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Alexandros #2
Alexandros - 2. Le sabbie di Amon
L'Asia, culla di leggendarie civiltà, dominio incontrastato del Gran Re dei persiani: nessuno avrebbe nemmeno osato concepire l'idea di conquistare un impero così sconfinato. Ma Alessandro, con i suoi compagni, ama l'avventura impossibile. Sconfigge l'esercito nemico in campo aperto, conquista a una a una le fortezze e i porti. Muove verso l'altopiano anatolico, coperto di neve, fino ad affrontare a Isso l'immensa armata di re Dario e spezzarne il poderoso schieramento. Alessandro diventa così il sovrano del più grande impero mai esistito. Ma non gli basta. La sua sete di conquista lo spinge verso l'Egitto dove l'oracolo di Amon gli rivela la sua origine divina e il suo destino di gloria immortale. Prosegue con Le sabbie di Amon l'affascinante saga di Alessandro Magno, con il suo entusiasmante affresco di passioni contrastanti e personaggi indimenticabili.
420 pages, Kindle Edition
First published January 1, 1998
114 people are currently reading
2510 people want to read
About the author
Valerio Massimo Manfredi
139 books1,460 followersValerio Massimo Manfredi is an Italian historian, writer, archaeologist and journalist. He was born in Piumazzo di Castelfranco Emilia, province of Modena and is married to Christine Fedderson Manfredi, who translates his published works from Italian to English. They have two children and live in a small town near Bologna.
Valerio Massimo Manfredi defines himself as an "Ancient World Topographer". Since 1978 he spends his time teaching in several European universities, digging ruins in the Mediterranean and in the Middle East, and writing novels.
The Professor of Classical Archaeology in the "Luigi Bocconi" University of Milan and a familiar face on European television, he has led scientific expeditions, excavations and explorations in Italy and overseas. In addition to this, he has published a number of scientific articles and essays as well as thirteen novels, including the Alexander trilogy and The Last Legion. Alexander was published in thirty-six languages in fifty-five countries and The Last Legion was sold for a major film production in the USA. The Last Legion film was released in 2007.
From Wikipedia
Valerio Massimo Manfredi defines himself as an "Ancient World Topographer". Since 1978 he spends his time teaching in several European universities, digging ruins in the Mediterranean and in the Middle East, and writing novels.
The Professor of Classical Archaeology in the "Luigi Bocconi" University of Milan and a familiar face on European television, he has led scientific expeditions, excavations and explorations in Italy and overseas. In addition to this, he has published a number of scientific articles and essays as well as thirteen novels, including the Alexander trilogy and The Last Legion. Alexander was published in thirty-six languages in fifty-five countries and The Last Legion was sold for a major film production in the USA. The Last Legion film was released in 2007.
From Wikipedia
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August 16, 2025
الإسكندر يدخل مصر من غير ما يرفع سيف كما هو متوقع من أذكي غازي عرفه العالم تقريبًا.
و زي ما قلت قبل كده الإسكندر متهور جدًا بس تهوره سبب شجاعة جنوده
و كمان قارئ ممتاز بس مش بيقرأ للمتعة زينا لا ده بيقرأ عشان يلاقي فكرة جديدة لغزو المكان اللي واقف عقبة في طريقه
الإسكندر مش خارج عشان يحارب هو خارج عشان يخلي كل البلاد تحت حكمه و ده مش لازم يحصل بالحرب بس لما بتقف قصاده بلد بيخليها مثال لاي بلد تانية ممكن تعمل زيها و مش بيتهاون في الموضوع ده ابدًا
دلوقتي خطوة الإسكندر الجديدة لسه متحددتش هل هيغزو بابل ولا هيغزو الهند بس هنعرف كل حاجة في الجزء الأخير من السلسلة التاريخية الرائعة اللي استفدت منها كتير جدًا.
كنت هنسي حلوة جدًا فكرة ان الفرس حتي لو مقتلوش الملك فيليب هيقولوا انهم قتلوه برضه زي ما بيحصل عندنا في الجماعات الإرهابية اللي معملتش حاجة و بتقول انها عملت عشان تعمل لنفسها اعتبار مش أكتر جيش الملك العظيم و الملك العظيم نفسه لا يساوي أي شئ بدون القائد ممنون لأنه ببساطة شديدة خايف جدًا من الموت خايف جدًا يخسر مملكته الواسعة و مينفعش تدخل حرب و انت خايف في أقرب فرصة هتهرب.
و زي ما قلت قبل كده الإسكندر متهور جدًا بس تهوره سبب شجاعة جنوده
و كمان قارئ ممتاز بس مش بيقرأ للمتعة زينا لا ده بيقرأ عشان يلاقي فكرة جديدة لغزو المكان اللي واقف عقبة في طريقه
الإسكندر مش خارج عشان يحارب هو خارج عشان يخلي كل البلاد تحت حكمه و ده مش لازم يحصل بالحرب بس لما بتقف قصاده بلد بيخليها مثال لاي بلد تانية ممكن تعمل زيها و مش بيتهاون في الموضوع ده ابدًا
دلوقتي خطوة الإسكندر الجديدة لسه متحددتش هل هيغزو بابل ولا هيغزو الهند بس هنعرف كل حاجة في الجزء الأخير من السلسلة التاريخية الرائعة اللي استفدت منها كتير جدًا.
كنت هنسي حلوة جدًا فكرة ان الفرس حتي لو مقتلوش الملك فيليب هيقولوا انهم قتلوه برضه زي ما بيحصل عندنا في الجماعات الإرهابية اللي معملتش حاجة و بتقول انها عملت عشان تعمل لنفسها اعتبار مش أكتر جيش الملك العظيم و الملك العظيم نفسه لا يساوي أي شئ بدون القائد ممنون لأنه ببساطة شديدة خايف جدًا من الموت خايف جدًا يخسر مملكته الواسعة و مينفعش تدخل حرب و انت خايف في أقرب فرصة هتهرب.
