Customer Reviews
More Roman Than Egyptian - By: James Gallen, 24 Oct 2008 
Michael Grant's "Cleopatra" tells the story of this most famous of ancient queens & the men & women with whom she shared her life's stage.
The two most renowned men to share her stage were her lovers, Julius Caesar & Marc Antony. Grant presents these liaisons in both their romantic & political dimensions. Cleopatra is depicted as a Greek Egyptian who played Roman politics. Through her interaction with Caesar, Antony & Octavian, this book deals more with the politics of Rome than those of Egypt. The struggle between Cleopatra & Antony on one side & Octavian on the other is presented as the last chance for a Roman Empire based on a parity between Italy & Greece. Octavian's victory ushered in an era of Western supremacy, which would not have occurred if Cleopatra, with her Greek background, had share the throne with Antony. Some of this book's information is gathered from the depiction of the characters on coins of the age.
From this book I learned a lot about Cleopatra & more about Roman luminaries. I liked it more for its Roman dimension than its Egyptian. Where your interests are Egyptian or Roman, this book is a worthwhile read.
Excellent - By: Mrs. A. M. Chadwick, 16 Sep 2007 
I have been to Egypt, the first time was in 1993, & I made my mind up that I'd like to study Egyptology.
I'm about to start my third year studying Egyptology, during the summer I discovered this book. It wasn't one of the study books I was required to read but I decided to purchase it.
Michael Grant has written an excellent book on "Cleopatra" which can be read as a biography or used as a study reference book.
The Queen is a great scholar who was interested in alll subjects, her country & her people were very important to her as the author shows, there is nothing she wouldn't do to achieve her goals. She was also known as a murder, loved two great men Julius Caesar & Mark Anthony & was the mother to three children.
Although people have thought of her as a wayward woman who only wanted a life of luxury & would neglect alll her state affairs this book shows us just how far that is from the truth. The author shows how the myths & endless gossip were incorrect.
Cleopatra could speak a number of languages, she was the first none Egyptian to learn their language, besides knowing about make-up she knew about politics, agriculture, architecture & alchemy.
As for her love affairs she would calculate whether they would be able to further her plans on restoring her empire to its former greatness.
This is an excellent book for finding out about the life of Cleopatra, it was interesting & enjoyable to read, & it was alll worth the money. :-)
Interesting read - By: John Hopper, 17 Dec 2006 
A well written & interesting biography, showing how the political relationship between Egypt as a rich, independent state & the ever encroaching Roman Empire intertwined with the subject's personal relations with Caesar & Antony. The Ptolemaic dynasty is truly alien to those of us much more familiar with European royal families.
Cynical, realistic, or both? - By: , 02 Jul 2001 If there was ever any suggestion that Cleopatra was merely interested in pursuing a life of idle luxury it has now been heartily rebutted by Michael Grant. He portrays an active wily queen who knows what she wants & goes after it. His lively writing is always entertaining & hard to put down. His cynical, or perhaps just realistic, approach is also very refreshing.
