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Spartacus
The original, landmark novel of the slave revolt against the Romans in 73 BC, led by the gladiator Spartacus. Heralded as one of the great historical novels of the twentieth century―and an inspiration to generations of people who have fought against oppression and exploitation―Spartacus is a masterpiece of vivid storytelling from one of Scotland’s finest writers.
304 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1933
About the author
Lewis Grassic Gibbon
76 books59 followersLewis Grassic Gibbon was the pen name of the Scottish author James Leslie Mitchell.
Born in Auchterless and raised in Arbuthnott, then in Kincardineshire, Mitchell started working as a journalist for the Aberdeen Journal and the Scottish Farmer at age 16. In 1919 he joined the Royal Army Service Corps and served in Iran, India and Egypt before enlisting in the Royal Air Force in 1920. In the RAF he worked as a clerk and spent some time in the Middle East. He married Rebecca Middleton in 1925, with whom he settled in Welwyn Garden City. He began writing full-time in 1929. Mitchell wrote numerous books and shorter works under both his real name and nom de plume before his early death in 1935 of peritonitis brought on by a perforated ulcer.
Born in Auchterless and raised in Arbuthnott, then in Kincardineshire, Mitchell started working as a journalist for the Aberdeen Journal and the Scottish Farmer at age 16. In 1919 he joined the Royal Army Service Corps and served in Iran, India and Egypt before enlisting in the Royal Air Force in 1920. In the RAF he worked as a clerk and spent some time in the Middle East. He married Rebecca Middleton in 1925, with whom he settled in Welwyn Garden City. He began writing full-time in 1929. Mitchell wrote numerous books and shorter works under both his real name and nom de plume before his early death in 1935 of peritonitis brought on by a perforated ulcer.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews
March 23, 2013
"When Kleon heard the news from Capua he rose early one morning, being a literatus and unchained, crept to the room of his Master, stabbed him in the throat, mutilated that Master's body even as his own had been mutilated: and so fled from Rome with a stained dagger in his sleeve and a copy of Plato's Republic hidden in his breast."
I could go on about why I love this book, but why? The opening line has it all. If that opening doesn't thrill you the way it did me, doesn't make you have to read this book immediately, then you're probably not going to groove on a graphically violent yet thoughtful and literary 1920s retelling of the Spartacus story by a penniless Scottish socialist. Too bad.
I could go on about why I love this book, but why? The opening line has it all. If that opening doesn't thrill you the way it did me, doesn't make you have to read this book immediately, then you're probably not going to groove on a graphically violent yet thoughtful and literary 1920s retelling of the Spartacus story by a penniless Scottish socialist. Too bad.
June 23, 2014
The Spartacus legend has been re-told many times by everyone from Stanley Kubrick (in 1960, with Kirk Douglas as the unlikely Thracian hero) to more recent accounts by Ben Kane (2012) and the strangely compelling ‘Starz’ cable TV version (with Australian actor Liam McIntyre, on 'location' in New Zealand). It is refreshing, therefore, to return to the original 1933 novel by Scottish author James Leslie Mitchell under his pen name of Lewis Grassic Gibbon.
Fast-paced, the original Spartacus novel recreates a real sense of how Roman decadence was almost overthrown by an army of over 90,000 former slaves, led by what must have been an exceptional man. Mitchell pulls no punches in the brutal fighting scenes and a surprisingly modern recognition of the role and influence of women on the slave army shows he was ahead of his time. I can imagine this book must have raised a few eyebrows in 1933, as it tackles topics that are often avoided even today.
The charismatic central character of Spartacus remains mysterious, rarely speaking and seen mostly through the eyes of those around him. It is no spoiler to note that Spartacus does not have a happy ending - and the final scenes on the Appian Way (the main road into Rome) are more harrowing than anything Hollywood has so far represented. Nevertheless, Mitchell is a great storyteller and I highly recommend this original tale of courage and loyalty, love and death in one of the all-time great historical fiction novels.