June 20, 2020
الجزء الثاني من رواية الإسكندر رمال آمون. في هذا الجزء ينتقل الكاتب إلى الحروب والملاحم الدموية التي خاضها الإسكندر في آسيا. وهنا تجلّت بوضوح شخصية الإسكندر الأسطورية. فقد كان هو من يخطط للتكتيكات الحربية ويقود المواجهة ضد أعدائهِ بكلّ شجاعة وإقدام جنبًا إلى جنب قادته وجنوده دون خوف أو وجل من الموت.
كان يتفقد جنوده ويحييهم ويشعرهم بأنه قريب منهم بل واحد منهم. كان لا يرضى أن تبقى جثث جنوده أو جثث الأعداء ملقية على الأرض لتأكلها الحيوانات والطيور الجارحة. بل كان يسارع بوقف الهجمات ويأمر بترتيب دفن القتلى، كلّ حسبَ معتقداتهِ. ما عدا سكان صور الذين نكلوا بكل الوفود الذي أرسلها لهم لطلب التفاوض. فبعدما اقتحمها صلب ما يقارب ألفًا منهم جزاءً نكالاً على ما فعلوه بالرسل المبعوثين من قبلهِ.
اقتباسات
.
.
.
“من الواضح أن هذا الملك الشاب قد أصبح أسطوريًا. هذه هي المشكلة، لا يمكن للمرء أن يحارب أسطورة”.
“إنني لا أقبل الهزيمة من أي شخصٍ، عدا الحب”.
“ظنوا أن الشمس ستُبهر عيوننا، لكنهم لم يعلموا أنه ما من شيء سيزعجنا حتى القمر”.
“إن الرابح على حقٍّ على الدوام، أما الخاسر فهو على خطأ دائمًا”.
“إن الفوز في المعركة لا يكفي أبدًا، لأن الجزء الصعب يأتي فيما بعد”.
“إذا لم تعرف الماضي، فلن يكون في وسعك أن تفهم الحاضر”.
“يشبه الملك الفنان كثيرًا، لأنه ينبغي له أن يملأ المسرح، لذلك لا يستطيع أن يمنح نفسه ترف الشرود. ينتهي الملك إذا شرد”.
- “وماذا بشأن ممنون؟”.
- أجاب الملك:”لا أسمح لأحد بأن يدفعني إلى قتله غدرًا. إنه رجل شجاع ويستحق أن يموت حاملًا سيفه بيده، لا أن يموت مسمومًا في سريره، أو مطعونًا في ظهره في أثناء سيره في الظلال”.
“إن ابن الأسد أسد مثله، وليس أفعوانًا سامًا”.
“إما أن يكون هناك حلٌّ للمشكلة، ولذلك لا جدوى من القلق بشأنها. وإما ألّا يكون هناك حلٌّ، ولذلك لا جدوى من القلق بشأنها” ـ أرسطو.
“ما من شيء يولد داخل قلوب البشر ولا يكون آتيًا من إرادة القدر”.
فاليريو ماسيمو مانفريدي.
كان يتفقد جنوده ويحييهم ويشعرهم بأنه قريب منهم بل واحد منهم. كان لا يرضى أن تبقى جثث جنوده أو جثث الأعداء ملقية على الأرض لتأكلها الحيوانات والطيور الجارحة. بل كان يسارع بوقف الهجمات ويأمر بترتيب دفن القتلى، كلّ حسبَ معتقداتهِ. ما عدا سكان صور الذين نكلوا بكل الوفود الذي أرسلها لهم لطلب التفاوض. فبعدما اقتحمها صلب ما يقارب ألفًا منهم جزاءً نكالاً على ما فعلوه بالرسل المبعوثين من قبلهِ.
اقتباسات
.
.
.
“من الواضح أن هذا الملك الشاب قد أصبح أسطوريًا. هذه هي المشكلة، لا يمكن للمرء أن يحارب أسطورة”.
“إنني لا أقبل الهزيمة من أي شخصٍ، عدا الحب”.
“ظنوا أن الشمس ستُبهر عيوننا، لكنهم لم يعلموا أنه ما من شيء سيزعجنا حتى القمر”.
“إن الرابح على حقٍّ على الدوام، أما الخاسر فهو على خطأ دائمًا”.
“إن الفوز في المعركة لا يكفي أبدًا، لأن الجزء الصعب يأتي فيما بعد”.
“إذا لم تعرف الماضي، فلن يكون في وسعك أن تفهم الحاضر”.
“يشبه الملك الفنان كثيرًا، لأنه ينبغي له أن يملأ المسرح، لذلك لا يستطيع أن يمنح نفسه ترف الشرود. ينتهي الملك إذا شرد”.
- “وماذا بشأن ممنون؟”.
- أجاب الملك:”لا أسمح لأحد بأن يدفعني إلى قتله غدرًا. إنه رجل شجاع ويستحق أن يموت حاملًا سيفه بيده، لا أن يموت مسمومًا في سريره، أو مطعونًا في ظهره في أثناء سيره في الظلال”.
“إن ابن الأسد أسد مثله، وليس أفعوانًا سامًا”.
“إما أن يكون هناك حلٌّ للمشكلة، ولذلك لا جدوى من القلق بشأنها. وإما ألّا يكون هناك حلٌّ، ولذلك لا جدوى من القلق بشأنها” ـ أرسطو.
“ما من شيء يولد داخل قلوب البشر ولا يكون آتيًا من إرادة القدر”.
فاليريو ماسيمو مانفريدي.
October 24, 2020
I just finished the second part of Manfredi’s trilogy and I report with pleasure from my travels with Alexander the Great.
We crossed the Hellespont, through which Persian kings once came to conquer Greece. While passing by the temple of Athena on the site of Troy, Alexander demanded that he, as a rightful heir, should have the weapons once worn by Achilles and kept there as sacred objects. The temple priests obliged and so equipped, he led us further into Asia, to liberate the Greek cities under the Persian dominion.
