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Recommendations based on The Annals of Imperial Romeby Tacitus
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The Histories
by Herodotus
Exploration into the rise and fall of empires in the ancient world.
One of the masterpieces of classical literature, the "Histories" describes how a small and quarrelsome band of Greek city states united to repel the might of the Persian empire. But while this epic ... (Goodreads)
History of the Peloponnesian War
by Thucydides
Detailed account of the protracted war between Athens and Sparta in ancient Greece.
Written four hundred years before the birth of Christ, this detailed contemporary account of the long life-and-death struggle between Athens and Sparta stands an excellent chance of fulfilling its ... (Goodreads)
The Twelve Caesars
by Suetonius
Detailed biographies of the twelve Roman Emperors, from Julius Caesar to Domitian.
As private secretary to the Emperor Hadrian, Suetonius gained access to the imperial archives and used them (along with eye-witness accounts) to produce one of the most colorful biographical works in ... (Goodreads)
The Conquest of Gaul
by Gaius Julius Caesar
A narrative of Julius Caesar's military campaigns in Gaul, chronicling his strategy and triumphs.
The Republic
by Plato
A philosophical discourse on justice, examining morality, politics, and virtue.
Presented in the form of a dialogue between Socrates and three different interlocutors, this classic text is an enquiry into the notion of a perfect community and the ideal individual within it. ... (Goodreads)
Confessions
by Augustine of Hippo
A spiritual autobiography tracing Augustine's journey from youthful excess to Christian faith.
Augustine's Confessions is one of the most influential and most innovative works of Latin literature. Written in the author's early forties in the last years of the fourth century A.D. and during his ... (Goodreads)
Ethics
by Baruch Spinoza
Exploration of morality and the laws of nature, framed in a rationalist argument.
Published shortly after his death, the Ethics is undoubtedly Spinoza's greatest work - an elegant, fully cohesive cosmology derived from first principles, providing a coherent picture of reality, and ... (Goodreads)
Praise of Folly
by Erasmus
Satirical exploration of the follies of humankind.
In Praise of Folly, , also translated as, The Praise of Folly, ( Latin : Stultitiae Laus or Moriae Encomium ; Greek title: Μωρίας ἐγκώμιον ( Morias egkomion ); Dutch title: Lof der Zotheid ), is an ... (Wikipedia)
The Prince
by Niccolò Machiavelli
A timeless political treatise on the art of acquiring and maintaining power.
Machiavelli needs to be looked at as he really was. Hence: Can Machiavelli, who makes the following observations, be Machiavellian as we understand the disparaging term? 1. So it is that to know the ... (Goodreads)
The Rise and Fall of the Third Reich: A History of Nazi Germany
by William L. Shirer
The definitive story of Nazi Germany, its rise and fall, and its lasting impacts.
Hitler boasted that The Third Reich would last a thousand years. It lasted only 12. But those 12 years contained some of the most catastrophic events Western civilization has ever known. No other ... (Goodreads)
The Symposium
by Plato
A philosophical dialogue among ancient Greeks about the nature of love.
A fascinating discussion on sex, gender, and human instincts, as relevant today as ever. In the course of a lively drinking party, a group of Athenian intellectuals exchange views on eros, or desire. ... (Goodreads)
SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome
by Mary Beard
An exploration into the rise and fall of the Roman Empire, tracing its impact on the modern world.
New York Times Bestseller A New York Times Notable Book Named one of the Best Books of the Year by the Wall Street Journal , the Economist, Foreign Affairs , and Kirkus Reviews Finalist for the ... (Barnes & Noble)
Caesar: Life of a Colossus
by Adrian Goldsworthy
Biography of Julius Caesar, detailing his rise to power and influence over Roman history.
Tracing the extraordinary trajectory of the great Roman emperor’s life, Goldsworthy covers not only the great Roman emperor’s accomplishments as charismatic orator, conquering general, and powerful ... (Goodreads)
An Inquiry into the Nature and Causes of the Wealth of Nations
by Adam Smith
An exploration of the economic principles underlying the development of nations.
Adam Smith's masterpiece, first published in 1776, is the foundation of modern economic thought and remains the single most important account of the rise of, and the principles behind, modern ... (Goodreads)
Leviathan
by Thomas Hobbes
Philosophical exploration of the nature of power and justice in a state of nature.
'The life of man, solitary, poore, nasty, brutish, and short' Written during the chaos of the English Civil War, Thomas Hobbes' Leviathan asks how, in a world of violence and horror, can we stop ... (Goodreads)
On Liberty
by John Stuart Mill
Exploration of freedom of thought and expression, and the importance of individual rights.
