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Talking Classics: The Shock of the Old
FROM THE BESTSELLING AUTHOR OF EMPEROR OF ROME AND SPQR
'The rock star scholar of Ancient Rome' FINANCIAL TIMES
'The reigning Queen of Classics' SPECTATOR
What's exciting about a piece of bread 4,000 years old? Or some pots of paint abandoned in the eruption at Pompeii? Why should we be bothered with the distant past anyway? What's the point?
The life, art and literature of ancient Greece and Rome have something to offer everyone. They are not the property of wealthy white men only. They make us wonder how to make sense of people who lived long ago (from angry landlords to giggling senators) - and to think harder about our own world, to look at it differently.
In Talking Classics, Mary Beard points to the surprising connections between antiquity and the present. From revolutionaries to dictators, Bob Dylan to Beyoncé, she joins forces with the varied modern characters who have been transfixed by the ancient world. It's not compulsory, she argues, to be excited by antiquity, but it's a shame not to be.
After half a century teaching and studying classics, she fills the book with lively stories, curious facts and some good gossip. Talking Classics explains why the deep past does really affect us all.
'The rock star scholar of Ancient Rome' FINANCIAL TIMES
'The reigning Queen of Classics' SPECTATOR
What's exciting about a piece of bread 4,000 years old? Or some pots of paint abandoned in the eruption at Pompeii? Why should we be bothered with the distant past anyway? What's the point?
The life, art and literature of ancient Greece and Rome have something to offer everyone. They are not the property of wealthy white men only. They make us wonder how to make sense of people who lived long ago (from angry landlords to giggling senators) - and to think harder about our own world, to look at it differently.
In Talking Classics, Mary Beard points to the surprising connections between antiquity and the present. From revolutionaries to dictators, Bob Dylan to Beyoncé, she joins forces with the varied modern characters who have been transfixed by the ancient world. It's not compulsory, she argues, to be excited by antiquity, but it's a shame not to be.
After half a century teaching and studying classics, she fills the book with lively stories, curious facts and some good gossip. Talking Classics explains why the deep past does really affect us all.
206 pages, Kindle Edition
First published April 16, 2026
102 people are currently reading
1325 people want to read
About the author
Mary Beard
69 books4,287 followersWinifred Mary Beard (born 1 January 1955) is Professor of Classics at the University of Cambridge and is a fellow of Newnham College. She is the Classics editor of the Times Literary Supplement, and author of the blog "A Don's Life", which appears on The Times as a regular column. Her frequent media appearances and sometimes controversial public statements have led to her being described as "Britain's best-known classicist".
Mary Beard, an only child, was born on 1 January 1955 in Much Wenlock, Shropshire. Her father, Roy Whitbread Beard, worked as an architect in Shrewsbury. She recalled him as "a raffish public-schoolboy type and a complete wastrel, but very engaging". Her mother Joyce Emily Beard was a headmistress and an enthusiastic reader.
Mary Beard attended an all-female direct grant school. During the summer she participated in archaeological excavations; this was initially to earn money for recreational spending, but she began to find the study of antiquity unexpectedly interesting. But it was not all that interested the young Beard. She had friends in many age groups, and a number of trangressions: "Playing around with other people's husbands when you were 17 was bad news. Yes, I was a very naughty girl."
At the age of 18 she was interviewed for a place at Newnham College, Cambridge and sat the then compulsory entrance exam. She had thought of going to King's, but rejected it when she discovered the college did not offer scholarships to women. Although studying at a single-sex college, she found in her first year that some men in the University held dismissive attitudes towards women's academic potential, and this strengthened her determination to succeed. She also developed feminist views that remained "hugely important" in her later life, although she later described "modern orthodox feminism" as partly "cant". Beard received an MA at Newnham and remained in Cambridge for her PhD.
From 1979 to 1983 she lectured in Classics at King's College London. She returned to Cambridge in 1984 as a fellow of Newnham College and the only female lecturer in the Classics faculty. Rome in the Late Republic, which she co-wrote with the Cambridge ancient historian Michael Crawford, was published the same year. In 1985 Beard married Robin Sinclair Cormack. She had a daughter in 1985 and a son in 1987. Beard became Classics editor of the Times Literary Supplement in 1992.
