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A readable translation of the many letters of one of history's most famous letter writers, and also a good source on his eventful life. Caius Plinius Secundus had correspondence with many of the great men of his time, including Emperor Trajan and the historians Tacitus and Suetonius, and wrote of such fascinating topics as the Dacian Wars, Christians in his province of Bithynia, the excesses of the recently murdered Emperor Domitianus, and various obscure topics from hunting to an alleged haunted house in Greece. A great book for someone, who, like me, likes to read about the Romans from their own pens.
Pliny the Younger (whether he knew it or not) painted quite a detailed picture of culture in his time, and it is quite exciting and entertaining to compare this culture with the cultures of today.
Pliny the Younger was a disciple of Musonius Rufus, the great Stoic teacher who taught Epictetus. Epictetus wrote discourses which influenced Emperor Marcus Aurelius. A reading of Pliny the Younger will shed light on Stoic thoughts.
The letters between Pliny and the Emperor Trajan read much like modern e-mails between a CEO and a diligent corporate manager. Pliny's self-selected letters comprise a fascinating bit of ancient autobiography, and should be of interest to a wide variety of readers. His descriptions of trials, and of his often slimy opposing counsel, will amuse modern attorneys. I first read Pliny at the same time as the "Meditations" of Marcus Aurelius; the two books provide a striking contrast between two typically Roman world-views -- Pliny wanting nothing so much as posthumous fame, Aurelius musing on the vanity of all earthly pursuits given their utter meaninglessness after we turn to dust.Ms. Radice's translation is smooth and enjoyable, retaining a certain air of distance given the source's antiquity but not becoming stilted or precious.
Having read the letters of Pliny in the original Latin, I picked up a copy of this book to enjoy at a lesiurely pace (and without the hassel of looking up every 15th word). I could not have been more pleased with Radice's translation of the work. She brings his stories to life, while maintaining the nuances found in the Latin. Wonderful.
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