της μοναξιά του και της φθαρτότητα της ύλης του.
Ονόματα όπως Ιούλιος Καίσαρας, Βρούτος, Μάρκος Αντώνιος, Βιργίλιος, Νέρωνας, Ηρώδης, Δαμασκηνός, Οκτάβιος και φυσικά αυτό της Κλεοπάτρας, παρελάζουν μπροστά στα μάτια του μαγεμένου αναγνώστη μέσω επιστολών που γράφουν ο ένας προς τον άλλο. Επιστολές δολοπλόκων, κατασκόπων, φίλων αλλά και εχθρών, εξομολογήσεις φθόνου και μίσους αλλά φυσικά και άσβεστου έρωτα και πάθους. Όσο ψηλά και αν βρίσκεται κανείς στη σκάλα της εξουσίας, δε διαφέρει σε αντιδράσεις και αισθήματα με αυτόν που βρίσκεται στην άλλη μεριά της σκάλας. Τα πάντα γίνονται για τη συντριπτική κατάκτηση του αντικειμένου του πόθου που είναι κάθε φορά και άλλο. Για τον πλούτο, για την δόξα, για την οικογένεια. Για το καλό της Ρώμης.
Και εγώ δε σταμάτησα να γυρίζω τις σελίδες. Γρήγορα στην αρχή αλλά με σύνεση και προσοχή στο τέλος κάνοντας κάτι σαν οικονομία στις σελίδες του Αύγουστου για να μη μου τελειώσει!
Συγχαρητήρια στις εκδόσεις Gutenberg που έκριναν σωστά και μετέφρασαν για τη σειρά Aldina τόσο το Stoner όσο και τον Αύγουστο, κατάφεραν έτσι σε ένα μήνα μέσα να τοποθετήσω τον John Williams στους αγαπημένους μου συγγραφείς όλων των εποχών. Περιμένω με αγωνία και τα άλλα δύο του μυθιστορήματα στα Ελληνικά.
July 12, 2019
Η ματαιότητα, αυτό το λιμάνι στο τέλος του κόσμου, όπου όλοι καταφεύγουν έχοντας απωλέσει και τις τελευταίες εφήμερες ελπίδες τους, ήταν κάτι που πάντα με είλκυε στην τέχνη. Αυτό το ανέλπιδο βήμα στο κενό, με βλέμμα καθαρό, εν πλήρη επιγνώσει πως το τίποτα σε προσμένει με ανοιχτές αγκάλες, πως κι εσύ, όσο θαυμαστά τα επίγεια έργα σου, θα χαθείς στο πουθενά μαζί με τις αμέτρητες στρατιές θνητών που προηγήθηκαν, αποτελεί αέναα φόβητρο για εμάς τους κοινούς θνητούς.
Για τους άλλους, όμως, εκείνους που περιγελούν το μηδέν με την έμπνευση, επιχωματώνοντας το κενό με τη δημιουργία, η ματαιότητα αρδεύει την τέχνη τους, επιτρέποντάς τους να ψαύσουν τον τρόμο της απώλειας με χέρια γυμνά, μάτια ορθάνοιχτα στο σκότος, με περιφρόνηση συχνά για τις χαμένες ευκαιρίες, αλλά με "λύπη κιόλας και ευσπλαχνία". Η τέχνη τρέφεται τελικά από τον ζόφο, τον εγκυμονεί και τον ανέχεται, όχι γιατί είναι απλά και μόνο πεισιθάνατη, αλλά γιατί τον χωνεύει και τον εξεμεί, προσφέροντας σε εμάς τους λοιπούς τη "δι' ελέου και φόβου" λύτρωση, εκείνη τη "στενή πύλη και τεθλιμμένη οδό" που μας συγκρατεί οριακά επάνω από το χάος το οποίο καραδοκεί κάθε στιγμή να μας καταπιεί.
Ο πρόλογος για το μυθιστόρημα αυτό ήταν απαραίτητος, προκειμένου να μεταφέρω κάποια από τα αισθήματα και τις σκέψεις που μου υπέβαλε, τα οποία όμως δεν ήταν και τα μόνα. Ο "Αύγουστος" μπορεί εκ πρώτης να είναι ένα ιστορικό έργο, αλλά επ' ουδενί δεν είναι αποκομμένο από την κοσμοθεωρία, τους προβληματισμούς και το αφηγηματικό ύφος του Williams όπως τα γνωρίσαμε στον "Στόουνερ". Φτάνοντας στο μέσο και κινούμενος προς το τέλος, αναγνώρισα όλα εκείνα τα στοιχεία που απήλαυσα σε εκείνο το εξαιρετικό βιβλίο: τη χαμένη νεότητα, την αίσθηση του καθήκοντος που συνοδεύεται από το χαράμισμα μιας ολόκληρης ζωής και στο τέλος τη ματαιότητα, την κυριαρχία του τυχαίου (ή της μοίρας) που αποκαθηλώνει τα πάντα. Και, μόνη προοπτική, η καθαρτήριος τέχνη, ως επωδός.
Ομολογώ πως ως το δεύτερο μέρος του βιβλίου, υπήρξα συγκρατημένα θετικός, καθώς μου έλειπαν κάποια στοιχεία που διέτρεχαν τον "Στόουνερ" - συγκεκριμένα, η αφαίρεση κι ο μινιμαλισμός στην αφήγηση. Στον "Αύγουστο", ο Williams είναι πιο επεξηγηματικός, ίσως πληθωρικός για τα μέτρα του (μου). Αποκόμισα την αίσθηση πως όλα αναλύονταν κατά τι παραπάνω, καθιστώντας το εγχείρημα ελαφρώς πιο εύπεπτο από ό,τι όφειλε, κάτι που ομολογώ ότι δεν είχα νιώσει σε καμία σελίδα του "Στόουνερ".
Ίσως είναι κι ο βασικότερος λόγος που αρκετοί αναγνώστες είχαν βρει το βιβλίο εκείνο "επίπεδο", "βαρετό", "ανούσιο". Συγκεκριμένα, αυτή η εκούσια αφαίρεση…αφαιρούσ� από τον αναγνώστη την άμεση/ εύκολη δυνατότητα ταύτισης με τον ήρωα που πελαγοδρομούσε ακροπατώντας στα συναισθήματα και τη ζωή του. Τα αυτά δεν ισχύουν όμως στην περίπτωση του "Αυγούστου", ο οποίος ανοίγεται, αφήνεται ευπροσήγορα στην ανάγκη ταύτισης του αναγνώστη, με τρόπο όμως συντεταγμένο και προσεκτικό, ακολουθώντας υφολογικά μια σαφώς πιο στρογγυλεμένη και ευέλικτη γραφή. Όταν μάλιστα ο "έτοιμος από καιρό" αναγνώστης προσεγγίζει το κορυφαίο 3ο μέρος, η μέθεξη είναι δεδομένη.
Δεδομένων αυτών, απλά θα προσυπογράψω κι εγώ με τη σειρά μου πως το "Στόουνερ" παραμένει το κορυφαίο του έργο, στη λογική που προανέφερα: Όσα υπονοούνται στην τέχνη, συχνά είναι σημαντικότερα από εκείνα που δηλώνονται απροκάλυπτα. Η λειτουργία (με τη θρησκευτική έννοια ομού) του λόγου οφείλει να είναι ανεπαίσθητη και υπαινικτική, αφήνοντας τον θηρευτή-αναγνώστη να πλεύσει στα αχαρτογράφητα νερά, χωρίς μπούσουλα άλλο πλην της προσωπικής του αισθητικής, ενώ ο συγγραφέας παραμένει εκουσίως στη σκιά, φωτίζοντας ελαφρώς τα νυχτοπερπατήματά του από παράγραφο σε παράγραφο.
Και επειδή καμία έννοια, αξία και κρίση δεν υφίσταται αυθύπαρκτη στον κόσμο ετούτο παρά μόνο συγκρινόμενη με ετέρα ομοειδή, ο "Αύγουστος" είναι ένα εξαίρετο μεν βιβλίο, υπολείπεται δε σαφώς του "Αδριανού Απομνημονεύματα" της Μ. Γιουρσενάρ � ενός από τα σημαντικότερα μυθιστορήματα (ανεξαρτήτως κατηγορίας) βαθιά πεσιμιστικού, θρηνητικού ύμνου για τη ματαιότητα των ανθρώπινων πεπραγμένων. Τούτο, βέβαια, δεν αφαιρεί ουδόλως από το έργο του Williams, μιας και η σύγκριση με το magnum opus της Γιουρσενάρ επιβεβαιώνει την αξία του. Υπάρχει, εν τέλει, μια τάξη στο έρεβος και εκείνοι που το υπηρετούν οφείλουν να το πράττουν κατανυκτικά και με πλήρη επίγνωση του ρόλου τους.
Για τους άλλους, όμως, εκείνους που περιγελούν το μηδέν με την έμπνευση, επιχωματώνοντας το κενό με τη δημιουργία, η ματαιότητα αρδεύει την τέχνη τους, επιτρέποντάς τους να ψαύσουν τον τρόμο της απώλειας με χέρια γυμνά, μάτια ορθάνοιχτα στο σκότος, με περιφρόνηση συχνά για τις χαμένες ευκαιρίες, αλλά με "λύπη κιόλας και ευσπλαχνία". Η τέχνη τρέφεται τελικά από τον ζόφο, τον εγκυμονεί και τον ανέχεται, όχι γιατί είναι απλά και μόνο πεισιθάνατη, αλλά γιατί τον χωνεύει και τον εξεμεί, προσφέροντας σε εμάς τους λοιπούς τη "δι' ελέου και φόβου" λύτρωση, εκείνη τη "στενή πύλη και τεθλιμμένη οδό" που μας συγκρατεί οριακά επάνω από το χάος το οποίο καραδοκεί κάθε στιγμή να μας καταπιεί.