Fast-paced, the original Spartacus novel recreates a real sense of how Roman decadence was almost overthrown by an army of over 90,000 former slaves, led by what must have been an exceptional man. Mitchell pulls no punches in the brutal fighting scenes and a surprisingly modern recognition of the role and influence of women on the slave army shows he was ahead of his time. I can imagine this book must have raised a few eyebrows in 1933, as it tackles topics that are often avoided even today.
The charismatic central character of Spartacus remains mysterious, rarely speaking and seen mostly through the eyes of those around him. It is no spoiler to note that Spartacus does not have a happy ending - and the final scenes on the Appian Way (the main road into Rome) are more harrowing than anything Hollywood has so far represented. Nevertheless, Mitchell is a great storyteller and I highly recommend this original tale of courage and loyalty, love and death in one of the all-time great historical fiction novels.
April 8, 2022
Birçoğumuzun dizi uyarlamasıyla tanıdığı Spartaküs'ü, bir de okuyarak tanımak istedim. Sonucunda da İskoç yazar Lewis Grassic Gibbon (1901-1935) tarafından yazılan Spartaküs eseriyle tanıştım.
Trak bir köle olan gladyatör Spartaküs, M.Ö 109-M.Ö 71 yılları arasında yaşamıştır. Roma ordusunun altında köle olarak yaşarken, birkaç arkadaşıyla (Crixus, Oenomaus, Gannicus, Castus) birlikte firar etmiştir. Ardından da kendi köle ordularını toplayıp, tarihte büyük iz bırakmış olan III. Köle Savaşı'na (Gladyatör Savaşı - Spartaküs Savaşı) yol açmıştır. Roma Cumhuriyeti'ne (S.P.Q.R) yönelik en büyük, en şiddetli ayaklanma olarak kayıtlara geçmiştir. Tahmini savaş kaybı 180.000-190.000 kişi olarak düşünülmektedir.
Bu eserde de, geçmişin ve tarihin bilgilerine de sadık kalınarak bir kurgu oluşturuluyor. Kurgunun akışı, Spartaküs'ün karakter gelişimini, çevresini ve köle ayaklanmasında yaptığı liderliği gözler önüne seriyor. Ayaklanma fikrinin ortaya çıkışından itibaren, bu fikrin nasıl eyleme döküldüğünü de anbean sunuyor. Bu ayaklanma aynı zamanda Platon'un "ideal devlet" anlayışına da bir yolculuk. Gerisini de tıpkı bir dizi ya da film izler gibi okuyoruz.
Bolca savaş, bolca askeri taktik bulduğumuz bu eserde, aşkı ve ihaneti de buluyoruz. Aynı zamanda dönemin tarihine de yakından bir bakış atma fırsatı buluyoruz.
Tarihi kurgu seviyorsanız, eski dönemlere merakınız varsa ve bir de benim gibi dizisinden ötürü Spartaküs hayranıysanız, kesinlikle tavsiye edebilirim.
Trak bir köle olan gladyatör Spartaküs, M.Ö 109-M.Ö 71 yılları arasında yaşamıştır. Roma ordusunun altında köle olarak yaşarken, birkaç arkadaşıyla (Crixus, Oenomaus, Gannicus, Castus) birlikte firar etmiştir. Ardından da kendi köle ordularını toplayıp, tarihte büyük iz bırakmış olan III. Köle Savaşı'na (Gladyatör Savaşı - Spartaküs Savaşı) yol açmıştır. Roma Cumhuriyeti'ne (S.P.Q.R) yönelik en büyük, en şiddetli ayaklanma olarak kayıtlara geçmiştir. Tahmini savaş kaybı 180.000-190.000 kişi olarak düşünülmektedir.
