A Rome of One's Own: The Forgotten Women of the Roman Empire Paperback – September 17, 2024

BRILLIANT WRITING AND TIMELY

As a former Latin teacher, I’m really enjoying this book! It brings the women into the historical picture of Rome, which is a welcome change. Don’t know that it would be everyone’s cup of tea, but I like it! She has a wonderful sense of humor.

This was such a delightful read! So much of what we have of history is male-centric that sifting through it all to find the contributions women made can be like finding a needle in a haystack. Here the author has compiled a thorough overview of queens and common folk to show that even mighty Rome depended on the other 50% to keep things running. Her humor is wonderfully irreverent and topical; it is not often that one laughs out loud at Roman doings but she manages the task admirably whilst still providing solidly researched history. I have four bookshelves chock-a-block with Roman history and this book is now among my favorites of the lot.

Very funny, irreverent but highly informed look at the stories of Roman Women. Emma Southon is a terrific writer

The ancient Roman chronicles rarely mention women in their histories. This book attempts to give Roman women their due place in Roman history. This book covers twenty-one biographies of women who made important contributions to Rome. Some of these women were mythological. Other women were famous and some of them were forgotten. Yet, each of them are important in understanding ancient Roman history.I found all these women mentioned in Emma Southon’s biography to be utterly fascinating. Some of these women I have heard of were Julia Ceasar, Perpetua, Cartimandua, Boudica, Julia Maesa, Zenobia and Galla Placida. The rest of the women I have never heard of before. My favorite women were Julia Felix (who was a businesswoman in Pompeii), Julia Balbila (who was a poet), and Turia (who was the wife of Pompeii’s allies. Each of these women’s stories were very enlightening and made me want to research more about them!Overall, this was a very comprehensive and enjoyable biography! I loved the author’s writing style and how she made the story engaging to the general reader! The only thing I did not like about this book was that there were some connections to popular culture that I did not understand, for instance the references to the Green Lantern superhero. Still, it was a very enjoyable and informative read! I could not put it down! A Rome of One’s Own is perfect for fans of ancient Roman history! I recommend this book for those who love Caesar's Wives, Rome’s Christian Empress, and Cleopatra’s Daughter!(Note: I read an ARC copy of this book in courtesy of Netgalley.)

Ive read all of her books and they are all fantastic, but I think this is my new favorite.

Really enjoyed how this book made me reinterpret a lot of the notions I had about Rome, both in terms of race and gender. I’d describe the text overall as very meaty, and filled with the same charm and thoughtfulness I’ve come to associate with Southon’s work. Would recommend!

“If you read this book very fast all at once…” says Southon about 3/4 of the way through, and you know what? I DID. As usual, it’s addictively readable, brilliantly informative, and LOL hilarious.If you’re a history aficionado and/or a woman trying to live your life, read this immediately.