After much resistance we have finally conquered Heraklion although Memnon continues to make our progress difficult. We have visited Gordum where Alexander ensured the fulfillment of his destiny (according to prophecy whoever untangled the gordian knot would be the ruler of Asia), by cutting the knot in half. We have also met King Darius for the first time, and chased him off the battlefield, and finally we embarked on the conquest of the richest of Persian provinces - Egypt.
I can’t decide if I think that Alexander had a soul of a traveller who was tormented by an irresistible urge to see the wonders of Asia, and not being able to stop by for a visit had no other choice, but to conquer it all, or if I believe that he was a reformer with a dream to unite all of the known world.
Whichever it was (and I am strongly inclined towards the former) I am positively charmed by this captivating story.
And by the way, courtesy of Oliver Stone I keep seeing Colin Farrel as Alexander which is limiting and mildly irritating, but only mildly since there is more than enough space for imagination in this most magnificent of worlds adventures .
We crossed the Hellespont, through which Persian kings once came to conquer Greece. While passing by the temple of Athena on the site of Troy, Alexander demanded that he, as a rightful heir, should have the weapons once worn by Achilles and kept there as sacred objects. The temple priests obliged and so equipped, he led us further into Asia, to liberate the Greek cities under the Persian dominion.
After much resistance we have finally conquered Heraklion although Memnon continues to make our progress difficult. We have visited Gordum where Alexander ensured the fulfillment of his destiny (according to prophecy whoever untangled the gordian knot would be the ruler of Asia), by cutting the knot in half. We have also met King Darius for the first time, and chased him off the battlefield, and finally we embarked on the conquest of the richest of Persian provinces - Egypt.
I can’t decide if I think that Alexander had a soul of a traveller who was tormented by an irresistible urge to see the wonders of Asia, and not being able to stop by for a visit had no other choice, but to conquer it all, or if I believe that he was a reformer with a dream to unite all of the known world.
Whichever it was (and I am strongly inclined towards the former) I am positively charmed by this captivating story.
And by the way, courtesy of Oliver Stone I keep seeing Colin Farrel as Alexander which is limiting and mildly irritating, but only mildly since there is more than enough space for imagination in this most magnificent of worlds adventures .
April 12, 2024
Reseña completa al terminar la Trilogía, este segundo volumen mantiene el buen nivel del anterior.
November 1, 2021
En la línea de su predecesor, continuista en todos los aspectos. Me remito a mi reseña anterior y ya me explayaré en consideraciones sobre la trilogía en su última entrega.
Me gustaría apuntar, no obstante y desde la decepción, que estos libros no aportan una visión todo lo global que desearía de la figura de Alejandro Magno; considero que las obras están excesivamente enfocadas a lo puramente bélico. Y esta característica, probablemente intencionada por parte del autor, ha sido todavía más evidente en "Las Arenas de Amón". En el primer libro, "El Hijo del Sueño", había más espacio para la mitología, la cultura helenística, las intrigas palaciegas, las conjuras políticas, los movimientos geoestratégicos. Aquí todo es puro acero.
Así las cosas, en éste segundo libro, el protagonismo es para las batallas en detrimento de todo lo comentado: el Gránico, el asedio a Halicarnaso, Issos... Aquí están la mayoría, y todas son narradas de forma sucinta y directa, sin florituras. Planteamiento, desarrollo y desenlace. No esperéis distintos puntos de vista ni capítulos enteros dedicados a las contiendas.
En general, y volviendo a lo que comentaba, echo en falta que el autor explore el lado más personal de Alejandro Magno (religioso, matrimonial, mitológico, sexual, vínculos con sus generales....). Entiendo que éste sea un terreno más "escabroso", quizá menos objetivo que la crónica descriptiva de las batallas, y que probablemente, teniendo siempre presente el carácter oscuro, parcial e hiperbólico que rodea las fuentes históricas antiguas, el autor no acaba de querer/atreverse a darnos su visión sobre el Alejandro Magno humano. El hombre detrás del mito, vamos. Ojalá todo esto se aborde en la tercera y última entrega de la saga. Ya os contaré.
La nota es de 3,5 estrellas.
October 22, 2018
الكتاب في جزئه الثاني يستمر بتأريخ غزوة الإسكندر المقدوني التاريخية رفقة أصدقائه ومعاونيه...
على من يريد قراءة الكتاب أن يبحث جيداً في أسماء المدن والمناطق التي غالباً تحمل أسماء مغايرة اليوم وفي غالب الأمر لن يجد الكثير من المعلومات بالعربية وهو أمر مؤسف مثله مثل جميع المجالات العلمية التي يعتبر وجودها كمحتوى ومصادر قليلا بالعربية على الإنترنت.
الكتاب جميل و ممتع وسلس ولو كان تخصصياً لكان صعباً ومملاً لمن ليس لديه خلفية تاريخية،لكنه بشكله الحالي يعتبر مدخلاًَ جيداً،، مع ظني أن الترجمة هي أسوء مافي الأمر كان بالإمكان أفضل بكثير مما كان مع إضافة بعض الحواشي.
على من يريد قراءة الكتاب أن يبحث جيداً في أسماء المدن والمناطق التي غالباً تحمل أسماء مغايرة اليوم وفي غالب الأمر لن يجد الكثير من المعلومات بالعربية وهو أمر مؤسف مثله مثل جميع المجالات العلمية التي يعتبر وجودها كمحتوى ومصادر قليلا بالعربية على الإنترنت.
الكتاب جميل و ممتع وسلس ولو كان تخصصياً لكان صعباً ومملاً لمن ليس لديه خلفية تاريخية،لكنه بشكله الحالي يعتبر مدخلاًَ جيداً،، مع ظني أن الترجمة هي أسوء مافي الأمر كان بالإمكان أفضل بكثير مما كان مع إضافة بعض الحواشي.