Bu eserde de, geçmişin ve tarihin bilgilerine de sadık kalınarak bir kurgu oluşturuluyor. Kurgunun akışı, Spartaküs'ün karakter gelişimini, çevresini ve köle ayaklanmasında yaptığı liderliği gözler önüne seriyor. Ayaklanma fikrinin ortaya çıkışından itibaren, bu fikrin nasıl eyleme döküldüğünü de anbean sunuyor. Bu ayaklanma aynı zamanda Platon'un "ideal devlet" anlayışına da bir yolculuk. Gerisini de tıpkı bir dizi ya da film izler gibi okuyoruz.
Bolca savaş, bolca askeri taktik bulduğumuz bu eserde, aşkı ve ihaneti de buluyoruz. Aynı zamanda dönemin tarihine de yakından bir bakış atma fırsatı buluyoruz.
Tarihi kurgu seviyorsanız, eski dönemlere merakınız varsa ve bir de benim gibi dizisinden ötürü Spartaküs hayranıysanız, kesinlikle tavsiye edebilirim.
January 21, 2022
This is probably the best version of Spartacus and the Third Servile War. I loved the introduction of making a Republic in which the former masters aren't enslaved, and apart from that, the writing was done well and kept the ancient story alive and exciting.
May 11, 2019
Probably the greatest historical book ever...
Want to Read
November 23, 2022The Spartacus legend retold.
"Spartacus led the third and largest slave revolt against Rome. His army of nearly 100,000 overran most of southern Italy and fought its way up the entire length of the Italian Peninsula to the Alps. He then turned back south in an effort to reach Sicily but was defeated by Marcus Licinius Crassus." He died in 71 B.C.
I want to read this primarily because the author is so wonderful!
*******************************
*Sunset Song 5 stars
*Spartacus TBR
"Spartacus led the third and largest slave revolt against Rome. His army of nearly 100,000 overran most of southern Italy and fought its way up the entire length of the Italian Peninsula to the Alps. He then turned back south in an effort to reach Sicily but was defeated by Marcus Licinius Crassus." He died in 71 B.C.
I want to read this primarily because the author is so wonderful!
*******************************
*Sunset Song 5 stars
*Spartacus TBR
February 14, 2020
“Quando Cleone seppe la notizia che giungeva da Capua, si alzò presto una mattina ed essendo un literatus libero dalle catene, strisciò fino alla stanza del suo padrone, lo pugnalò alla gola, lo mutilò così come era stato mutilato lui stesso, e fuggì da Roma con uno stiletto sporco di sangue nella manica e una copia della Repubblica di Platone nascosta nel petto.”
November 21, 2014
Well worth the read if you are a Spartacus fan. The style of writing for me was a little hard to follow but the story builds up nicely and I really enjoyed reading it. I advise anyone who starts to read this book to keep going and finish it, it's well worth it
August 5, 2026
Unlike Howard Fast's later, more famous Spartacus, this retells the story of the Rome's greatest slave rebellion mostly chronologically, battle by battle. It's a great story - a small group of enslaved Gladiators escape from bondage in Capua in 73BC and spark a rebellion that defeats numerous Roman armies over three years of fighting across Italy. Gibbon's novel is a bit less sentimental and a bit more brutal than Fast's version. It can be a relentlessly martial read at times, but it deserves a bigger readership. An extra star added due to one of the greatest opening lines that I can recall.
"When Kleon heard the news from Capua he rose early one morning, being a literatus and unchained, crept to the room of his Master, stabbed him in the throat, mutilated that Master's body even as his own had been mutilated: and so fled from Rome with a stained dagger in his sleeve and a copy of Plato's Republic hidden in his breast."
February 4, 2020
I first read this novel in my teens and was impressed by the strong narrative and authentic detail. Spartacus is the ultimate tragic hero and a gift for any historical novelist: there's plenty of intriguing gaps in the record for legitimate speculation. This book was written in 1933 and the language is a bit dated ("whither", "ere" etc). That said, the old fashioned style is well-suited to the period and lends it a nice classical sheen. No punches are pulled in terms of sex and violence - it is remarkably brutal at times, all the more potent for the nonchalant delivery.
