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Ancient Lives
Horace: Poet on a Volcano
A biography of Horace, one of the most popular poets from antiquity, revealing the little-known man behind his famous lines
Quintus Horatius Flaccus (65–8 BCE) wrote some of ancient Rome’s greatest poetry, melding languages and cultures with youthful ideals and a realist’s recognition of the dictatorial world around him. Horace is famed for his fine phrases, lyric sex, and guidance on how to live, but he was a poet maddened by war, and many of his most self-revealing poems have rarely been read. He could be sublime and obscene, amusing and abusive, a model of moderation and anything but.
In this book, the first modern retelling of Horace’s life, Peter Stothard follows the poet from his birth as the son of a formerly enslaved father through his rise to the highest circles of Roman society. He shines a light on how shattering experiences in the war to save Rome’s republic shaped the loyal servant and revolutionary artist he became. With astute scholarship and sympathy, Stothard explores the poet’s legacy of dark insecurity, bright pleasure, and troubled service to the politics of his time.
Quintus Horatius Flaccus (65–8 BCE) wrote some of ancient Rome’s greatest poetry, melding languages and cultures with youthful ideals and a realist’s recognition of the dictatorial world around him. Horace is famed for his fine phrases, lyric sex, and guidance on how to live, but he was a poet maddened by war, and many of his most self-revealing poems have rarely been read. He could be sublime and obscene, amusing and abusive, a model of moderation and anything but.
In this book, the first modern retelling of Horace’s life, Peter Stothard follows the poet from his birth as the son of a formerly enslaved father through his rise to the highest circles of Roman society. He shines a light on how shattering experiences in the war to save Rome’s republic shaped the loyal servant and revolutionary artist he became. With astute scholarship and sympathy, Stothard explores the poet’s legacy of dark insecurity, bright pleasure, and troubled service to the politics of his time.
328 pages, Hardcover
First published May 13, 2025
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
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August 16, 2025Worth your while to read Dominic Green's splendid review of this Roman history and biography:
https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/book.... As always, I'm happy to email a copy to non-subscribers. Just ask. High marks for this review!)
Excerpt:
"Peter Stothard’s “Horace: Poet on a Volcano” is the gory, gripping story of an ex-slave’s son who became a war poet in the twilight of the Roman Republic and a courtier in the empire of Augustus. Satirist and strategist, lowlife and literary politician, a lover of Greek literature who wrote in Latin, Horace prospered on the edge of the political volcano and became a man of property with a country villa outside Rome, complete with a vista of Mount Soracte. He boasted that his verse would last forever, and it has. Mr. Stothard, a former editor of the Times of London, shows how Horace lived to write it by using language as both a sword and a shield."
https://www.wsj.com/arts-culture/book.... As always, I'm happy to email a copy to non-subscribers. Just ask. High marks for this review!)
Excerpt:
"Peter Stothard’s “Horace: Poet on a Volcano” is the gory, gripping story of an ex-slave’s son who became a war poet in the twilight of the Roman Republic and a courtier in the empire of Augustus. Satirist and strategist, lowlife and literary politician, a lover of Greek literature who wrote in Latin, Horace prospered on the edge of the political volcano and became a man of property with a country villa outside Rome, complete with a vista of Mount Soracte. He boasted that his verse would last forever, and it has. Mr. Stothard, a former editor of the Times of London, shows how Horace lived to write it by using language as both a sword and a shield."
April 28, 2026
Basically a love letter to Horace, telling his story and the political drama of the day with poetic insight, and actual poems. Absolutely adored it.
July 3, 2025
Wonderful! As a classical poet preparing a manuscript for publication, with Horace's odes part of the process, I was delighted with this book. My understanding of Roman (and Greek) literature has been increased. Highly recommended.
August 16, 2025
Not only a solid look at Roman culture but a strong account of the feverish atmosphere of the power play following the killing of Julius Caesar.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews