When I first posted my goal of making Ancient Greece the focus of my studies this year, I someone cautioned me that it might be too much to deal with in such a short time.
It was only after getting a few hours into this book that I understood what she/he meant: it’s impossible to take all this in within a year. It would take a decade to cover only one aspect of Greek civilization fully; lifetimes to cover it all! Ramming everything into my head was like trying to catching a waterfall with a bucket.
I changed my approach to the book and saw it as a buffet. I got a small taste of everything and noted down where I wanted to explore more.
Now I’m looking for further reading on:
📖 Pericles, “the most complete man Greece ever produced.” Big words. I want to know more.
📖 Diogenes, he lived the cynic lifestyle to the fullest. Fascinating man! Did you know that there is a condition known as Diogenes Syndrome? It’s characterized by extreme self-neglect, social withdrawal and lack of shame.
📖 Sparta: The crazy strict and tough lifestyle intrigues me. Is David Goggins actually the last Spartan?
📖 Archimedes: “Don’t disturb my circles!”. From Levers, to Pi, to the formula for calculating the surface area of a sphere, but also: war machines! I need to know more about this genius.
📖 The March of the Ten Thousand: Durant calls it “one of the great adventures in human history”. 🧐
📝 Schliemann: A crazy archeologist, obsessed with The Iliad, and determined to uncover Troy. Which he did!
💭 🤷♂️ Checking one book of the Reading List and you end up with an even longer list…
⚖️ VERDICT:
“Greek civilization is alive. it moves in every breath of mind that we breath. So much of it remains that none of us in one lifetime could absorb it all.”
As I reach the summary and conclusion of this book I’m in awe and my eyes tearing up in gratitude for this beautiful account of life in Greece.
4/5
Whose your favorite among the ancient Greeks? ⁉️🤔
For more great Non Fiction– check out my Reading Lists