December 19, 2007
Manfredi continues to shine, strongly depicting Alexander in his rise as a somewhat conflicted young man well on his way to conquering the known world. The details concerning Memnon, the commander of the Persian army, were quite nice and really fleshed things out for me. I particularly liked the way the author dealt with the issue of the Gordian knot, showing Alexander's lack of patience for which he was quite well-known. This trilogy doesn't really stand out that much, as Manfredi is not taking a lot of liberties, but I suppose that's a good thing. Additionally, his balance of the events is admirable, as we do not feel particularly bogged down when the events slow (Alexander's convalescence before Issus, the winter in central Anatolia, the siege of Tyre). Additionally, in reading these books fairly intensively over the past week, I've dreamt of Alexander and his companions every night, which is certainly one of the goals of good historical fiction: to draw in the reader such that his/her unconscious mind is focused on the epoch the narrative takes place in. I was leaning towards four stars but this simple fact made me bump it up to five. Only Aztec, by Gary Jennings, and some Mary Renault novels have had this effect on me. In sum: well-balanced, anecdotal, sticking straight to the sources and vivid enough to make this reader's dreams come alive with the 4th century BC.
June 26, 2022
The second part of the Alexander trilogy, 'The Sands of Ammon', continues the story from the first part, and describes the war between the Macedonians / Greeks and the Persians and ends with Alexander's invasion of Egypt. Most of the book is about war and war strategies, some parts of which are very readable, while other parts are overwhelming with details. It will be of much interest to war history enthusiasts. I think it would have worked better in a movie or in a TV series.
But war is not all there is. The war scenes are interspersed with beautiful scenes, some of which blend seamlessly with the story, and others which are digressions. It looks like Manfredi has done his research well and has tried to find room for every historical anecdote and every story from the Alexander legend which may not have a historical basis. The depth in terms of detail is amazing and sometimes overwhelming.
There were many beautiful scenes in the story which were moving and gave this reader goosebumps. One of my favourites was when Barsine – the wife of Memnon, the Greek mercenary commander who is fighting for the Persians – writes a letter to her husband, telling him how much she is missing him. In that letter she says that she is reading Euripedes' tragic play 'Alcestis', and she describes a heartbreaking scene from it. I've never read a Euripedes play before, and after reading this, I want to read 'Alcestis' now. Another of my favourite scenes in the one in which Alexander is fighting one-on-one with a Persian in a battle, when he recognizes this Persian and realizes that he was the one who saved him during a hunting expedition when he was younger. So he asks his soldiers not to harm this Persian but to keep him under arrest, and later visits him, realizes that the Persian also recognizes him, they both talk in sign language, and then gets him a horse, and tells him that he can go back home to his family. It is a beautiful moving scene. In another of my favourite scenes, after capturing a city, the Macedonians are trying to find a new king after the Persians have fled the city, and they discover a gardener who was ready to fight and give up his life for his garden and his trees, when invaders tried razing them down. They make this gardener the king, and he turns out to be one of the kindest kings the city ever had. It made me think of the Roman general Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, who had retired and who was sitting in his small farm tending to his plants, when the people came to him and asked him to assume the leadership of the state and help defend it against their enemies. He came back from retirement, assumed charge, defeated his country's enemies, and then did the amazing unthinkable thing – handed over the reins of power to the civilian authorities and then went back to his farm to tend to his plants. It also made me think of Deng Xiaoping, who had been banished to his village, where he was working as a truck mechanic, when one day people arrived and told him that the Gang of Four are dead and the country is in chaos, and asked him to come back to the capital, take over the leadership, and guide their country into the future.
I'll describe one more of my favourite scenes. In this, Leonidas, who was the teacher of Alexander and his friends when they were young boys, decides to visit Alexander who is in the middle of a military campaign. Leonidas is old now, in his eighties, and toothless, but he has heard of the glorious deeds of his student and so wants to meet him one final time and ask him about his experiences. When Leonidas arrives, Alexander's friends see him first and they are surprised and suddenly they roll back the years and they taunt their old teacher the way they used to do when they were naughty students and Leonidas hides his tears of affection and shows mock anger and tells them that they are as unruly as ever. It is such a beautiful, heartwarming reunion scene. Later Leonidas and Alexander sit and talk for the whole night, and the old teacher asks his famous pupil many questions on all the wonders he has seen, and the pupil replies to his teacher, while they both are basking in the warmth of the fire. That whole episode made me cry. My dad was a teacher for many years and sometimes when his old students, or younger teachers whom my dad mentored visit him, I can see the way my dad gets animated and see how proud he is of the achievements of his students, who were once naughty kids in the classroom. I remembered that when I read about Leonidas.
Aristotle also makes guest appearances in this part, in which he is trying to solve a murder mystery. It hasn't been resolved yet and the culprit hasn't been identified, and so I'm looking forward to finding out what happens in the third part.
The word 'mercenary' is used in a negative connotation these days, but this story describes how mercenaries can be noble too.
The story describes the siege of Halicarnassus and also mentions its most famous former resident, the great historian who is regarded as the father of history, Herodotus. The siege was heartbreaking to read, of course, but reading about Herodotus made me take out his 'Histories' that I have and flip through its pages. I'm so tempted to read it next. The book also has many scenes in which Alexander is reading from the ancient Greek classic 'Anabasis' by Xenophon, and discusses it with his commanders. I read parts of 'Anabasis' a few years back and loved it, but unfortunately got distracted halfway through, and couldn't finish it. I want to read it again now. So, this story has added atleast three books to my TBR – 'Alcestis', 'Histories', and 'Anabasis'.
I enjoyed reading this second part of the Alexander trilogy. I loved the first part more, but I loved the beautiful, quiet scenes which came in this second part. I can't wait to get started on the third part.
Have you read this second part of the Alexander trilogy? What do you think about it?
But war is not all there is. The war scenes are interspersed with beautiful scenes, some of which blend seamlessly with the story, and others which are digressions. It looks like Manfredi has done his research well and has tried to find room for every historical anecdote and every story from the Alexander legend which may not have a historical basis. The depth in terms of detail is amazing and sometimes overwhelming.
