Memoirs of Hadrian

A fictional (constructed well within our known history) memoir of the Emperor Hadrian. This is an old book and so much has been written about that I can add little. It's beautifully written and best understood in the context of its time.

I'd started it once before but it's a book where the prose really matters, and I found when I started it before I couldn't give it my full attention.

I've started working through the book 1,000 books to read before you die (I've read a dismal 84) and MOH is included in that list so I set out to read it in its entirety.

Very glad I did. It's exhaustively researched but never feels dry. I'd recommend it if you are already interested in Roman History. If not, I'm afraid it might be a big of a slog.

Il était temps que je lise cette oeuvre acclamée par la critique. Je n'ai pas été déçu par ces pseudo-mémoires de l'empereur romain Hadrien, à qui Marguerite Yourcenar donne vie pour nous relater sa vie et notamment son histoire d'amour avec un jeune homme mort trop tôt. C'est à la fois une belle histoire d'amour et un récit passionnant sur l'Empire romain.

A brilliant book. If I only could read it in the original French. The one issue is that I find Hadrian's visions of the future to be a bit too on the nose, but it's not a major issue. (I know its to give him that ‘touch of the divine', but still....). Anyone who has good knowledge of Greco-Roman history and literature should enjoy.

Hadrian, Roman Emperor from 117 to 138, writes a letter to his successor Marcus Aurelius. The letter becomes a retelling of Hadrian's life, his triumphs and losses, enemies and lovers. It shares his beliefs and philosophies, that made him a mostly stabilising and constructive influence on the Roman Empire. The book is heavy on historical detail, yet it never reads like a slog. The words are all carefully chosen, and often ask for repeat reading to marvel at their beauty. You come out of it admiring this (fictionalised version of) Hadrian for all his strengths and faults.

The first-person prose of the letter and the beautiful constructed sentences that evoke an older Latin grammar must make this is marvel of an audio-book with the right narrator. The physical FSG paperback is a beauty itself, with the art prints of Roman sculptures mixed in, and even the feel of the cover.