Ο πρόλογος για το μυθιστόρημα αυτό ήταν απαραίτητος, προκειμένου να μεταφέρω κάποια από τα αισθήματα και τις σκέψεις που μου υπέβαλε, τα οποία όμως δεν ήταν και τα μόνα. Ο "Αύγουστος" μπορεί εκ πρώτης να είναι ένα ιστορικό έργο, αλλά επ' ουδενί δεν είναι αποκομμένο από την κοσμοθεωρία, τους προβληματισμούς και το αφηγηματικό ύφος του Williams όπως τα γνωρίσαμε στον "Στόουνερ". Φτάνοντας στο μέσο και κινούμενος προς το τέλος, αναγνώρισα όλα εκείνα τα στοιχεία που απήλαυσα σε εκείνο το εξαιρετικό βιβλίο: τη χαμένη νεότητα, την αίσθηση του καθήκοντος που συνοδεύεται από το χαράμισμα μιας ολόκληρης ζωής και στο τέλος τη ματαιότητα, την κυριαρχία του τυχαίου (ή της μοίρας) που αποκαθηλώνει τα πάντα. Και, μόνη προοπτική, η καθαρτήριος τέχνη, ως επωδός.
Ομολογώ πως ως το δεύτερο μέρος του βιβλίου, υπήρξα συγκρατημένα θετικός, καθώς μου έλειπαν κάποια στοιχεία που διέτρεχαν τον "Στόουνερ" - συγκεκριμένα, η αφαίρεση κι ο μινιμαλισμός στην αφήγηση. Στον "Αύγουστο", ο Williams είναι πιο επεξηγηματικός, ίσως πληθωρικός για τα μέτρα του (μου). Αποκόμισα την αίσθηση πως όλα αναλύονταν κατά τι παραπάνω, καθιστώντας το εγχείρημα ελαφρώς πιο εύπεπτο από ό,τι όφειλε, κάτι που ομολογώ ότι δεν είχα νιώσει σε καμία σελίδα του "Στόουνερ".
Ίσως είναι κι ο βασικότερος λόγος που αρκετοί αναγνώστες είχαν βρει το βιβλίο εκείνο "επίπεδο", "βαρετό", "ανούσιο". Συγκεκριμένα, αυτή η εκούσια αφαίρεση…αφαιρούσ� από τον αναγνώστη την άμεση/ εύκολη δυνατότητα ταύτισης με τον ήρωα που πελαγοδρομούσε ακροπατώντας στα συναισθήματα και τη ζωή του. Τα αυτά δεν ισχύουν όμως στην περίπτωση του "Αυγούστου", ο οποίος ανοίγεται, αφήνεται ευπροσήγορα στην ανάγκη ταύτισης του αναγνώστη, με τρόπο όμως συντεταγμένο και προσεκτικό, ακολουθώντας υφολογικά μια σαφώς πιο στρογγυλεμένη και ευέλικτη γραφή. Όταν μάλιστα ο "έτοιμος από καιρό" αναγνώστης προσεγγίζει το κορυφαίο 3ο μέρος, η μέθεξη είναι δεδομένη.
Δεδομένων αυτών, απλά θα προσυπογράψω κι εγώ με τη σειρά μου πως το "Στόουνερ" παραμένει το κορυφαίο του έργο, στη λογική που προανέφερα: Όσα υπονοούνται στην τέχνη, συχνά είναι σημαντικότερα από εκείνα που δηλώνονται απροκάλυπτα. Η λειτουργία (με τη θρησκευτική έννοια ομού) του λόγου οφείλει να είναι ανεπαίσθητη και υπαινικτική, αφήνοντας τον θηρευτή-αναγνώστη να πλεύσει στα αχαρτογράφητα νερά, χωρίς μπούσουλα άλλο πλην της προσωπικής του αισθητικής, ενώ ο συγγραφέας παραμένει εκουσίως στη σκιά, φωτίζοντας ελαφρώς τα νυχτοπερπατήματά του από παράγραφο σε παράγραφο.
Και επειδή καμία έννοια, αξία και κρίση δεν υφίσταται αυθύπαρκτη στον κόσμο ετούτο παρά μόνο συγκρινόμενη με ετέρα ομοειδή, ο "Αύγουστος" είναι ένα εξαίρετο μεν βιβλίο, υπολείπεται δε σαφώς του "Αδριανού Απομνημονεύματα" της Μ. Γιουρσενάρ � ενός από τα σημαντικότερα μυθιστορήματα (ανεξαρτήτως κατηγορίας) βαθιά πεσιμιστικού, θρηνητικού ύμνου για τη ματαιότητα των ανθρώπινων πεπραγμένων. Τούτο, βέβαια, δεν αφαιρεί ουδόλως από το έργο του Williams, μιας και η σύγκριση με το magnum opus της Γιουρσενάρ επιβεβαιώνει την αξία του. Υπάρχει, εν τέλει, μια τάξη στο έρεβος και εκείνοι που το υπηρετούν οφείλουν να το πράττουν κατανυκτικά και με πλήρη επίγνωση του ρόλου τους.
April 3, 2021
I don’t write reviews.
Wow. Where have I been? Obviously living in a world without the knowledge of this great book. I was enthralled by Augustus. I’m a big fan of the Claudius novels by Graves and found this a logical part of the whole of Roman historical fiction.
I have a beautiful love/hate relationship with the Roman Empire. It’s grotesque, yet I can’t look away. Imagining it makes one feel dirty in a way that shouldn’t be viewed in a positive light. I suppose I feel this way about many things I see. I’m the consummate voyeur.
Williams did a brilliant job of reporting the history while detailing characters no one could ever truly know. He struck the perfect balance. These are people I’ve met, that we’ve all been acquainted with. Of course as we watch the decline of another empire the similarities are striking. The repetition of history is mind-numbing.
I realize that I don’t understand “ambition.� I wish to be comfortable, but on a very fundamental no-frills level. The very notion of attempting to negotiate one’s way into a position of power and keeping it, is foreign to me. I love my bed and am quite happy to know my chances of being poisoned for that love are slim to none.
Wow. Where have I been? Obviously living in a world without the knowledge of this great book. I was enthralled by Augustus. I’m a big fan of the Claudius novels by Graves and found this a logical part of the whole of Roman historical fiction.
I have a beautiful love/hate relationship with the Roman Empire. It’s grotesque, yet I can’t look away. Imagining it makes one feel dirty in a way that shouldn’t be viewed in a positive light. I suppose I feel this way about many things I see. I’m the consummate voyeur.
Williams did a brilliant job of reporting the history while detailing characters no one could ever truly know. He struck the perfect balance. These are people I’ve met, that we’ve all been acquainted with. Of course as we watch the decline of another empire the similarities are striking. The repetition of history is mind-numbing.
I realize that I don’t understand “ambition.� I wish to be comfortable, but on a very fundamental no-frills level. The very notion of attempting to negotiate one’s way into a position of power and keeping it, is foreign to me. I love my bed and am quite happy to know my chances of being poisoned for that love are slim to none.
December 20, 2019
Told in the format of fictional letters and journals, Williams put together a biography of Gaius Octavius, better known as Augustus, the first Emperor of the Roman Empire. I knew that I would love this book, both because I am a total sucker for classical history, and because after reading “Stoner� (/review/show...), Williams� talent is not something I question. And he could not have picked a more fascinating subject for his final novel: Augustus was a privileged but bookish young man, and while he had some military training, he was not the warrior his great uncle Julius Caesar was. He inherited Caesar’s titles and estate when he was only nineteen, and surprised pretty much everyone by not only rising to the occasion, but by solidifying his power with remarkable intelligence � and ruthlessness.
Williams begins his narrative a few months before the assassination of Julius Caesar, and covers Augustus� entire reign, from the early struggles for power with the triumvirate, his military campaigns, his marriage, his friendships and ultimately, his death. If you know your Roman history, none of the events taking place on these pages will surprise you, but the quality of the writing, the strength of the characterization of those well-known historical figures and the depth and range of their human experience makes up for the lack of suspense (always a problem with historical fiction: we know how it ends!).
The epistolary format is beautiful and immersive, but it also means that readers with no background knowledge of Roman history and politics might be a little lost on occasion, as Williams provide little to no exposition � I kept a copy of Plutarch nearby, just in case I blanked out on who did what, when. But if you are already a fan of the so-called makers of Rome, this is a delightful recreation of their style of writing, and a vivid reimagining of key moments of Roman history. The many perspectives on this story also draw a complex, multi-faceted portrait of Augustus, and shows the complicated blend of flaws and strengths that such a man must have been to have reigned over the Empire for as long as he did. I understand why Williams chose to use Augustus’s voice only at the end (more on that later), but I admit I would have liked to see the events through his eyes a few times more.
I have always been fascinated by the eloquence and the intensity of the well-known figures of the early Roman Empire. It’s impossible to read Cicero, Plutarch or even Julius Caesar’s own writing without being awed by the (potentially exaggerated, but let’s give them the benefit of the doubt) verve with which they express themselves and praise or insult each other. Williams was obviously fond of their tone as well, because he captures it in the fictional letters with a realism that impressed me. Compared to some, Augustus as written by Williams is a reserved and cold-seeming man, his strong self-discipline holding back his emotions � but we see that this struggle of mind over passion costs him dearly, especially when it comes to his only daughter Julia.