There were many beautiful scenes in the story which were moving and gave this reader goosebumps. One of my favourites was when Barsine – the wife of Memnon, the Greek mercenary commander who is fighting for the Persians – writes a letter to her husband, telling him how much she is missing him. In that letter she says that she is reading Euripedes' tragic play 'Alcestis', and she describes a heartbreaking scene from it. I've never read a Euripedes play before, and after reading this, I want to read 'Alcestis' now. Another of my favourite scenes in the one in which Alexander is fighting one-on-one with a Persian in a battle, when he recognizes this Persian and realizes that he was the one who saved him during a hunting expedition when he was younger. So he asks his soldiers not to harm this Persian but to keep him under arrest, and later visits him, realizes that the Persian also recognizes him, they both talk in sign language, and then gets him a horse, and tells him that he can go back home to his family. It is a beautiful moving scene. In another of my favourite scenes, after capturing a city, the Macedonians are trying to find a new king after the Persians have fled the city, and they discover a gardener who was ready to fight and give up his life for his garden and his trees, when invaders tried razing them down. They make this gardener the king, and he turns out to be one of the kindest kings the city ever had. It made me think of the Roman general Lucius Quinctius Cincinnatus, who had retired and who was sitting in his small farm tending to his plants, when the people came to him and asked him to assume the leadership of the state and help defend it against their enemies. He came back from retirement, assumed charge, defeated his country's enemies, and then did the amazing unthinkable thing – handed over the reins of power to the civilian authorities and then went back to his farm to tend to his plants. It also made me think of Deng Xiaoping, who had been banished to his village, where he was working as a truck mechanic, when one day people arrived and told him that the Gang of Four are dead and the country is in chaos, and asked him to come back to the capital, take over the leadership, and guide their country into the future.
I'll describe one more of my favourite scenes. In this, Leonidas, who was the teacher of Alexander and his friends when they were young boys, decides to visit Alexander who is in the middle of a military campaign. Leonidas is old now, in his eighties, and toothless, but he has heard of the glorious deeds of his student and so wants to meet him one final time and ask him about his experiences. When Leonidas arrives, Alexander's friends see him first and they are surprised and suddenly they roll back the years and they taunt their old teacher the way they used to do when they were naughty students and Leonidas hides his tears of affection and shows mock anger and tells them that they are as unruly as ever. It is such a beautiful, heartwarming reunion scene. Later Leonidas and Alexander sit and talk for the whole night, and the old teacher asks his famous pupil many questions on all the wonders he has seen, and the pupil replies to his teacher, while they both are basking in the warmth of the fire. That whole episode made me cry. My dad was a teacher for many years and sometimes when his old students, or younger teachers whom my dad mentored visit him, I can see the way my dad gets animated and see how proud he is of the achievements of his students, who were once naughty kids in the classroom. I remembered that when I read about Leonidas.
Aristotle also makes guest appearances in this part, in which he is trying to solve a murder mystery. It hasn't been resolved yet and the culprit hasn't been identified, and so I'm looking forward to finding out what happens in the third part.
The word 'mercenary' is used in a negative connotation these days, but this story describes how mercenaries can be noble too.
The story describes the siege of Halicarnassus and also mentions its most famous former resident, the great historian who is regarded as the father of history, Herodotus. The siege was heartbreaking to read, of course, but reading about Herodotus made me take out his 'Histories' that I have and flip through its pages. I'm so tempted to read it next. The book also has many scenes in which Alexander is reading from the ancient Greek classic 'Anabasis' by Xenophon, and discusses it with his commanders. I read parts of 'Anabasis' a few years back and loved it, but unfortunately got distracted halfway through, and couldn't finish it. I want to read it again now. So, this story has added atleast three books to my TBR – 'Alcestis', 'Histories', and 'Anabasis'.
I enjoyed reading this second part of the Alexander trilogy. I loved the first part more, but I loved the beautiful, quiet scenes which came in this second part. I can't wait to get started on the third part.
Have you read this second part of the Alexander trilogy? What do you think about it?
July 16, 2021
This volume in the trilogy doesn't actually suffer from middle-book slump -- it's still about as action-packed and full of sex and intrigue as the first book, even perhaps a little more. It does suffer subjectively because I read this book alongside the Life of Alexander from Plutarch, which meant that I got all the best bits beforehand. The coverage in this volume is Alexander's campaign from his first steps into Asia up until his conquest of Egypt, several episodes of which Plutarch treated in detail, and it's sort of interesting to see the few areas where Manfredi went off-script. His accounts of the battles seemed to be a little weaker than the biographer's, and his invented or speculated episodes didn't make much difference (which I guess is good).
The strangest element of Manfredi's invention was his factual omniscient-narrator presentation of the idea that Olympias is able to telepathically warn Alexander of real and present danger to his person on the battlefield. It's an odd choice because Manfredi has otherwise kept the supernatural in the realm of the subjective -- strange dreams, prophecies that are correct to varying degrees of interpretation, priests making announcements suited to their situation, bizarre good luck. If you're going to break this plausible-deniability supernatural wall, to do so simply for Alexander's mother shouting "duck!" from thousands of miles away seems... unnecessary?
Manfredi hasn't improved his writing to any real degree between the novels, but neither is anything really worse. He managed to convey the appropriate shift in narrative tone from Alexander as the golden child who cannot be stopped to Alexander the troubled conqueror surrounded almost entirely by sycophants. The siege of Tyre was probably the high point of both action and narrative tension. I round this one down mostly to balance out my charity for the first of the series, but also a little bit because Manfredi has an Egyptian interpreter say that hippos are not at all dangerous, and it's not at all clear that this is meant to be a plot to get the Macedonians mauled to death.
The strangest element of Manfredi's invention was his factual omniscient-narrator presentation of the idea that Olympias is able to telepathically warn Alexander of real and present danger to his person on the battlefield. It's an odd choice because Manfredi has otherwise kept the supernatural in the realm of the subjective -- strange dreams, prophecies that are correct to varying degrees of interpretation, priests making announcements suited to their situation, bizarre good luck. If you're going to break this plausible-deniability supernatural wall, to do so simply for Alexander's mother shouting "duck!" from thousands of miles away seems... unnecessary?
