About this book
Cleopatra: A Life is a biography of the last Ptolemaic ruler of Egypt, who governed a wealthy kingdom while Rome was tearing itself apart. It follows her from the court of Alexandria through her alliances with Julius Caesar and Mark Antony to the defeat at Actium and her death.
Stacy Schiff's challenge is that almost everything we know about Cleopatra was written by her enemies or by Romans long after her death. She works carefully through those sources, pointing out their biases, and builds a picture of a capable, highly educated politician rather than the seductress of later myth. The book is also a rich portrait of Alexandria itself, then one of the great cities of the Mediterranean.
Schiff writes with wit and an eye for telling detail, which makes this as much a pleasure to read as a work of history. Readers who want the Roman side of the story in more depth can follow it with Rubicon, which covers the collapse of the Republic that Cleopatra played such a part in.
Who it’s for
Perfect for readers who enjoy biography and elegant prose; accessible, though the style is dense with detail.
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