Julia’s story is that of a woman torn between her duty, as daughter of the Emperor, and her desire to simply live her life. And Augustus’s decisions regarding her are those of a man equally torn between wanting what is best for his beloved city, and what is best for his equally beloved daughter � whom he had nicknamed his “little Rome�. They can seem cold on paper, those two titans of history, but through Julia’s diary entries, Williams summons the strength of their personalities and depth of their feelings masterfully.
The final section, narrated by Augustus, is an incredibly moving reflection on ageing and dying, on looking back at life and seeing things so differently from how we did when we were young.
Just like “Stoner�, this is a great novel, with a quiet and contemplative tone, that fans of historical fiction will love, and fans of good books in general ought to check out. If I have one complain, its that I wished it was longer: I would have loved even more details about Augustus� reign and the fascinating and intricate characters that surrounded him through his life. I’m going to go re-watch “Rome� now�
Williams begins his narrative a few months before the assassination of Julius Caesar, and covers Augustus� entire reign, from the early struggles for power with the triumvirate, his military campaigns, his marriage, his friendships and ultimately, his death. If you know your Roman history, none of the events taking place on these pages will surprise you, but the quality of the writing, the strength of the characterization of those well-known historical figures and the depth and range of their human experience makes up for the lack of suspense (always a problem with historical fiction: we know how it ends!).
The epistolary format is beautiful and immersive, but it also means that readers with no background knowledge of Roman history and politics might be a little lost on occasion, as Williams provide little to no exposition � I kept a copy of Plutarch nearby, just in case I blanked out on who did what, when. But if you are already a fan of the so-called makers of Rome, this is a delightful recreation of their style of writing, and a vivid reimagining of key moments of Roman history. The many perspectives on this story also draw a complex, multi-faceted portrait of Augustus, and shows the complicated blend of flaws and strengths that such a man must have been to have reigned over the Empire for as long as he did. I understand why Williams chose to use Augustus’s voice only at the end (more on that later), but I admit I would have liked to see the events through his eyes a few times more.
I have always been fascinated by the eloquence and the intensity of the well-known figures of the early Roman Empire. It’s impossible to read Cicero, Plutarch or even Julius Caesar’s own writing without being awed by the (potentially exaggerated, but let’s give them the benefit of the doubt) verve with which they express themselves and praise or insult each other. Williams was obviously fond of their tone as well, because he captures it in the fictional letters with a realism that impressed me. Compared to some, Augustus as written by Williams is a reserved and cold-seeming man, his strong self-discipline holding back his emotions � but we see that this struggle of mind over passion costs him dearly, especially when it comes to his only daughter Julia.
Julia’s story is that of a woman torn between her duty, as daughter of the Emperor, and her desire to simply live her life. And Augustus’s decisions regarding her are those of a man equally torn between wanting what is best for his beloved city, and what is best for his equally beloved daughter � whom he had nicknamed his “little Rome�. They can seem cold on paper, those two titans of history, but through Julia’s diary entries, Williams summons the strength of their personalities and depth of their feelings masterfully.
The final section, narrated by Augustus, is an incredibly moving reflection on ageing and dying, on looking back at life and seeing things so differently from how we did when we were young.
Just like “Stoner�, this is a great novel, with a quiet and contemplative tone, that fans of historical fiction will love, and fans of good books in general ought to check out. If I have one complain, its that I wished it was longer: I would have loved even more details about Augustus� reign and the fascinating and intricate characters that surrounded him through his life. I’m going to go re-watch “Rome� now�
April 2, 2025
2025 re-read: still 5 stars. So good.
Still 5 stars.
Still 5 stars.
October 31, 2015
“Augustus� by John Williams is a remarkable book on all counts. It has that perfect blend of beautiful prose and a retelling of history through the crucible of the literary imagination. “Augustus� is a supremely engaging novel characterized by a gripping plot, a rich cast of believable characters (neither villains nor saints), a deep unraveling of the impulses that drive humanity, and above all, some substance of import on which to reflect on the meaning of existence. Published in 1972, “Augustus� is Williams� last work. It won the National Book Award for Fiction in 1973.
The story took the form of an epistolary novel. It read like an impressionist painting. Letters, journal entries, senatorial decrees, military orders, private notes, and unfinished histories combined to create a complex portrait of Augustus, the first emperor of Rome. In “Augustus� the authors of the invented epistles were, with few exceptions, real-life characters. The novel consisted of three parts: Part I � the unlikely rise of Augustus to power, his political survival, and Rome’s success; Part II � Augustus� personal struggles and his relationship with Julia, his only child and daughter; Part III � Augustus� farewell and evaluation of his own life. The most fascinating aspect of reading this novel was sifting through the layered perspectives and constructing my own opinion of the man behind the emperor’s robes. Interestingly enough, Augustus� voice was heard only in the last part of the story. His perspective shed additional light on events described by others in Parts I and II. It allowed the reader to come to his or her own conclusions of the person Octavius truly was.
Augustus was born Gaius Octavius Thurinus in 63 BC. He was adopted by his maternal great-uncle Julius Caesar and thereafter given the name Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus. In the novel, he was known as “Octavius�. How did the world regard him? Caesar's enemies perceived Octavius of startling blue eyes as a mere boy, a fool, and underestimated him when the death of Julius Caesar thrust him into power. Supported by three closest friends of his youth (Marcus Agrippa, Gaius Cilnius Maecenas, Salvidienus Rufus), Octavius vanquished his political rivals and stablilized his power. He brought peace to Rome, built schools, improved education for the masses, and strengthened Roman culture. At age 36, the Senate and people of Rome accorded him the title of Augustus ("the one who is to be venerated"). The conspiracies, ruthless schemes, decimation of his enemies � all made for engaging reading. One of the episodes that disturbed me greatly was the killing of Cicero, an old man and friend of his father that Octavius was fond of. The brutal dismemberment of Cicero’s body and public display of his head and hands - all of which Octavius Caesar permitted - was most saddening in a chilling way and revealed the weight of the political pressure to which he was subject. This episode was recounted twice by two different individuals and was very painful to read. What kind of man was Octavius?
From Julia, one perceived another side to Octavius, a father who went to extremes to protect and secure the future and liberty of his daughter, whom he affectionately called “Little Rome�. I can only imagine how hard it must have been for him to bind her, out of necessity, to marriages that promised political survival and Rome’s future, knowing full well her happiness would be compromised. And thus, there was the constant conflict between public expedience and private need. The most tender part of the novel had to be the last meeting between Octavius and Julia before he banished her to Pandateria ostensibly on grounds of adultery and treason. His grief and anguish were as deep as his love for her. By the time Octavius reached the height of his political career, his closest friends and allies had died and he was a very lonely man.
The sustaining power of this novel lay in the strength of Octavius� character. Amidst the grime where the personal and political were enmeshed, I kept becoming increasingly aware, from multiple reports, of Octavius� inherent goodness. He was larger than life and deified in the Roman world. But he was best loved for his gentility and gentleness, a social versatility that would set a stranger at ease, unassuming earthiness, a love for all things literary (a closeness to poets which endeared him to me), a shyness that communicated a vulnerability one would not expect in an emperor. He was sagacious, pragmatic, shrewd, and ruthless when he needed to be. He had more than his fair share of self-serving friends and foes alike who all claimed a strong passion for Rome’s welfare. It takes a magnanimous man to acknowledge the presence of "flashes of tenderness and compassion" in the cruelest of men, many of whom were his enemies, and to admit "I am a man, and as foolish and weak as most men."
As in his earlier novel, “Stoner�, Williams pursued the theme of the worthy life. Julia, probably the brightest star in the entire clan of ambitious individuals, asked Octavius an incisive question: "Father, has it been worth it? Your authority, this Rome that you have saved, this Rome that you have built? Has it been worth all that you have had to do?" I believe Octavius recognized the limits of his success and power although he had little regrets for how he had lived out his destiny. Despite his best efforts, he conceded that there was "no wall that can be built to protect the human heart from its own weakness". He recognized the limits of the marriage laws he had promulgated because "laws were powerless against the private passions of the human heart" and "there was no possibility of virtue without the idea of virtue".
Unlike Stoner, who thought his life a failure, Octavius at age 76 permitted himself to believe that his existence had been "of more benefit than harm" to the world he was leaving behind. In the last days before his death, there was genuine affirmation from the common folk for the enfeebled emperor. The captain of a passing Egyptian ship that greeted Octavius� boat on its final journey to the island of Capri thanked him for access to commerce and a safe passage through the seaways. It was gratifying that the novel did not end on a bleak note. It was important to me that Octavius perceived that the despair he had voiced seemed unworthy in light of what he had accomplished for Rome that by 14 AD was no longer a city of "crumbling clay" but one of marble.
A historical novel is not a literary genre I typically enjoy. John Williams� last novel is an exception. Like its mesmerizing emperor, “Augustus� is unreservedly five stars in its brilliance.
The story took the form of an epistolary novel. It read like an impressionist painting. Letters, journal entries, senatorial decrees, military orders, private notes, and unfinished histories combined to create a complex portrait of Augustus, the first emperor of Rome. In “Augustus� the authors of the invented epistles were, with few exceptions, real-life characters. The novel consisted of three parts: Part I � the unlikely rise of Augustus to power, his political survival, and Rome’s success; Part II � Augustus� personal struggles and his relationship with Julia, his only child and daughter; Part III � Augustus� farewell and evaluation of his own life. The most fascinating aspect of reading this novel was sifting through the layered perspectives and constructing my own opinion of the man behind the emperor’s robes. Interestingly enough, Augustus� voice was heard only in the last part of the story. His perspective shed additional light on events described by others in Parts I and II. It allowed the reader to come to his or her own conclusions of the person Octavius truly was.
