Books by Polybius
“He is a good read. He’s quite analytical…Polybius is great on Hannibal, for example, because he went and interviewed people who had witnessed the Hannibalic invasion in the first and second decades of the 3rd century BCE. He’s writing 70 years later, but he did his boots-on-the-ground research and tried to trace Hannibal’s path across the Alps and things like that. So it’s really exciting history from someone who lived it and had access to many of the great players from that particular time. As well as Carthage, he also witnessed the fall of Corinth.” Read more...
Interviews where books by Polybius were recommended
The Best Roman History Books, recommended by Ross King
To write The Shortest History of Ancient Rome, bestselling author Ross King went back to the insightful and often entertaining accounts Roman and Greek historians gave of the city’s past. He talks us through some of his favourites, from Polybius—who wrote during the Roman Republic’s heyday—to Cassius Dio, who penned his magnum opus as the Roman Empire was in its decline.
The best books on War and Foreign Policy, recommended by John David Lewis
Wars begin when human beings choose to fight, and, consequently, a war must be directed at the enemy’s will to fight, says John David Lewis (1955-2012), a political scientist at Duke. He chooses five books on war and foreign policy—from ancient Rome to America's neoconservatives.
