Books by Alfred Duggan
“Now this is one of the very few books that actually changed my life. What’s so good about Alfred Duggan’s novel, indeed, all Alfred Duggan’s novels—he wrote an awful lot of them, nonfiction too—is that, although he didn’t really engage all that much with contemporary scholarship, he did read all the primary sources and thought about them.” Read more...
Historical Fiction Set in the Ancient World
Harry Sidebottom, Classicist
Winter Quarters
by Alfred Duggan
Winter Quarters by Alfred Duggan, set at the time of Julius Caesar, follows the story of two Gauls who enlist in the Roman army, and comes extremely highly recommended by Stanford University ancient historian Adrienne Mayor. “This book is a wonderful way to get a sense of the vast sweep of this rising Roman power—the lives and incredible adventures and exotic fights—in one individual soldier’s lifetime,” she says. “It came out in 1956, and it’s my favourite.”
Interviews where books by Alfred Duggan were recommended
The best books on Enemies of Ancient Rome, recommended by Adrienne Mayor
Stanford University classics scholar Adrienne Mayor says a comparison between Mithradates, a deadly enemy of the Roman Empire, and Osama bin Laden, who set his sights on the American Empire, is a tempting one.
Historical Fiction Set in the Ancient World, recommended by Harry Sidebottom
The ancient world offers an excellent canvas for historical fiction but too many books fall victim to anachronistic thinking, says Oxford ancient historian Harry Sidebottom, author of two series of historical novels set in Ancient Rome. Here he recommends some of his own favourites, all written during the golden age of classical historical fiction half a century ago.