Augustus was born Gaius Octavius Thurinus in 63 BC. He was adopted by his maternal great-uncle Julius Caesar and thereafter given the name Gaius Julius Caesar Octavianus. In the novel, he was known as “Octavius�. How did the world regard him? Caesar's enemies perceived Octavius of startling blue eyes as a mere boy, a fool, and underestimated him when the death of Julius Caesar thrust him into power. Supported by three closest friends of his youth (Marcus Agrippa, Gaius Cilnius Maecenas, Salvidienus Rufus), Octavius vanquished his political rivals and stablilized his power. He brought peace to Rome, built schools, improved education for the masses, and strengthened Roman culture. At age 36, the Senate and people of Rome accorded him the title of Augustus ("the one who is to be venerated"). The conspiracies, ruthless schemes, decimation of his enemies � all made for engaging reading. One of the episodes that disturbed me greatly was the killing of Cicero, an old man and friend of his father that Octavius was fond of. The brutal dismemberment of Cicero’s body and public display of his head and hands - all of which Octavius Caesar permitted - was most saddening in a chilling way and revealed the weight of the political pressure to which he was subject. This episode was recounted twice by two different individuals and was very painful to read. What kind of man was Octavius?
From Julia, one perceived another side to Octavius, a father who went to extremes to protect and secure the future and liberty of his daughter, whom he affectionately called “Little Rome�. I can only imagine how hard it must have been for him to bind her, out of necessity, to marriages that promised political survival and Rome’s future, knowing full well her happiness would be compromised. And thus, there was the constant conflict between public expedience and private need. The most tender part of the novel had to be the last meeting between Octavius and Julia before he banished her to Pandateria ostensibly on grounds of adultery and treason. His grief and anguish were as deep as his love for her. By the time Octavius reached the height of his political career, his closest friends and allies had died and he was a very lonely man.
The sustaining power of this novel lay in the strength of Octavius� character. Amidst the grime where the personal and political were enmeshed, I kept becoming increasingly aware, from multiple reports, of Octavius� inherent goodness. He was larger than life and deified in the Roman world. But he was best loved for his gentility and gentleness, a social versatility that would set a stranger at ease, unassuming earthiness, a love for all things literary (a closeness to poets which endeared him to me), a shyness that communicated a vulnerability one would not expect in an emperor. He was sagacious, pragmatic, shrewd, and ruthless when he needed to be. He had more than his fair share of self-serving friends and foes alike who all claimed a strong passion for Rome’s welfare. It takes a magnanimous man to acknowledge the presence of "flashes of tenderness and compassion" in the cruelest of men, many of whom were his enemies, and to admit "I am a man, and as foolish and weak as most men."
As in his earlier novel, “Stoner�, Williams pursued the theme of the worthy life. Julia, probably the brightest star in the entire clan of ambitious individuals, asked Octavius an incisive question: "Father, has it been worth it? Your authority, this Rome that you have saved, this Rome that you have built? Has it been worth all that you have had to do?" I believe Octavius recognized the limits of his success and power although he had little regrets for how he had lived out his destiny. Despite his best efforts, he conceded that there was "no wall that can be built to protect the human heart from its own weakness". He recognized the limits of the marriage laws he had promulgated because "laws were powerless against the private passions of the human heart" and "there was no possibility of virtue without the idea of virtue".
Unlike Stoner, who thought his life a failure, Octavius at age 76 permitted himself to believe that his existence had been "of more benefit than harm" to the world he was leaving behind. In the last days before his death, there was genuine affirmation from the common folk for the enfeebled emperor. The captain of a passing Egyptian ship that greeted Octavius� boat on its final journey to the island of Capri thanked him for access to commerce and a safe passage through the seaways. It was gratifying that the novel did not end on a bleak note. It was important to me that Octavius perceived that the despair he had voiced seemed unworthy in light of what he had accomplished for Rome that by 14 AD was no longer a city of "crumbling clay" but one of marble.
A historical novel is not a literary genre I typically enjoy. John Williams� last novel is an exception. Like its mesmerizing emperor, “Augustus� is unreservedly five stars in its brilliance.
August 30, 2017
Μετά τον Στόουνερ,άλλο ένα υπέροχο αλλά και τόσο διαφορετικό βιβλίο απο τον Τζον Γουίλιαμς τον νέο μου λογοτεχνικό έρωτα.
Σπάνια διαβάζω δυο βιβλία απο τον ίδιο συγγραφέα σε τόσο σύντομο χρονικό διάστημα αλλά δεν μπόρεσα να αντισταθώ στη γοητεία της αρχαίας Ρώμης με την οποία ασχολείται ο Γουίλιαμς σε αυτό το βιβλίο και συγκεκριμένα με την γέννηση της Ρωμαϊκης Αυτοκρατορίας και την ζωή του πρώτου αυτοκράτορα Οκταβιανού.
Ο Ιούλιος Καίσαρας δολοφονείται κι εμείς παρακολουθούμε τα επακόλουθα μέσα απο επιστολές και αναμνήσεις διαφόρων ατόμων που έζησαν απο κοντά όλη τη μάχη που έδωσε ο νεαρός Οκτάβιος για να φανει αντάξιος της κληρονομιας και του ονόματος που του άφησε ο θετός του πατέρας.Φίλοι,εχθροί,η κόρη του ,όλοι βάζουν ένα λιθαράκι σε αυτό το μωσαϊκο και μας αποκαλύπτουν σιγά σιγά μια επική ιστορία.Πως κατάφερε αυτό το ασθενικό παιδί να φτιάξει και να εδραιώσει μια τεράστια αυτοκρατορία κόντρα σε τόσες ίντριγκες και στρατιωτικές απειλές;Τι χρειαστηκε να θυσιάσει;
Η ιστορία είναι λίγο πολύ γνωστή στους περισσότερους πιστεύω ,η κόντρα με τον Αντώνιο και την Κλεοπάτρα,με τον Πομπήιο,οι μάχες,οι μακιαβελικές ίντριγκες...αλλά ο τρόπος με τον οποίο την μεταφέρει ο συγγραφέας μέσα απο πολλες οπτικές γωνίες είναι ,θα έλεγα,αριστουργηματικός.Ο ίδιος ο αυτοκράτορας δεν μας μιλάει μέχρι το τέλος του βιβλίου οπου λίγο πριν πεθάνει γράφει μια επιστολή-απολογισμό της ζωής του.
Αυτό που αγαπώ στη γραφή του Γουίλιαμς είναι ο τρόπος με τον οποίο προσεγγίζει τα συναισθήματα των ηρώων του με μια ευαισθησία που με αγγίζει βαθύτατα.Αυτή τη φορά μας μιλάει και με τη φωνή μιας γυναίκας.Της μοιχαλίδας κόρης του αυτοκράτορα, Ιουλίας που έγινε πιόνι στα παιχνίδια εξουσίας και κατέληξε εξόριστη σε ένα ξερονήσι και στο ημερολόγιο της μιλάει για την μοναξιά της,την παραίτηση της απο τη ζωή,τoν τρόπο που μετά απο δυο γάμους συμφέροντος κατάλαβε οτι έχει κι αυτή δικαίωμα στον έρωτα και στις χαρές του σεξ αν και ως γυναίκα έπρεπε να το πληρώσει ακριβά.
Το βιβλίο θα κυκλοφορήσει στα ελληνικά σε λίγο καιρό απο τη σειρά Aldina των εκδόσεων Gutenberg και θα ελεγα σε όσους αγαπούν το ιστορικό μυθιστόρημα να μην το χάσουν.Κατα τη γνώμη μου είναι must-read.
Σπάνια διαβάζω δυο βιβλία απο τον ίδιο συγγραφέα σε τόσο σύντομο χρονικό διάστημα αλλά δεν μπόρεσα να αντισταθώ στη γοητεία της αρχαίας Ρώμης με την οποία ασχολείται ο Γουίλιαμς σε αυτό το βιβλίο και συγκεκριμένα με την γέννηση της Ρωμαϊκης Αυτοκρατορίας και την ζωή του πρώτου αυτοκράτορα Οκταβιανού.
Ο Ιούλιος Καίσαρας δολοφονείται κι εμείς παρακολουθούμε τα επακόλουθα μέσα απο επιστολές και αναμνήσεις διαφόρων ατόμων που έζησαν απο κοντά όλη τη μάχη που έδωσε ο νεαρός Οκτάβιος για να φανει αντάξιος της κληρονομιας και του ονόματος που του άφησε ο θετός του πατέρας.Φίλοι,εχθροί,η κόρη του ,όλοι βάζουν ένα λιθαράκι σε αυτό το μωσαϊκο και μας αποκαλύπτουν σιγά σιγά μια επική ιστορία.Πως κατάφερε αυτό το ασθενικό παιδί να φτιάξει και να εδραιώσει μια τεράστια αυτοκρατορία κόντρα σε τόσες ίντριγκες και στρατιωτικές απειλές;Τι χρειαστηκε να θυσιάσει;
Η ιστορία είναι λίγο πολύ γνωστή στους περισσότερους πιστεύω ,η κόντρα με τον Αντώνιο και την Κλεοπάτρα,με τον Πομπήιο,οι μάχες,οι μακιαβελικές ίντριγκες...αλλά ο τρόπος με τον οποίο την μεταφέρει ο συγγραφέας μέσα απο πολλες οπτικές γωνίες είναι ,θα έλεγα,αριστουργηματικός.Ο ίδιος ο αυτοκράτορας δεν μας μιλάει μέχρι το τέλος του βιβλίου οπου λίγο πριν πεθάνει γράφει μια επιστολή-απολογισμό της ζωής του.