Manfredi hasn't improved his writing to any real degree between the novels, but neither is anything really worse. He managed to convey the appropriate shift in narrative tone from Alexander as the golden child who cannot be stopped to Alexander the troubled conqueror surrounded almost entirely by sycophants. The siege of Tyre was probably the high point of both action and narrative tension. I round this one down mostly to balance out my charity for the first of the series, but also a little bit because Manfredi has an Egyptian interpreter say that hippos are not at all dangerous, and it's not at all clear that this is meant to be a plot to get the Macedonians mauled to death.
January 6, 2014
Ugh. This book was even worse than the first in the trilogy, but I've waited so long to read this series that I decided to plod along now that I've read two books out of three.
The first word that comes to my mind when I think about this novel is "juvenile". Every thing about The Sands of Ammon is juvenile, from the dialogue to the descriptions. The history lessons ended with the first book and what we get instead is more, more, more veneration for Alexander.
He's the greatest warrior that ever walked the earth. No army can defeat him. No one can equal him in battle, even when wounded. He's handsome and awe-inspiring even covered in blood and slime. Women fall at his feet without being coerced (consecrated temple attendants? The widows of his enemies? Sure, why not).
Don't worry though, the great king also has a dark side. You can tell because one of his blue eyes is much darker than the other, and becomes even darker when he gets angry (?!). He throws terrible temper tantrums when cities refuse to surrender immediately and occasionally succumbs to battle fever, only to feel bad afterwards and sulk for days for betraying the rational and noble side of his nature.
In spite of the fact that Alexander travels through the whole of Turkey and the Levant, description is once again disappointingly sparse. Mostly it's about decadently luxurious Persian palaces (and concubines), and occasionally about a few ancient cities, but it's sort of just thrown in there for the heck of it. Egypt and the famous oracle of the Siwa oasis, to which the title refers, are only reached at the end and occupy exactly 14 of the 319 pages of this novel, which means Alexander has to travel to Mesopotamia, defeat Darius, make his way through the rest of central Asia, get to the border of modern-day India and die, all in the space of another 300-page novel. I'm really not looking forward to that. I will start looking for an actual historical biography of Alexander the Great as soon as I'm done with this trilogy and hope that can help me get over how bad these books are.
The first word that comes to my mind when I think about this novel is "juvenile". Every thing about The Sands of Ammon is juvenile, from the dialogue to the descriptions. The history lessons ended with the first book and what we get instead is more, more, more veneration for Alexander.
He's the greatest warrior that ever walked the earth. No army can defeat him. No one can equal him in battle, even when wounded. He's handsome and awe-inspiring even covered in blood and slime. Women fall at his feet without being coerced (consecrated temple attendants? The widows of his enemies? Sure, why not).
Don't worry though, the great king also has a dark side. You can tell because one of his blue eyes is much darker than the other, and becomes even darker when he gets angry (?!). He throws terrible temper tantrums when cities refuse to surrender immediately and occasionally succumbs to battle fever, only to feel bad afterwards and sulk for days for betraying the rational and noble side of his nature.
In spite of the fact that Alexander travels through the whole of Turkey and the Levant, description is once again disappointingly sparse. Mostly it's about decadently luxurious Persian palaces (and concubines), and occasionally about a few ancient cities, but it's sort of just thrown in there for the heck of it. Egypt and the famous oracle of the Siwa oasis, to which the title refers, are only reached at the end and occupy exactly 14 of the 319 pages of this novel, which means Alexander has to travel to Mesopotamia, defeat Darius, make his way through the rest of central Asia, get to the border of modern-day India and die, all in the space of another 300-page novel. I'm really not looking forward to that. I will start looking for an actual historical biography of Alexander the Great as soon as I'm done with this trilogy and hope that can help me get over how bad these books are.
November 14, 2014
."من أجرى الدماء فوق
نجمة الآركاديين؟
ـ أباك؟
آه أيها الشاب ذو المجد، والذي لايُقهر.
أنا والدك! "
الجزء الثاني من ثلاثية الإسكندر،وتستمر الملحمة البطولية للإسكندر المقدوني، جزء يسرد ويصف معارك وحملات المقدونين في اسيا، معارك، مواقف،صور..الحرب بين جيش الإسكندر وملك الفرس داريوس، رواية مُدهشة ، وشخصيات عظيمة جدا، نمط السرد سريع جدا، لدرجة لقيت نفسي وصلت لعند اخر ورقة وزيوس يخاطب الإسكندر في معبد امون في واحة سيوة…
الجزء الثالث غير موجود إلكتروني للأسف انتهت الرحلة لعند اهنئ..
نجمة الآركاديين؟
ـ أباك؟
آه أيها الشاب ذو المجد، والذي لايُقهر.
أنا والدك! "
الجزء الثاني من ثلاثية الإسكندر،وتستمر الملحمة البطولية للإسكندر المقدوني، جزء يسرد ويصف معارك وحملات المقدونين في اسيا، معارك، مواقف،صور..الحرب بين جيش الإسكندر وملك الفرس داريوس، رواية مُدهشة ، وشخصيات عظيمة جدا، نمط السرد سريع جدا، لدرجة لقيت نفسي وصلت لعند اخر ورقة وزيوس يخاطب الإسكندر في معبد امون في واحة سيوة…
الجزء الثالث غير موجود إلكتروني للأسف انتهت الرحلة لعند اهنئ..
December 28, 2016
-Los hechos hacen que la leyenda crezca.-
Género. Novela histórica.
Lo que nos cuenta. El ejército de Alejandro ha cruzado al lado asiático de los Dardanelos y asegura sus líneas de suministros antes de avanzar. Sus rivales persas cuentan con un general mercenario de origen griego, Memnón, que trata de usar el terreno en su favor y se prepara para enfrentar a los macedonios en las riveras del río Gránico. Segundo libro de la trilogía Aléxandros.
¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...
Género. Novela histórica.
Lo que nos cuenta. El ejército de Alejandro ha cruzado al lado asiático de los Dardanelos y asegura sus líneas de suministros antes de avanzar. Sus rivales persas cuentan con un general mercenario de origen griego, Memnón, que trata de usar el terreno en su favor y se prepara para enfrentar a los macedonios en las riveras del río Gránico. Segundo libro de la trilogía Aléxandros.
¿Quiere saber más de este libro, sin spoilers? Visite:
http://librosdeolethros.blogspot.com/...
October 20, 2020
يواصل الراوي في هذا الجزء سرد مراحل حملة الإسكندر الأكبر حيث ضم المقدوني
بلاد الأناضول تحت تاجه بعد دك حصون هاليكارناسوس مدينة المؤرخ هيرودوت
متبعًا مسيرة العشرة آلاف لزينوفون ثم التوجه جنوبًا نحو فينيقيا أين يواجه
جيوش الملك العظيم داريوس الثالث و يشتت قواته رغم الفارق الكبير في العدد
ليواصل بطولاته بفتح صور و غزة رغم مقاومتهما الشديدة و جروحه المميتة
التي خلدها النحات ليسيبوس في تماثيله الرائعة و الرسام آبيل في لوحاته المتقنة
متوجًا فتوحاته بدخول مصر وتشييد الإسكندرية بفضل حكمته و قادة جيشه
بارمينيون، كلايتوس الأسود و نيرخوس بالإضافة لرفاقه المخلصين هيفاستيون، بطليموس،
سلوقس، بيرديكاس، ليوناتوس، لايسيماخوس، كراتيروس، فيلوتاس و إيومينيس
بلاد الأناضول تحت تاجه بعد دك حصون هاليكارناسوس مدينة المؤرخ هيرودوت
متبعًا مسيرة العشرة آلاف لزينوفون ثم التوجه جنوبًا نحو فينيقيا أين يواجه
جيوش الملك العظيم داريوس الثالث و يشتت قواته رغم الفارق الكبير في العدد
ليواصل بطولاته بفتح صور و غزة رغم مقاومتهما الشديدة و جروحه المميتة
التي خلدها النحات ليسيبوس في تماثيله الرائعة و الرسام آبيل في لوحاته المتقنة
متوجًا فتوحاته بدخول مصر وتشييد الإسكندرية بفضل حكمته و قادة جيشه
بارمينيون، كلايتوس الأسود و نيرخوس بالإضافة لرفاقه المخلصين هيفاستيون، بطليموس،
سلوقس، بيرديكاس، ليوناتوس، لايسيماخوس، كراتيروس، فيلوتاس و إيومينيس
January 11, 2022
Questo libro mi ha accompagnato in uno dei blocchi del lettore più gravi che mi siano capitati negli ultimi anni, durato più di due mesi. E lo guardavo, il mattone dell'intera trilogia, appogiato sulla scrivania, ma proprio non ci riuscivo, non avevo voglia di continuare. Ma il problema non era il libro, ero io, e me ne sono convinto ora che ho finalmente avuto modo di ricominciare e sono riuscito a finirlo. Manfredi si riconferma come il mio scrittore italiano preferito, con uno stile limpido, con capitoli agili sempre chiusi alla perfezione. Inutile dire che non è da tutti romanzare fatti reali con abilità tale da rendere delebile, alla mente del lettore, la linea fra realtà e finzione.
May 23, 2011
This one was much better than the first. It had more action, it and many more interesting events. I especially enjoyed the part where he untied the knot in King Midas's chariot. I loved picturing him in Achilles Armor. The fight against Darius was well drafted and the bit with his leg where he went right into the heat of the battle was really well done. Memnon made an excellent character focus in this novel. I just think it was much better than the first, and now I am ready to move onto the third.
September 22, 2017
تحفة تاريخية .. مانفريدي أبدع في هذا الجزء بكل شيء .. التفاصيل العسكرية و أحداث المعارك الحربية من أفضل ما قرأت
يستكمل الأسكندر في هذا الجزء حلمه في تحقيق السيطرة على آسيا عن طريق الزحف نحو كل المدن اليونانية في آسيا والتي احتلها الفرس و السيطرة عليها مجددا.
ربما يعيب على القصة فقط ان الكاتب جعل من الإسكندر قديسًا لا يخطيء .. هو متهور بعض الشيء في اتخاذ القرارات لكنه تقريبًا بلا أخطاء
يستكمل الأسكندر في هذا الجزء حلمه في تحقيق السيطرة على آسيا عن طريق الزحف نحو كل المدن اليونانية في آسيا والتي احتلها الفرس و السيطرة عليها مجددا.
ربما يعيب على القصة فقط ان الكاتب جعل من الإسكندر قديسًا لا يخطيء .. هو متهور بعض الشيء في اتخاذ القرارات لكنه تقريبًا بلا أخطاء
March 30, 2018
Seconda parte della trilogia di Manfredi, che copre la traversata dell'Anatolia e l'approdo in Egitto. In apparenza un capitolo di transizione, pur restando fermo nelle sue dettagliate descrizioni storiche, specie per le battaglie del Granico e di Isso, sono introdotti i personaggi di Memnone e la moglie Barsine, i quali sono inseriti in maniera autorevole nelle vicende alessandrine. Inoltre, investigazioni, inganni e intrighi sono sapientemente sviluppati e incastonati nelle vicende più note, sempre con quell'abbellimento a metà tra il mitico e il realismo storico che lo scrittore riesce ad apporre. Di particolare impatto è la narrazione del celebre confronto tra Dario e Alessandro, il quale funge da perfetto cliffhanger per ciò che verrà poi nel terzo e ultimo romanzo della serie.
May 23, 2017
عمل رائع بحق ، ولعل أهم شيء فيه هو التصوير الرائع للمعارك والحصارات
September 22, 2012
A tremendous story. After the slightly slow-paced introduction to his trilogy, ALEXANDER: CHILD OF A DREAM, Valerio Massimo Manfredi does away with all that wishy-washy supernatural stuff to focus on what a story about Alexander the Great should be about: the warfare.
