WILLIAMS John - August

Using the epistolary form - largely fictional diaries, daily orders, letters - Williams tells the story of Octavian, a sensitive and educated nineteen-year-old who, with the death of his aunt's grandfather, Julius Caesar, suddenly becomes the heir to the vast power of the Roman Empire, racked by internal tensions. Gradually, through luck, cunning, ruthlessness and intelligence, he manages to bring most of the civilized world of the time under the rule of law, bringing Rome an unprecedented period of peace and prosperity. He becomes the first Roman emperor. To achieve this, he has to overcome not only his own nature, but also many obstacles, overcoming the challenges of people such as Cicero, Brutus, Cassius and finally Mark Antony. Toward the end of his life, he orders the imprisonment and exile of his beloved daughter Julia to a remote island, under a law he introduced against adultery. Juliet's account teems with the rhythm of wonderful psychological prose. From the brilliant play of light that the fictional letters become, a fascinating private and public portrait of a complex man living in extraordinary times emerges.

AN ITEM HARDLY AVAILABLE ON THE BOOK MARKET.

Published by the State Publishing Institute, 2007.
Format: 230 x 150 mm, 293 pages.
ISBN: 9788306031041
Book in nice condition (light rubbing of edges, sticker mark on inside cover).