Αυτό που αγαπώ στη γραφή του Γουίλιαμς είναι ο τρόπος με τον οποίο προσεγγίζει τα συναισθήματα των ηρώων του με μια ευαισθησία που με αγγίζει βαθύτατα.Αυτή τη φορά μας μιλάει και με τη φωνή μιας γυναίκας.Της μοιχαλίδας κόρης του αυτοκράτορα, Ιουλίας που έγινε πιόνι στα παιχνίδια εξουσίας και κατέληξε εξόριστη σε ένα ξερονήσι και στο ημερολόγιο της μιλάει για την μοναξιά της,την παραίτηση της απο τη ζωή,τoν τρόπο που μετά απο δυο γάμους συμφέροντος κατάλαβε οτι έχει κι αυτή δικαίωμα στον έρωτα και στις χαρές του σεξ αν και ως γυναίκα έπρεπε να το πληρώσει ακριβά.
Το βιβλίο θα κυκλοφορήσει στα ελληνικά σε λίγο καιρό απο τη σειρά Aldina των εκδόσεων Gutenberg και θα ελεγα σε όσους αγαπούν το ιστορικό μυθιστόρημα να μην το χάσουν.Κατα τη γνώμη μου είναι must-read.
April 9, 2023
John Williams is a wonderful writer and this is a wonderful novel. I came to Augustus not long after reading a novel that was quite powerful despite its lackluster prose. Reading the opening sentences of Augustus swept me away—I knew I was back in the realm of literary mastery.
Augustus follows the life of Gaius Octavius who would eventually, after great power struggles following the death of Julius Caesar, become the first Roman emperor, honored then as Augustus. The novel is told through letters, diaries, journals, and histories composed by everyone but Augustus himself—until the end of the novel, when, late in his life, Augustus writes a long letter to a friend in which he looks back over his career. It’s a masterful turnaround in terms of narration and plot, in effect reconfiguring—enriching is perhaps better—the portrait of Augustus that had emerged in the commentaries from his friends, family, and opponents, almost all of whom, no matter what their sympathies, see him as unrelenting and merciless in his pursuit of power and control of the empire. Given the machinations of those both for and against him, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Augustus wielded power oftentimes ruthlessly; he wouldn’t have survived otherwise, and most of those who stood against him during his career at the end are either lying dead or wasting in exile.
Of all those who comment on Augustus—and the field is illustrious, including Horace, Cicero, Ovid, Mark Anthony, Vergil, and Cleopatra—it’s his daughter Julia, who is eventually sent into exile, that emerges as the most astute and the most complex. Always situated on the outskirts of the male-centered power structure, Julia knows well that, unlike men who can seize power through brute force and unchecked desire, women must use guile and intrigue; she thus deliberately constructs an array of personages to deceive those who come up against her. Her commentary on seduction, which might also apply to political seduction and duplicity, illustrates the depth of her understanding of the games of love and statesmanship: “To one who has not become adept at the game, the steps of seduction may appear ludicrous; but they are no more so than the steps of a dance. The dancers dance, and their skill is their pleasure. All is ordained, from the first exchange of glances until the final coupling. And the mutual pretense of both participants is an important part of the elaborate game—each pretends helplessness beneath the weight of passion, and each advance and withdrawal, each consent and refusal, is necessary to the successful consummation of the game. And yet the woman in such a game is always the victor, and I believe she must have a little contempt for her antagonist; for he is conquered and used, as he believes he is the conqueror and user.� On the ecstasy of power, Julia observes that while philosophers declare power as empty, “they have not known power, as a eunuch has not known a woman, and thus can look upon it unmoved. In my life I could never understand my father not apprehending that joy of power by which I had learned to live.�
The insightfulness of Julia’s comment on her father’s failure to relish the joys of domination is underscored in Augustus’s own observations in his letter at the end of the novel. Nearing death, Augustus casts a cold eye on his career and his achievements. While he is understandably proud of his accomplishments—he largely brought peace and order to the empire after a brutal civil war—he knows what he achieved came at a terrible cost to his humanity and that of those close to him. He has come to see that in seizing what he believed was his destiny to change the world, he first had to change himself. “If he is to obey his destiny,� Augustus observes, commenting on himself and those like him, “he must find or invent within himself some hard and secret part that is indifferent to himself, to others, and even to the world that he is destined to remake, not to his own desire but to a nature that he will discover in the process of remaking.� He configures his life by the passages he sees everyone following: “The young man, who does not know the future, sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey through strange seas and unknown islands, where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality. The man of middle years who has lived the future that he once dreamed, sees life as a tragedy, for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail against those forces of accident and nature to which he gives the names of gods, and has learned that he is mortal. But the man of age, if he plays his assigned role properly, must see life as a comedy. For his triumphs and his failures merge, and one is no more the occasion for pride or shame than the other, and he is neither the hero who proves himself against those forces, nor the protagonist who is destroyed by them. Like any poor, pitiable shell of an actor, he comes to see that he has played so many parts there no longer is himself.� And, in one of his most arresting observations, Augustus says that of all the forces that ruled over his life the most significant was that of Accident.
Augustus also knows that whatever his achievements, they are merely transitory, that time is the great destroyer and that the Rome he created will not stand forever. His comments on his decision not to build a wall to keep out the Germanic tribes speak also more generally to his achievements as Emperor: “The winds and rains of time will at last crumble the most solid stone, and there is no wall that can be built to protect the human heart from its own weakness.� Not all of those clustered about Augustus are so wise, a point underscored in the novel’s heart-stopping final sentence, a sentence I’ll let you savor when you get to it.
Augustus follows the life of Gaius Octavius who would eventually, after great power struggles following the death of Julius Caesar, become the first Roman emperor, honored then as Augustus. The novel is told through letters, diaries, journals, and histories composed by everyone but Augustus himself—until the end of the novel, when, late in his life, Augustus writes a long letter to a friend in which he looks back over his career. It’s a masterful turnaround in terms of narration and plot, in effect reconfiguring—enriching is perhaps better—the portrait of Augustus that had emerged in the commentaries from his friends, family, and opponents, almost all of whom, no matter what their sympathies, see him as unrelenting and merciless in his pursuit of power and control of the empire. Given the machinations of those both for and against him, it shouldn’t be a surprise that Augustus wielded power oftentimes ruthlessly; he wouldn’t have survived otherwise, and most of those who stood against him during his career at the end are either lying dead or wasting in exile.
Of all those who comment on Augustus—and the field is illustrious, including Horace, Cicero, Ovid, Mark Anthony, Vergil, and Cleopatra—it’s his daughter Julia, who is eventually sent into exile, that emerges as the most astute and the most complex. Always situated on the outskirts of the male-centered power structure, Julia knows well that, unlike men who can seize power through brute force and unchecked desire, women must use guile and intrigue; she thus deliberately constructs an array of personages to deceive those who come up against her. Her commentary on seduction, which might also apply to political seduction and duplicity, illustrates the depth of her understanding of the games of love and statesmanship: “To one who has not become adept at the game, the steps of seduction may appear ludicrous; but they are no more so than the steps of a dance. The dancers dance, and their skill is their pleasure. All is ordained, from the first exchange of glances until the final coupling. And the mutual pretense of both participants is an important part of the elaborate game—each pretends helplessness beneath the weight of passion, and each advance and withdrawal, each consent and refusal, is necessary to the successful consummation of the game. And yet the woman in such a game is always the victor, and I believe she must have a little contempt for her antagonist; for he is conquered and used, as he believes he is the conqueror and user.� On the ecstasy of power, Julia observes that while philosophers declare power as empty, “they have not known power, as a eunuch has not known a woman, and thus can look upon it unmoved. In my life I could never understand my father not apprehending that joy of power by which I had learned to live.�
The insightfulness of Julia’s comment on her father’s failure to relish the joys of domination is underscored in Augustus’s own observations in his letter at the end of the novel. Nearing death, Augustus casts a cold eye on his career and his achievements. While he is understandably proud of his accomplishments—he largely brought peace and order to the empire after a brutal civil war—he knows what he achieved came at a terrible cost to his humanity and that of those close to him. He has come to see that in seizing what he believed was his destiny to change the world, he first had to change himself. “If he is to obey his destiny,� Augustus observes, commenting on himself and those like him, “he must find or invent within himself some hard and secret part that is indifferent to himself, to others, and even to the world that he is destined to remake, not to his own desire but to a nature that he will discover in the process of remaking.� He configures his life by the passages he sees everyone following: “The young man, who does not know the future, sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey through strange seas and unknown islands, where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality. The man of middle years who has lived the future that he once dreamed, sees life as a tragedy, for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail against those forces of accident and nature to which he gives the names of gods, and has learned that he is mortal. But the man of age, if he plays his assigned role properly, must see life as a comedy. For his triumphs and his failures merge, and one is no more the occasion for pride or shame than the other, and he is neither the hero who proves himself against those forces, nor the protagonist who is destroyed by them. Like any poor, pitiable shell of an actor, he comes to see that he has played so many parts there no longer is himself.� And, in one of his most arresting observations, Augustus says that of all the forces that ruled over his life the most significant was that of Accident.