THE SANDS OF AMMON is an absolutely tremendous book that depicts epic, world-changing events on a regular basis. It's an episodic journey narrative, revealing Alexander's travels as he takes both his companions and his armies around the world, capturing everything he finds along the way.
Obviously, it's when the cities resist his occupation that things get really interesting and the many depictions of siege warfare are violent, gritty and tremendously exciting. Manfredi has a knack of taking complex, confused situations and depicting them in simple, easily understandable terms that pays off dividends.
Things do threaten to slow down with some rather extraneous sub-plots that are plonked in, such as Aristotle's investigation of King Philip's assassination, but thankfully things always quickly return to what Manfredi does best, the battles. And this is an excellent read because of that.
THE SANDS OF AMMON is an absolutely tremendous book that depicts epic, world-changing events on a regular basis. It's an episodic journey narrative, revealing Alexander's travels as he takes both his companions and his armies around the world, capturing everything he finds along the way.
Obviously, it's when the cities resist his occupation that things get really interesting and the many depictions of siege warfare are violent, gritty and tremendously exciting. Manfredi has a knack of taking complex, confused situations and depicting them in simple, easily understandable terms that pays off dividends.
Things do threaten to slow down with some rather extraneous sub-plots that are plonked in, such as Aristotle's investigation of King Philip's assassination, but thankfully things always quickly return to what Manfredi does best, the battles. And this is an excellent read because of that.
September 12, 2021
Me ha gustado mucho. La verdad es que me sorprende que no me haya aburrido en la mayoría, casi ninguna, de las batallas.
En este libro podemos ver ya más tema bélico. Y es que Alejandro ya se hace más mayorcito y claro, conquistando diferentes lugares. Para ello está claro que se enfrenta a diversas guerras.
Me parece interesante el tema de la rivalidad entre el rey Menmón y Alejandro. Se admiran y son rivales? Curioso. Digamos que podría considerarse una digna rivalidad.
Toda la parte femenina me ha tenido como loca jajqja Que si una le propone un trato, que si otra lo deja loquito... Alrededor de nuestro protagonista hay muchas mujeres!!! Y muy fuertes de caracter!
Sigo riendome por todo el episodio de los santo y seña. Ahora me reiré cada vez que piense en "sesos de cordero" jajajaja
La verdad que está siendo toda una aventura" acompañar" a nuestro Alejandro Magno.
En este libro podemos ver ya más tema bélico. Y es que Alejandro ya se hace más mayorcito y claro, conquistando diferentes lugares. Para ello está claro que se enfrenta a diversas guerras.
Me parece interesante el tema de la rivalidad entre el rey Menmón y Alejandro. Se admiran y son rivales? Curioso. Digamos que podría considerarse una digna rivalidad.
Toda la parte femenina me ha tenido como loca jajqja Que si una le propone un trato, que si otra lo deja loquito... Alrededor de nuestro protagonista hay muchas mujeres!!! Y muy fuertes de caracter!
Sigo riendome por todo el episodio de los santo y seña. Ahora me reiré cada vez que piense en "sesos de cordero" jajajaja
La verdad que está siendo toda una aventura" acompañar" a nuestro Alejandro Magno.
December 10, 2017
The middle part of Manfredi's trilogy about Alexander the Great follows his story from the moment of his army's crossing into Asia until his foray into Egypt and visit to the oracle of Siwa. While this was a fairly quick read and I enjoyed it for the most part, it did get a bit longwinded in places and I would like to see less superficial characterisations.
February 18, 2018
Manfredi no deja de sorprender.. tremenda descripción de la campaña! Te mete en el corazón de Alejandro.. un hombre en busca de una noble ambición, inspirado en Homero y educado por Aristóteles, genera una fusión única que combina valentía, coraje e ingenio con prudencia, amor y sabiduría que con particular inquietud busca trascender dejando todo de sí.. no se guarda nada. La magnanimidad de Alejandro no radica en las tierras conquistadas sino más bien en su determinación para alcanzar su sueño y su misericordia.
September 15, 2020
αρκετά καλό αν και δεν είμαι σίγουρος αν περιγράφει σωστά τον Αλέξανδρο. βλέπω μία προσπάθεια ωραιοποίησης του χαρακτήρα του και δεν νομίζω ότι είναι σωστή. σαν ανάγνωσμα είναι καλό, ο γνωστός Manfredi.
April 20, 2023
“No cedas al amor si sabes que no puedes soportar la separación”
June 24, 2022
Leitura leve, aventurada e interessante. Mal posso esperar pra ler o terceiro volume
September 18, 2025
Was a very good book, better then the first one with more action and a lot of cool battles
January 24, 2024
La storia di Alessandro Magno è epica e interessante, e già per questo varrebbe la pena di leggere questa trilogia, ben narrata da Manfredi.
I cenni storici sono sempre molto precisi e puntuali, interessanti e mai pesanti.
Forse lo stile soffre un po' gli anni che passano.
I cenni storici sono sempre molto precisi e puntuali, interessanti e mai pesanti.
Forse lo stile soffre un po' gli anni che passano.
November 17, 2024
Si bien la figura de Alejandro Magno sostiene el primer libro, aquí la narrativa se hace repetitiva y predecible, con un autor que busca constantemente enaltecer al conquistador macedonio.
Si bien aquí se presenta un posible "nemesis" de Alejandro, este tampoco logra ser un personaje que permita darle un aire más fresco a la novela.
Se entiende la novela histórica puede verse encerrada en los hechos, pero ello no excusa la narrativa plana.
Si bien aquí se presenta un posible "nemesis" de Alejandro, este tampoco logra ser un personaje que permita darle un aire más fresco a la novela.
Se entiende la novela histórica puede verse encerrada en los hechos, pero ello no excusa la narrativa plana.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 225 reviews