Four stars is a bit generous but this book was written long before the Howard Fast book, Kubrick film, TV versions and Ben Kanes series. We are spoilt for choice now when it comes to historical fiction and most follow the template set by originals such as this. The book has one of the best opening sentences and the ending is emotional, all the moreso given the author's own early demise.
Footnote: my copy is a lovely paperback from "Hesperus" Press, bought from a bookshop in the shadow of York Minister, close to the statue of Emperor Constantine...Spartacus would be turning in his Lucanian grave.
Four stars is a bit generous but this book was written long before the Howard Fast book, Kubrick film, TV versions and Ben Kanes series. We are spoilt for choice now when it comes to historical fiction and most follow the template set by originals such as this. The book has one of the best opening sentences and the ending is emotional, all the moreso given the author's own early demise.
Footnote: my copy is a lovely paperback from "Hesperus" Press, bought from a bookshop in the shadow of York Minister, close to the statue of Emperor Constantine...Spartacus would be turning in his Lucanian grave.
March 28, 2019
A wonderfully written fictional novel of Spartacus. In this work, you truly "feel" the emotions of the characters and "see" the landscape of war. A fine work of art and literature....
May 27, 2017
Lewis Grassic Gibbon’s Spartacus may be your grandfather’s Spartacus, but is not likely your father’s or Kirk Douglas’ Spartacus from his 1960 motion picture. In a bit of prophecy from the final chapter, Gibbon, through the voice of Kleon, one of the slave commanders, said,
“As this story will grow, dim and confused, in the ages to be, the story of the slaves’ insurrection. They’ll mix the marches and forget our names, and make of Grannicus a loyal hero and of Gershom…a strayed Gaul from Marsala! Poets and hates, with us only their shadowy cup-bearers. All dim and tangled in the tales they’ll tell, except their beginnings with that spring when we roused the slaves. And all the rest a dream or a lie."
Indeed, none of the commanders named above appear in Douglas’ movie, based on the 1951 Howard Fast novel. Most of the plot lines from that novel are absent in this one. The intrigue that comes from the Senate in Rome is transferred here to the generals of the slave army, some of whom are loyal to Spartacus and some who are not. Oddly, Spartacus has a relatively minor role in this book. It is dominated by Kleon and the rest of the commanders.
Only three characters from the movie have any prominent parts in this book. Crixus, played by John Ireland, is killed before the final battle. Crassus, portrayed by Lawrence Olivier, is seen mostly from afar, but is the Roman commander who pursues and eventually defeats Spartacus. Varinia, Spartacus’ lover in the movie, played by Jean Simmons, is a composite of three women in this novel, closest resembling Elpinice, who appears and dies early.
Gibbon’s writing style can be quite poetic, but not easily read.
Three stars waning.
“As this story will grow, dim and confused, in the ages to be, the story of the slaves’ insurrection. They’ll mix the marches and forget our names, and make of Grannicus a loyal hero and of Gershom…a strayed Gaul from Marsala! Poets and hates, with us only their shadowy cup-bearers. All dim and tangled in the tales they’ll tell, except their beginnings with that spring when we roused the slaves. And all the rest a dream or a lie."
Indeed, none of the commanders named above appear in Douglas’ movie, based on the 1951 Howard Fast novel. Most of the plot lines from that novel are absent in this one. The intrigue that comes from the Senate in Rome is transferred here to the generals of the slave army, some of whom are loyal to Spartacus and some who are not. Oddly, Spartacus has a relatively minor role in this book. It is dominated by Kleon and the rest of the commanders.
Only three characters from the movie have any prominent parts in this book. Crixus, played by John Ireland, is killed before the final battle. Crassus, portrayed by Lawrence Olivier, is seen mostly from afar, but is the Roman commander who pursues and eventually defeats Spartacus. Varinia, Spartacus’ lover in the movie, played by Jean Simmons, is a composite of three women in this novel, closest resembling Elpinice, who appears and dies early.