Augustus also knows that whatever his achievements, they are merely transitory, that time is the great destroyer and that the Rome he created will not stand forever. His comments on his decision not to build a wall to keep out the Germanic tribes speak also more generally to his achievements as Emperor: “The winds and rains of time will at last crumble the most solid stone, and there is no wall that can be built to protect the human heart from its own weakness.� Not all of those clustered about Augustus are so wise, a point underscored in the novel’s heart-stopping final sentence, a sentence I’ll let you savor when you get to it.
February 13, 2020
Thanks to Howard's wonderful review reminding me of another lost book in the lost account. This book is brilliant, whether you are a fan of Ancient Rome or Roman History (which I am), or not, this book is such an enjoyable read. :-)
January 26, 2025
Oh my, I have just completed Augustus, one of the three major works of John Williams to be recognized as modern American classics. I was disoriented when I read Butcher’s Crossing, in the unsettling Western novel that tells the haunting and grim story of a buffalo hunting expedition that exposes the greed and savagery behind the myth of the Western frontier in the vein of Manifest Destiny. And then there was Stoner, a work of power politics in academia and the quiet heroism of a midwestern English professor dedicated to the honesty and importance of his craft, one of my favorite books ever, but now there is Augustus, winner of the National Book Award. This may be one of my favorite books ever. I am saddened that this brilliant writer, a professor at the University of Denver, never lived to see the many accolades and reverence that his body of work is now receiving.
Augustus is an epistolary novel written in the form of journal entries and letters. The novel tells the life story of Gaius Octavius, the great-nephew of Julius Caesar, who succeeds and avenges his assassinated great-uncle and adoptive father to become the first Emperor of Rome. The early parts of the book focus on the rise of young Octavius. But it is Augustus� daughter Julia who comes forth as the novel’s most sympathetic, but alas, one of the most tragic figures in the novel. Book II, which is mostly the journals and letters of Julia are the cornerstone of this beautiful book. But John Willians� portrayal of Augustus is so humanizing, he doesn’t blot out his rougher edges, as he schemed and betrayed when necessary. A beautiful and amazing book.
As Octavius Caesar is reflecting on his life as he is writing to his dear friend, Nicolaus of Damascus, aboard his yacht on a leisurely journey destined for Capri where he will be a guest of honor at the yearly gymnastic competitions of the island youths. He knows that he has lived a rich and full life but he knows that his life is coming to an end. His beautiful words:
Augustus is an epistolary novel written in the form of journal entries and letters. The novel tells the life story of Gaius Octavius, the great-nephew of Julius Caesar, who succeeds and avenges his assassinated great-uncle and adoptive father to become the first Emperor of Rome. The early parts of the book focus on the rise of young Octavius. But it is Augustus� daughter Julia who comes forth as the novel’s most sympathetic, but alas, one of the most tragic figures in the novel. Book II, which is mostly the journals and letters of Julia are the cornerstone of this beautiful book. But John Willians� portrayal of Augustus is so humanizing, he doesn’t blot out his rougher edges, as he schemed and betrayed when necessary. A beautiful and amazing book.
As Octavius Caesar is reflecting on his life as he is writing to his dear friend, Nicolaus of Damascus, aboard his yacht on a leisurely journey destined for Capri where he will be a guest of honor at the yearly gymnastic competitions of the island youths. He knows that he has lived a rich and full life but he knows that his life is coming to an end. His beautiful words:
“The young man, who does not know the future, sees life as a kind of epic adventure, an Odyssey through strange seas and unknown islands, where he will test and prove his powers, and thereby discover his immortality. The man of middle years, who has lived the future that he once dreamed, sees life as a tragedy; for he has learned that his power, however great, will not prevail against those forces of accident and nature to which he gives the names of gods, and has learned that he is mortal. But the man of age, if he plays his assigned role properly, must see life as a comedy. For his triumphs and his failures merge, and one is no more the occasion for pride or shame than the other; and he is neither the hero who proves himself against those forces, nor the protagonist who is destroyed by them. Like any poor, pitiable shell of an actor, he comes to see that he has played so many parts that there no longer is himself.�
September 17, 2017
From what I understand John Williams only ever wrote 4 novels, but if so he was certainly an author who went for quality over quantity. This superbly written novel tells the life of Octavius Caesar through the device of (fictional) letters and journal entries written by the people around him. The introduction explains that Williams used this technique because he knew that in real life the Roman aristocracy were great letter writers.
The result is a fascinating character portrayal, in which Octavius is depicted as a man driven by duty and a sense of destiny to restore order to the rapidly disintegrating Roman Republic. Outwardly unemotional and calculating, he is not without feeling but is frequently forced by his position to act “against his nature�. Around him the other characters (most of them) plot and scheme towards their own advancements like players in a chess game, but one in which a false move means death. Mark Anthony, Cleopatra, Lepidus, Marcus Agrippa, and Livia all feature prominently, but perhaps the most interesting of the book’s characters is the Emperor’s daughter Julia. I greatly enjoyed those sections of the novel where she wrote in her journal. The famous poets of the time, Horace, Vergil and Ovid, all feature as well, though they mostly stand aside from the poltical intrigue.
One problem with writing a novel about the life of someone as famous as Octavius is that we all know the main outcomes in advance, which inevitably lessens the tension. The section involving Mark Anthony and Cleopatra is a good example. Mark Anthony is depicted as a bull-headed “man of action�, whilst in contrast Cleopatra is someone as calculating as Octavius himself. Her machinations, and those of her Chief Minister, are very skilfully plotted by the author, but ultimately we all know that Octavius was the victor. It’s for this reason only that I felt the book was a four rather than a five-star marking. An impressive achievement though, and a very enjoyable read.
The result is a fascinating character portrayal, in which Octavius is depicted as a man driven by duty and a sense of destiny to restore order to the rapidly disintegrating Roman Republic. Outwardly unemotional and calculating, he is not without feeling but is frequently forced by his position to act “against his nature�. Around him the other characters (most of them) plot and scheme towards their own advancements like players in a chess game, but one in which a false move means death. Mark Anthony, Cleopatra, Lepidus, Marcus Agrippa, and Livia all feature prominently, but perhaps the most interesting of the book’s characters is the Emperor’s daughter Julia. I greatly enjoyed those sections of the novel where she wrote in her journal. The famous poets of the time, Horace, Vergil and Ovid, all feature as well, though they mostly stand aside from the poltical intrigue.
One problem with writing a novel about the life of someone as famous as Octavius is that we all know the main outcomes in advance, which inevitably lessens the tension. The section involving Mark Anthony and Cleopatra is a good example. Mark Anthony is depicted as a bull-headed “man of action�, whilst in contrast Cleopatra is someone as calculating as Octavius himself. Her machinations, and those of her Chief Minister, are very skilfully plotted by the author, but ultimately we all know that Octavius was the victor. It’s for this reason only that I felt the book was a four rather than a five-star marking. An impressive achievement though, and a very enjoyable read.
March 24, 2018
Μετά το "Στόουνερ" άλλο ένα καταπληκτικό βιβλίο του συγγραφέα. Αν και στην αρχή η ιστορία ήταν λίγο περίπλοκη, με το διάβασμα αποκτούσε ένα ρυθμό για να φτάσει στην κορύφωση στο τέλος με τον απολογισμό του αυτοκράτορα Αυγούστου. Απαραίτητο για κάθε φίλο του καλού βιβλίου ο οποίος διαβάζοντας το θα πρέπει να έχει δίπλα του ένα στυλό σημειώνοντας τα νοήματα της αφήγησης. Οπως π.χ.:
"Αν δεν τον διαφθείρει ο θαυμασμός των συνομηλίκων του, αγοριών και κοριτσιών, θα το επιτύχουν σίγουρα οι φιλοδοξίες των κολάκων" σελ. 27
"Ο ηθικολόγος είναι το πιο άχρηστο και καταφρονητέο πλάσμα. Είναι άχρηστος επειδή σπαταλά τις δυνάμεις του κρίνοντας και όχι αποκτώντας γνώσεις, επειδή απλούστατα οι κρίσεις είναι εύκολες ενώ οι γνώσεις δύσκολες. Και είναι καταφρονητέος επειδή οι κρίσεις του καθρεφτίζουν τη δική του εικόνα, που με την άγνοια και την υπεροψία του πολύ θα ήθελε να επιβάλει στον κόσμο" σελ. 227
"Δεν αποφάσισα ν΄ αλλάξω τον κόσμο από τον εύκολο ιδεαλισμό και την αυτάρεσκη πίστη στη δικαιοσύνη, που είναι πάντα οι προάγγελοι της αποτυχίας" σελ. 469
Και άλλα πολλά πολλά που θα σας γοητεύσου, προβληματίσουν σ΄ ένα ταξίδι στον εσώτερο ανθρώπινο κόσμο...
"Αν δεν τον διαφθείρει ο θαυμασμός των συνομηλίκων του, αγοριών και κοριτσιών, θα το επιτύχουν σίγουρα οι φιλοδοξίες των κολάκων" σελ. 27
"Ο ηθικολόγος είναι το πιο άχρηστο και καταφρονητέο πλάσμα. Είναι άχρηστος επειδή σπαταλά τις δυνάμεις του κρίνοντας και όχι αποκτώντας γνώσεις, επειδή απλούστατα οι κρίσεις είναι εύκολες ενώ οι γνώσεις δύσκολες. Και είναι καταφρονητέος επειδή οι κρίσεις του καθρεφτίζουν τη δική του εικόνα, που με την άγνοια και την υπεροψία του πολύ θα ήθελε να επιβάλει στον κόσμο" σελ. 227
"Δεν αποφάσισα ν΄ αλλάξω τον κόσμο από τον εύκολο ιδεαλισμό και την αυτάρεσκη πίστη στη δικαιοσύνη, που είναι πάντα οι προάγγελοι της αποτυχίας" σελ. 469
Και άλλα πολλά πολλά που θα σας γοητεύσου, προβληματίσουν σ΄ ένα ταξίδι στον εσώτερο ανθρώπινο κόσμο...
