Augustus by John Williams
A brilliant and beautifully written novel in the tradition of Robert Graves' I, Claudius, 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.
Weir’s sympathetic and detailed biography reassesses the life of a woman whose role in public life…has been underrated by historians * New Statesman *
The finest historical novel ever written by an American * Washington Post *
It would be easy to over-praise this novel; but there does not seem any adequate reason why this temptation should be resisted * Economist *
A novel of extraordinary range, yet of extraordinary minuteness, that manages never to sacrifice one quality for the other * Financial Times *
Williams has fashioned an always engaging, psychologically convincing work of fiction - a consistent and well-realized portrait * New Yorker *
The finest historical novel ever written by an American * Washington Post *
It would be easy to over-praise this novel; but there does not seem any adequate reason why this temptation should be resisted * Economist *
A novel of extraordinary range, yet of extraordinary minuteness, that manages never to sacrifice one quality for the other * Financial Times *
Williams has fashioned an always engaging, psychologically convincing work of fiction - a consistent and well-realized portrait * New Yorker *
John Williams was an author, editor and professor. Born in 1922 in Texas, he served in the United States Army Air Force from 1942 to 1945 in China, Burma and India. His first novel, Nothing But the Night, was published in 1948. After receiving his PhD in 1954, Williams returned to the University of Denver where he first studied to teach literature and creative writing for thirty years. It was during this time that he wrote the novels Butcher's Crossing (1960) and Stoner (1965). His last novel, Augustus, won the National Book Award in 1973. John Williams died in Arkansas in 1994.
| SKU | Unavailable |
| ISBN 13 | 9780099445081 |
| ISBN 10 | 0099445085 |
| Title | Augustus |
| Author | John Williams |
| Condition | Unavailable |
| Binding Type | Paperback |
| Publisher | Vintage Publishing |
| Year published | 2003-02-06 |
| Number of pages | 352 |
| Cover note | Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary. |
| Note | Unavailable |