Gibbon’s writing style can be quite poetic, but not easily read.
Three stars waning.
May 20, 2019
The strength of this novel is its strong prose style, a style that Ian Campbell has correctly described as “flexible and arresting.” The novel’s weakness is its limited characterization. For all its fine evocative passages, the characters are flat and fail to develop. Perhaps we can excuse former slaves for being emotionally stunted, but the reader may soon cease to care whether such people live or die.
And die they do. This is a novel littered with corpses. Even though Mitchell, writing in the 1930s, could not have anticipated the sort of blood lust in which 21st-century Hollywood wallows, his numerous unpleasant deaths, coolly observed, are still deaths with their humanity withdrawn.
Finally, mention should be made of what Campbell calls Mitchell’s “occasionally injudicious reliance on one effect.” Some characters have a leitmotif that follows them insistently (and sometimes irritatingly) through the story. The author also has a fascination for Latin, Greek, and obscure English words. Although the reader can usually deduce what the unknown word must mean, occasionally Mitchell goes overboard, as when he writes that “beyond the horreum itself, through a fence of osiers, the steadings of a farm loomed.” (56)
And die they do. This is a novel littered with corpses. Even though Mitchell, writing in the 1930s, could not have anticipated the sort of blood lust in which 21st-century Hollywood wallows, his numerous unpleasant deaths, coolly observed, are still deaths with their humanity withdrawn.
Finally, mention should be made of what Campbell calls Mitchell’s “occasionally injudicious reliance on one effect.” Some characters have a leitmotif that follows them insistently (and sometimes irritatingly) through the story. The author also has a fascination for Latin, Greek, and obscure English words. Although the reader can usually deduce what the unknown word must mean, occasionally Mitchell goes overboard, as when he writes that “beyond the horreum itself, through a fence of osiers, the steadings of a farm loomed.” (56)
August 22, 2022
Sometimes I wish I could add an extra half star to some ratings. If I could, I would rate Grassic Gibbon's (I know it's a pen name) Spartacus a 4 and a half.
So why read it?
Why not? A good friend told me it was a classic but even if it ain't it is wurly good.
I liked the courage shown by these slaves to revolt again and again against their overlords. Moreover, the growing realisation that their ideas, despite them being low-born nobodies, were as good as, if not better than the best generals the Roman Empire could throw at them. The Empire forces being militarily routed again and again by these now-organised former slaves.
Inspirational stuff.
But it also doesn't shy away from the difficulities and desperation of Spatacus and his desperadoes. Where on the Italian Peninsula should they go? Should they march on Rome and seize it?...is tomorrow their last day before capture and/or death?
My only small quibble is that there are a number of terms, particularly Roman military words and terms, that I had to look up to find out what was being said. This spoils the flow of the reading and the tension, a shame because it is so beautifully written and (as said above) inspirational work.
So why read it?
Why not? A good friend told me it was a classic but even if it ain't it is wurly good.
I liked the courage shown by these slaves to revolt again and again against their overlords. Moreover, the growing realisation that their ideas, despite them being low-born nobodies, were as good as, if not better than the best generals the Roman Empire could throw at them. The Empire forces being militarily routed again and again by these now-organised former slaves.
Inspirational stuff.
But it also doesn't shy away from the difficulities and desperation of Spatacus and his desperadoes. Where on the Italian Peninsula should they go? Should they march on Rome and seize it?...is tomorrow their last day before capture and/or death?
My only small quibble is that there are a number of terms, particularly Roman military words and terms, that I had to look up to find out what was being said. This spoils the flow of the reading and the tension, a shame because it is so beautifully written and (as said above) inspirational work.
May 27, 2024
A classic Greek tragedy. I was encouraged to pick this up after hearing Dr. Billy Garvey (from his Pop Culture Parenting podcast - episode 85: Cultivating Courage) discuss the story of Spartacus and how he functioned as a leader and human. Spartacus was capable of bringing together several groups of people, many who had a general distaste for those not in their cohort, and get them to rally behind a common cause. He did this through being a leader who listened first before pushing his agenda.