August 12, 2020
Ο Καίσαρας Οκταβιανός Αύγουστος ήταν ο πρώτος, ίσως και ο σημαντικότερος των Αυτοκρατόρων της αρχαίας Ρώμης του οποίου το λογοτεχνικό πορτρέτο ανέλαβε να μας το παρουσιάσει με τον μοναδικό συγγραφικό του τρόπο ο Τζον Γουίλιαμς.
Ο συγγραφέας του αριστουργηματικού "Στόουνερ" γράφει για αυτή την σημαντική ιστορική προσωπικότητα μένοντας όσο το δυνατόν περισσότερο σε ένα ιστορικό πλαίσιο, χωρίς να θυμίζει όμως το μυθιστόρημα του ιστορικό σύγγραμα. Αυτό το καταφέρνει με τον μοναδικό τρόπο γραφής του, ο οποίος είναι σχεδόν τέλειος σε μορφή, μινιμαλιστικός και κυρίως ουσιαστικός. Όπως και στον Στόουνερ - μια τελείως διαφορετική προσωπικότητα από τον Αύγουστο - έτσι και σε αυτό το βιβλίο ο συγγραφέας δομεί σταδιακά έναν ιδιαίτερο λογοτεχνικό ήρωα που τον απασχολούν τα ίδια ακριβώς θέματα που απασχολούν και τον ίδιο και στα δύο μυθιστορήματα του.
Ο Οκτάβιος είναι ένα κομμάτι της προσωπικότητας του ίδιου του συγγραφέα, όπως άλλωστε και ο Στόουνερ. Ο Ρωμαίος αυτοκράτορας είναι ένας ήσυχος άνθρωπος, πολύ οργανωτικός και κυρίως εσωστρεφής. Ξέρει πως πρέπει να κυβερνήσει, στέκεται δυνατός και ακλόνητος μπρος στις θυσίες που πρέπει να κάνει και ας γνωρίζει εκ προοιμίου πως η επιτυχία του σαν ηγέτης θα του κοστίσει την ευτυχία και την αρμονία της προσωπικής του ζωής.
Ο Οκτάβιος είναι επίσης ένας άνθρωπος με κουλτούρα και μόρφωση. Τον εκτιμούν οι μεγάλοι ποιητές της εποχής και ο ίδιος δείχνει πως πιστεύει στο έργο τους. Άλλωστε πολύ πριν η μοίρα αποφασίσει για την τύχη του, ο ίδιος ήθελε να γίνει ποιητής. Σε αντίθεση όμως με τον Στόουνερ, ο Οκτάβιος δεν θα μπορέσει να αλλάξει την "επαγγελματική" του σταδιοδρομία όπως θα ήθελε. Κι όμως! Θα καταφέρει παρόλα αυτά, να μετατρέψει όλα τα φαινομενικά μειονεκτήματα του σε πλεονεκτήματά, μεταλλάζοντας την προσωπικότητα του και εκπλήσσοντας εχθρούς και φίλους να κερδίσει τον σεβασμό όλων και να γίνει ο πρώτος των πρώτων.
Ακολουθώντας λοιπόν τις επιστολές, τις διατάξεις και τα προσωπικά ημερολόγια των χαρακτήρων του βιβλίου καταρχάς μαθαίνουμε για μια ιστορική περίοδο άκρως ενδιαφέρουσα και σημαντική για την ανθρωπότητα αλλά και για την Ελλάδα και κατά δεύτερον γνωρίζουμε έναν λογοτεχνικό ήρωα ο οποίος θα μπορούσε να τοποθετηθεί στο πάνθεον όλων αυτών των μεγάλων λογοτεχνικών ηρώων της παγκόσμιας λογοτεχνίας, έστω και με κάποια καθυστέρηση μερικών δεκαετιών.
Ο Τζον Γουίλιαμς ήταν ένας μεγάλος συγγραφέας αν και παραγνωρισμένος επίτηδες. Διαβάζοντας πρώτα τον Στόουνερ και έπειτα τον Αύγουστο κατάλαβα πως ο συγγραφέας μπορούσε να χειριστεί με ευκολία την οποιαδήποτε θεματολογία. Ο τρόπος της γραφής του καθώς και η σχολαστικότητα της επιμέλειας των έργων του, του δίνουν την ευχέρεια να δημιουργεί ανθρώπινους και σύγχρονους χαρακτήρες για κάθε εποχή αλλά και τα έργα του να έχουν οικουμενικό χαρακτήρα.
Όσοι λοιπόν αγάπησαν τον Στόουνερ θα πλησιάσουν με ευκολία στην αρχαία Ρώμη για να ανακαλύψουν τι είναι αυτό που έκανε τον Αύγουστο τόσο σημαντική προσωπικότητα, ενώ αντίθετα όσοι γνώρισαν πρώτα τον Οκτάβιο θα καταλάβουν πολύ εύκολα τον Στόουνερ και τις επιλογές του.
5/5
Ο συγγραφέας του αριστουργηματικού "Στόουνερ" γράφει για αυτή την σημαντική ιστορική προσωπικότητα μένοντας όσο το δυνατόν περισσότερο σε ένα ιστορικό πλαίσιο, χωρίς να θυμίζει όμως το μυθιστόρημα του ιστορικό σύγγραμα. Αυτό το καταφέρνει με τον μοναδικό τρόπο γραφής του, ο οποίος είναι σχεδόν τέλειος σε μορφή, μινιμαλιστικός και κυρίως ουσιαστικός. Όπως και στον Στόουνερ - μια τελείως διαφορετική προσωπικότητα από τον Αύγουστο - έτσι και σε αυτό το βιβλίο ο συγγραφέας δομεί σταδιακά έναν ιδιαίτερο λογοτεχνικό ήρωα που τον απασχολούν τα ίδια ακριβώς θέματα που απασχολούν και τον ίδιο και στα δύο μυθιστορήματα του.
Ο Οκτάβιος είναι ένα κομμάτι της προσωπικότητας του ίδιου του συγγραφέα, όπως άλλωστε και ο Στόουνερ. Ο Ρωμαίος αυτοκράτορας είναι ένας ήσυχος άνθρωπος, πολύ οργανωτικός και κυρίως εσωστρεφής. Ξέρει πως πρέπει να κυβερνήσει, στέκεται δυνατός και ακλόνητος μπρος στις θυσίες που πρέπει να κάνει και ας γνωρίζει εκ προοιμίου πως η επιτυχία του σαν ηγέτης θα του κοστίσει την ευτυχία και την αρμονία της προσωπικής του ζωής.
Ο Οκτάβιος είναι επίσης ένας άνθρωπος με κουλτούρα και μόρφωση. Τον εκτιμούν οι μεγάλοι ποιητές της εποχής και ο ίδιος δείχνει πως πιστεύει στο έργο τους. Άλλωστε πολύ πριν η μοίρα αποφασίσει για την τύχη του, ο ίδιος ήθελε να γίνει ποιητής. Σε αντίθεση όμως με τον Στόουνερ, ο Οκτάβιος δεν θα μπορέσει να αλλάξει την "επαγγελματική" του σταδιοδρομία όπως θα ήθελε. Κι όμως! Θα καταφέρει παρόλα αυτά, να μετατρέψει όλα τα φαινομενικά μειονεκτήματα του σε πλεονεκτήματά, μεταλλάζοντας την προσωπικότητα του και εκπλήσσοντας εχθρούς και φίλους να κερδίσει τον σεβασμό όλων και να γίνει ο πρώτος των πρώτων.
Ακολουθώντας λοιπόν τις επιστολές, τις διατάξεις και τα προσωπικά ημερολόγια των χαρακτήρων του βιβλίου καταρχάς μαθαίνουμε για μια ιστορική περίοδο άκρως ενδιαφέρουσα και σημαντική για την ανθρωπότητα αλλά και για την Ελλάδα και κατά δεύτερον γνωρίζουμε έναν λογοτεχνικό ήρωα ο οποίος θα μπορούσε να τοποθετηθεί στο πάνθεον όλων αυτών των μεγάλων λογοτεχνικών ηρώων της παγκόσμιας λογοτεχνίας, έστω και με κάποια καθυστέρηση μερικών δεκαετιών.
Ο Τζον Γουίλιαμς ήταν ένας μεγάλος συγγραφέας αν και παραγνωρισμένος επίτηδες. Διαβάζοντας πρώτα τον Στόουνερ και έπειτα τον Αύγουστο κατάλαβα πως ο συγγραφέας μπορούσε να χειριστεί με ευκολία την οποιαδήποτε θεματολογία. Ο τρόπος της γραφής του καθώς και η σχολαστικότητα της επιμέλειας των έργων του, του δίνουν την ευχέρεια να δημιουργεί ανθρώπινους και σύγχρονους χαρακτήρες για κάθε εποχή αλλά και τα έργα του να έχουν οικουμενικό χαρακτήρα.