Alternate cover edition of ISBN 9780140432077 Published in 1859, John Stuart Mill's On Liberty presented one of the most eloquent defenses of individual freedom in nineteenth-century social and ... (Goodreads)
The Structure of Scientific Revolutions
by Thomas S. Kuhn
An analysis of how scientific progress is made, and the role of paradigms and paradigmatic shifts.
A good book may have the power to change the way we see the world, but a great book actually becomes part of our daily consciousness, pervading our thinking to the point that we take it for granted, ... (Goodreads)
A Vindication of the Rights of Woman
by Mary Wollstonecraft
A pioneering work advocating for the political, social, and educational rights of women.
In the present state of society, it appears necessary to go back to first principles in search of the most simple truths, and to dispute with some prevailing prejudice every inch of ground. To clear ... (Goodreads)
The Complete Essays
by Michel de Montaigne
Collection of essays exploring diverse topics, from philosophy to morality.
Michel de Montaigne was one of the most influential figures of the Renaissance, singlehandedly responsible for popularising the essay as a literary form. This Penguin Classics edition of The Complete ... (Goodreads)
Down and Out in Paris and London
by George Orwell
An exploration of the dark side of two cities, and how life can be different for the privileged and the destitute.
This unusual fictional memoir - in good part autobiographical - narrates without self-pity and often with humor the adventures of a penniless British writer among the down-and-outs of two great ... (Goodreads)
Meditations
by Marcus Aurelius
Reflections on Stoic philosophy, exploring the nature of existence and how to live life.
Written in Greek by the only Roman emperor who was also a philosopher, without any intention of publication, the Meditations of Marcus Aurelius offer a remarkable series of challenging spiritual ... (Goodreads)
Homage to Catalonia
by George Orwell
A first-hand account of the Spanish Civil War, and the political conflicts in the 1930s.
In 1936 George Orwell travelled to Spain to report on the Civil War and instead joined the fight against the Fascists. This famous account describes the war and Orwell’s own experiences. Introduction ... (Goodreads)
Pensées
by Blaise Pascal
Reflections on faith, reason and the human condition, presenting a defense of Christianity.
Blaise Pascal, the precociously brilliant contemporary of Descartes, was a gifted mathematician and physicist, but it is his unfinished apologia for the Christian religion upon which his reputation ... (Goodreads)
Lies My Teacher Told Me: Everything Your American History Textbook Got Wrong
by James W. Loewen
Exposing the inaccuracies in American history textbooks and exploring the forces that shaped them.
“Every teacher, every student of history, every citizen should read this book. It is both a refreshing antidote to what has passed for history in our educational system and a one-volume education in ... (Barnes & Noble)
The Analects
by Confucius
A collection of moral and philosophical teachings, exploring the importance of relationships, ethics, and personal development.
‘The Master said, “If a man sets his heart on benevolence, he will be free from evil”’ The Analects are a collection of Confucius’s sayings brought together by his pupils shortly after his death in ... (Goodreads)
A Treatise of Human Nature
by David Hume
Exploration of the nature of human understanding, and how it affects moral judgement.
A Treatise of Human Nature (1739-40), David Hume's comprehensive attempt to base philosophy on a new, observationally grounded study of human nature, is one of the most important texts in Western ... (Goodreads)
Discourse on Method
by René Descartes
Philosophical exploration of the power of human reason and the nature of reality.
By far the most widely used translation in North American college classrooms, Donald A. Cress's translation from the French of the Adam and Tannery critical edition is prized for its accuracy, ... (Goodreads)
On War
by Carl von Clausewitz
A comprehensive analysis of the nature and principles of war, including its political and social aspects.
Carl von Clausewitz's On War has been called, "not simply the greatest, but the only truly great book on war." It is an extraordinary attempt to construct an all-embracing theory of how war works. ... (Goodreads)
The State and Revolution
by Vladimir Lenin
Exploring the idea of a socialist state, and the role of the working class in revolution.
1917-ci ilin avqust-sentyabr aylarında yazılan yaradıcı marksizmin bu görkəmli əsəri – “Dövlət və inqilab” dövlət nəzəriyyəsinin öz dərinliyi və əhatəliliyi cəhətdən misilsiz elmi şərhidir, ... (Goodreads)
Civil Disobedience
by Henry David Thoreau
Reflection on moral responsibility in the face of unjust laws.
Resistance to Civil Government, called Civil Disobedience for short, is an essay by American transcendentalist Henry David Thoreau that was first published in 1849. In it, Thoreau argues that ... (Goodreads)