I'm glad I read it.
I'm glad I read it.
October 4, 2023
A wonderfully told tale of the great slave revolt led by Spartacus.
October 9, 2023
More like Spartacus as an event than Spartacus as a person. Enjoyable nonetheless.
March 2, 2024
mindblowing to think anyone but flies mated and endured and again and again til bloodlines met to make us
10/10 new fave book
10/10 new fave book
October 2, 2016
Lewis Grassic Gibbon's (LGG) Spartacus is one of several novels that tell the story of the gladiator turned revolutionary.
The novel has obvious socialist overtones with the slaves in revolts against their masters. Interestingly LGG tried unsuccessfully to join the British Communist Party.
The Hollywood movie Spartacus was based on the novel by Howard Fast. Fast finished his book in 1951 but because he was a member of the USA Communist Party until 1956, Hollywood producers did not feel confident to use the novel as the basis for the screen play until 1960.
LGG's is supposed to be the most authoritative version, drawing on accounts written by classical historians.
Regardless of its veracity or its political leanings it was a good read.
The novel has obvious socialist overtones with the slaves in revolts against their masters. Interestingly LGG tried unsuccessfully to join the British Communist Party.
The Hollywood movie Spartacus was based on the novel by Howard Fast. Fast finished his book in 1951 but because he was a member of the USA Communist Party until 1956, Hollywood producers did not feel confident to use the novel as the basis for the screen play until 1960.
LGG's is supposed to be the most authoritative version, drawing on accounts written by classical historians.
Regardless of its veracity or its political leanings it was a good read.
December 8, 2017
I liked this one better than Howard Fast's (I thought his portrayals of Crassus and Cicero were way off). It's told more from the viewpoints of the people around Spartacus than from his. It starts with a Greek eunuch killing his master and running off to join Spartacus' band - he's one of the characters who keeps reappearing. There's also a Jewish general who fought in Judea, and was captured and sold into slavery in Syria. Spartacus himself is kind of boring when we finally meet him. Once in a while we meet a Roman general trying to defeat Spartacus, but they're fairly incompetent.
Read
May 1, 2016Recent viewing of the movie Trumbo reminded me that I read Spartacus, the novel, in high school a couple of years before I saw the Kirk Douglas movie. I remember being uncertain at the time whether this leader of a slave revolt was a real, historical figure or whether this was entirely fictional character placed in a historic setting.
February 23, 2013
Nasty and brutish portrayal of the slave revolt.
No one comes out of this tale particulary shiny, it is not some kind of hagiography on Spartacus which I initially thought it might be considering Gibbon's politics.
In this there are (to quote the McNeill song) "no gods and precious few heroes".
No one comes out of this tale particulary shiny, it is not some kind of hagiography on Spartacus which I initially thought it might be considering Gibbon's politics.
In this there are (to quote the McNeill song) "no gods and precious few heroes".
May 18, 2012
I really wanted to like this. The description talks about how great it is but I found it unreadable. Hard to follow and not well written, in my opinion.
May 23, 2013
very well written, Great read.
February 19, 2013
grrrrrrrr. it was hard to get into but what you did get into was very interseting
August 30, 2018
A very accurate interpretation of the rebel leader Spartacus. At times the words itself countered the flow of the book.
March 24, 2017
Amazing historical novel in the same genre as Ben Hur or the ten commandments. I loved it
April 29, 2017
Beautifully written. A classic tragedy.
May 3, 2017
A poorly presented historical fiction
It is one of the worst historical novels that I have read so far - it is neither history nor areas able novel. I do not know why it was ever published
It is one of the worst historical novels that I have read so far - it is neither history nor areas able novel. I do not know why it was ever published
Displaying 1 - 30 of 30 reviews