Όσοι λοιπόν αγάπησαν τον Στόουνερ θα πλησιάσουν με ευκολία στην αρχαία Ρώμη για να ανακαλύψουν τι είναι αυτό που έκανε τον Αύγουστο τόσο σημαντική προσωπικότητα, ενώ αντίθετα όσοι γνώρισαν πρώτα τον Οκτάβιο θα καταλάβουν πολύ εύκολα τον Στόουνερ και τις επιλογές του.
5/5
August 16, 2021
I had problems with this novel that a number of my GR friends did not have. I have not read their reviews yet because I wanted to write my review before perusing theirs…but I could see the number of stars they were giving this book. As well, newspaper and literary periodicals were effusive in their praise with one reviewer from the Los Angeles Times stating, “I have never before had occasion to use this term, but I can think of no other appropriate word of summation than to say that his ‘Augustus� is a masterpiece� (Dan Wakefield, LA Times). ‘His� refers to the author, John Williams.
The book won the National Book Award in 1973 fer chrissake! What is wrong with me?????!!!!
I’m especially not happy in giving this a 2-star review because I absolutely loved his earlier work, Stoner (1965, reissued in 1972, 2003, and 2006). But I have to be honest (including with myself). This was one of those books where I could not wait for it to end so I could be done with it. It was 305 pages in length. It told the story of Augustus Caesar (63 B.C. � 14 A.D.). It is a historical novel. Williams took some liberties with the facts. But he states that at the outset, and I had no problems with that.
Two main problems. I could not follow all the names (different characters). They were dropped in, here there and everywhere, and there were a lot of them. I could not keep track of them. Second was the way he told the story. The story was divided into three books. Each book had letters written from one person to another. The letter writers within a book would change. I guess this was a style meant to tell you about different people’s point of view of the situation at hand. Person A might describe a certain event, and events leading up to the events, and characters involved in the events, different than Person B. And indeed that is what happened in the letters. But I simply got overwhelmed. Also, I found a lot of the letters to be borrrrrrr-ing. There were a few parts of the book that were interesting but for me they came far and few between.
Rather than me perseverate anymore, I think I have had my say. Quite often I find myself on the periphery in reviewing a book, but I don’t feel so bad about it. I feel a bit bad about this because so many of my GR friends liked this book. Where did I go wrong � what did I miss? 🙁
Reviews (these reviews show how clearly I am on the periphery…they are all very good reviews and they were uber-enthusiastic about this historical novel):
� (A reviewer from the Washington Post called it “The finest historical novel ever written by an American.�
�
�
�
�
The book won the National Book Award in 1973 fer chrissake! What is wrong with me?????!!!!
I’m especially not happy in giving this a 2-star review because I absolutely loved his earlier work, Stoner (1965, reissued in 1972, 2003, and 2006). But I have to be honest (including with myself). This was one of those books where I could not wait for it to end so I could be done with it. It was 305 pages in length. It told the story of Augustus Caesar (63 B.C. � 14 A.D.). It is a historical novel. Williams took some liberties with the facts. But he states that at the outset, and I had no problems with that.
Two main problems. I could not follow all the names (different characters). They were dropped in, here there and everywhere, and there were a lot of them. I could not keep track of them. Second was the way he told the story. The story was divided into three books. Each book had letters written from one person to another. The letter writers within a book would change. I guess this was a style meant to tell you about different people’s point of view of the situation at hand. Person A might describe a certain event, and events leading up to the events, and characters involved in the events, different than Person B. And indeed that is what happened in the letters. But I simply got overwhelmed. Also, I found a lot of the letters to be borrrrrrr-ing. There were a few parts of the book that were interesting but for me they came far and few between.
Rather than me perseverate anymore, I think I have had my say. Quite often I find myself on the periphery in reviewing a book, but I don’t feel so bad about it. I feel a bit bad about this because so many of my GR friends liked this book. Where did I go wrong � what did I miss? 🙁
Reviews (these reviews show how clearly I am on the periphery…they are all very good reviews and they were uber-enthusiastic about this historical novel):
� (A reviewer from the Washington Post called it “The finest historical novel ever written by an American.�
�
�
�
�
July 7, 2017
John Williams' three novels are distinctly different from each other. Often, if you like one book by a specific author, it's safe to assume that if you pick up another, you will be served something similar - in topic, tone or language. But each of Williams' novels are - without compromise - true to their own, unique concept.
So is the case with Augustus. While Stoner is mostly a campus novel and Butcher's Crossing a western, Augustus is an epistolary novel on the rise and reign of Gaius Octavius, known as Emperor Augustus. In addition to letters, it also contains journal entries, military orders, reports and autobiography excerpts. The emperor himself is, for the most part, seen from the outside. The people telling the story are mostly nobles, politicians or military leaders, but there are also some regular citizens that gets to tell their stories. Together, these writings make a choir of voices that encompasses the whole of Augustus' life. The first half of the book describes Augustus' rise to power, the second half his reign and the life of his daughter, Julia.
The fact that Williams managed to put all of this together in a way that works so well, is nothing less than impressive. Not once while reading could I say to myself "this could have been handled differently" or "this should have been shortened down". I know that some of the historical events in the book are not accurate, but the world building is excellent and gives us a believable version of ancient roman society.
Augustus is, as far as roman emperors go, an enigma. He hid his motivation, his plans, his ambitions. He was a very private person, difficult to read. Maybe this explains Williams' interest in him? He would make a good candidate for a literary main character. An author can fill this character with his own imagination. His secrecy and historical unknowability makes him moldable.
In spite of all this, Augustus' only child, Julia, is maybe the most fascinating character in the book. Her journal entries looks back on her entire life, and like most of the other characters, it was a very intense and dramatic one. She tells us of her development from child to adult in more detail than the letters describing Augustus. We see her married several times and then discovering her own identity outside of the constricting life of a roman noble - a short lived freedom that is soon snatched away from her. All of this is framed with the experience and wisdom of the much older Julia, looking back on it all.
We can be certain that Williams' Augustus loves his daughter very much. And his closest friendships are also extremely important to him. But Augustus is very self disciplined, and sometimes cold - he is willing to do whatever needs to be done to keep the Empire together and secure his own power. He uses his family and friends as pawns, arranging marriages for them to secure allegiances - and he does this in several rounds. Both Julia and Augustus' sister suffers because of this.
Was Augustus a good guy or a bad guy? Was he a hero and the gathering force of the Empire, or was he a dubious, rotten aristocrat willing to do anything to gain power? The question of what power does to people is an important theme throughout the book. Without concluding definitely what kind of person Augustus was, the book brings out all the nuances and all the doubt troubling a person with so much power - and so much to lose.
It is exciting to see the power struggles in the Roman Empire, especially in the first half of the book.
Williams does try to describe a time where peoples' psyches and world view are distinctly different from our own, but at the same time keeping the characters recognizable for modern readers. For the most part, this works, but although the book is believable, it's definitely very difficult to know how people, so remote in time from ourselves, reasoned, thought and felt. The accuracy is difficult to determine. Not that it really matters. This is an excellent novel.
So is the case with Augustus. While Stoner is mostly a campus novel and Butcher's Crossing a western, Augustus is an epistolary novel on the rise and reign of Gaius Octavius, known as Emperor Augustus. In addition to letters, it also contains journal entries, military orders, reports and autobiography excerpts. The emperor himself is, for the most part, seen from the outside. The people telling the story are mostly nobles, politicians or military leaders, but there are also some regular citizens that gets to tell their stories. Together, these writings make a choir of voices that encompasses the whole of Augustus' life. The first half of the book describes Augustus' rise to power, the second half his reign and the life of his daughter, Julia.
The fact that Williams managed to put all of this together in a way that works so well, is nothing less than impressive. Not once while reading could I say to myself "this could have been handled differently" or "this should have been shortened down". I know that some of the historical events in the book are not accurate, but the world building is excellent and gives us a believable version of ancient roman society.
Augustus is, as far as roman emperors go, an enigma. He hid his motivation, his plans, his ambitions. He was a very private person, difficult to read. Maybe this explains Williams' interest in him? He would make a good candidate for a literary main character. An author can fill this character with his own imagination. His secrecy and historical unknowability makes him moldable.
In spite of all this, Augustus' only child, Julia, is maybe the most fascinating character in the book. Her journal entries looks back on her entire life, and like most of the other characters, it was a very intense and dramatic one. She tells us of her development from child to adult in more detail than the letters describing Augustus. We see her married several times and then discovering her own identity outside of the constricting life of a roman noble - a short lived freedom that is soon snatched away from her. All of this is framed with the experience and wisdom of the much older Julia, looking back on it all.
We can be certain that Williams' Augustus loves his daughter very much. And his closest friendships are also extremely important to him. But Augustus is very self disciplined, and sometimes cold - he is willing to do whatever needs to be done to keep the Empire together and secure his own power. He uses his family and friends as pawns, arranging marriages for them to secure allegiances - and he does this in several rounds. Both Julia and Augustus' sister suffers because of this.
Was Augustus a good guy or a bad guy? Was he a hero and the gathering force of the Empire, or was he a dubious, rotten aristocrat willing to do anything to gain power? The question of what power does to people is an important theme throughout the book. Without concluding definitely what kind of person Augustus was, the book brings out all the nuances and all the doubt troubling a person with so much power - and so much to lose.
It is exciting to see the power struggles in the Roman Empire, especially in the first half of the book.
Williams does try to describe a time where peoples' psyches and world view are distinctly different from our own, but at the same time keeping the characters recognizable for modern readers. For the most part, this works, but although the book is believable, it's definitely very difficult to know how people, so remote in time from ourselves, reasoned, thought and felt. The accuracy is difficult to determine. Not that it really matters. This is an excellent novel.
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