The Storm Before the Storm
The Beginning of the End of the Roman Republic
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Average rating4.2
NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER The creator of the award-winning podcast series The History of Rome and Revolutions brings to life the bloody battles, political machinations, and human drama that set the stage for the fall of the Roman Republic. The Roman Republic was one of the most remarkable achievements in the history of civilization. Beginning as a small city-state in central Italy, Rome gradually expanded into a wider world filled with petty tyrants, barbarian chieftains, and despotic kings. Through the centuries, Rome's model of cooperative and participatory government remained remarkably durable and unmatched in the history of the ancient world. In 146 BC, Rome finally emerged as the strongest power in the Mediterranean. But the very success of the Republic proved to be its undoing. The republican system was unable to cope with the vast empire Rome now ruled: rising economic inequality disrupted traditional ways of life, endemic social and ethnic prejudice led to clashes over citizenship and voting rights, and rampant corruption and ruthless ambition sparked violent political clashes that cracked the once indestructible foundations of the Republic. Chronicling the years 146-78 BC, The Storm Before the Storm dives headlong into the first generation to face this treacherous new political environment. Abandoning the ancient principles of their forbearers, men like Marius, Sulla, and the Gracchi brothers set dangerous new precedents that would start the Republic on the road to destruction and provide a stark warning about what can happen to a civilization that has lost its way.
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I enjoyed this book, the recount of the story prior to the end of the roman Republic is full of intrigue and magnificent characters. I found it very interesting.
It is impossible to read this without finding parallels to the present-day U.S. republic, and difficult not to get caught up in depressing ruminations of where we're headed, but that's not fair: this is a great book in its own right, well written and informative and enjoyable, and it's worth the effort to leave the present behind and focus on what Duncan has to say.
Didn't review this my first time through, so might as well do it now. If you like Mike Duncan and/or Roman history, this is likely to be something you enjoy. Duncan has such a good voice for teaching history, I don't know why, but it's just the perfect delivery system to hear facts about history.
This book focuses on the stuff that happens before all the stuff you know about happens. Reading about the Caesar/Cicero/Pompey/Mark Antony era of Rome can get exhausting, just because it has been covered SO much. I had already known the very basic, bare bones facts about some of the time period covered here, but Duncan went into enough detail that even on the second read through, I learned new things.