Shortly after the 11 September 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center, Beard was one of several authors invited to contribute articles on the topic to the London Review of Books. She opined that many people, once "the shock had faded", thought "the United States had it coming", and that "[w]orld bullies, even if their heart is in the right place, will in the end pay the price".[4] In a November 2007 interview, she stated that the hostility these comments provoked had still not subsided, although she believed it had become a standard viewpoint that terrorism was associated with American foreign policy.[1]
In 2004, Beard became the Professor of Classics at Cambridge.[3] She is also the Visiting Sather Professor of Classical Literature for 2008–2009 at the University of California, Berkeley, where she has delivered a series of lectures on "Roman Laughter".[5]
Mary Beard, an only child, was born on 1 January 1955 in Much Wenlock, Shropshire. Her father, Roy Whitbread Beard, worked as an architect in Shrewsbury. She recalled him as "a raffish public-schoolboy type and a complete wastrel, but very engaging". Her mother Joyce Emily Beard was a headmistress and an enthusiastic reader.
Mary Beard attended an all-female direct grant school. During the summer she participated in archaeological excavations; this was initially to earn money for recreational spending, but she began to find the study of antiquity unexpectedly interesting. But it was not all that interested the young Beard. She had friends in many age groups, and a number of trangressions: "Playing around with other people's husbands when you were 17 was bad news. Yes, I was a very naughty girl."
At the age of 18 she was interviewed for a place at Newnham College, Cambridge and sat the then compulsory entrance exam. She had thought of going to King's, but rejected it when she discovered the college did not offer scholarships to women. Although studying at a single-sex college, she found in her first year that some men in the University held dismissive attitudes towards women's academic potential, and this strengthened her determination to succeed. She also developed feminist views that remained "hugely important" in her later life, although she later described "modern orthodox feminism" as partly "cant". Beard received an MA at Newnham and remained in Cambridge for her PhD.
From 1979 to 1983 she lectured in Classics at King's College London. She returned to Cambridge in 1984 as a fellow of Newnham College and the only female lecturer in the Classics faculty. Rome in the Late Republic, which she co-wrote with the Cambridge ancient historian Michael Crawford, was published the same year. In 1985 Beard married Robin Sinclair Cormack. She had a daughter in 1985 and a son in 1987. Beard became Classics editor of the Times Literary Supplement in 1992.
Shortly after the 11 September 2001 attacks on the World Trade Center, Beard was one of several authors invited to contribute articles on the topic to the London Review of Books. She opined that many people, once "the shock had faded", thought "the United States had it coming", and that "[w]orld bullies, even if their heart is in the right place, will in the end pay the price".[4] In a November 2007 interview, she stated that the hostility these comments provoked had still not subsided, although she believed it had become a standard viewpoint that terrorism was associated with American foreign policy.[1]
In 2004, Beard became the Professor of Classics at Cambridge.[3] She is also the Visiting Sather Professor of Classical Literature for 2008–2009 at the University of California, Berkeley, where she has delivered a series of lectures on "Roman Laughter".[5]
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 37 reviews
April 17, 2026
This book was magnificent. This was the epitome of the blending of two traits which I find most admirable in any human I come across: Passion and Nuance.
Passion, because any sufficiently motivated human can make any subject interesting and deeply moving simply by imbuing it with their force of feeling, and secondly, being willing to be passionate about something while equally holding the truth that you have more questions than answers, and that there may not even be objective answers in the first place, is one of the most difficult places for a human mind to continually inhabit, yet it is imperative for a well functioning society.
I have always been interested in the ancients (not just the Romans and Greeks, I also include, as Ms. Beard does, the Assyrians, the Egyptians, and ancient cultures from every language family and corner of the globe). Primarily because I do believe as a general rule that things which are handed down pass some sort of filtration system and are worth respecting, simply due to their survival of that process. Now, that process has a metric ton of caveats on both ends, things which are of incalculable value are lost, and things akin to excrement are preserved for decades, centuries or millenia.
The author begins the first half of the book by displaying her personal reasons for loving the classics, and how she has found a 50 year rewarding career out of it. I found this infectious and very useful, the author very emphatically NOT revering the classics but interrogating them as we would anything else, seeing the humor, putrescence, glory, and evil in turn, and calling it out as such. Don't let your view of this history be spoiled by some faux need for reverence of these dusty old figures, see them as real people and it will be far more rewarding.
But the way the author frames the value of the Classics today was the real gem of this book. To paraphrase a few of my favorite passages from the author: "The focus should not be on 'what does classics teach you about', and should be 'What does it teach you to do?':
- First, 'Classics teaches you to argue responsibly on the basis of inadequate evdience' (ancient history is always demanding that we face the gaps in what we know and then make a good case) - a sentiment in scant supply in our day and age.
- Secondly, 'Classics teaches you to discuss constructively questions to which there are no right answers, or any answers at all in the usual sense of the word'. ... "Part of the unashamed mission of humanities education is to celebrate and face up to complexity, not trade in false simplicity. That is what we do."
I will leave with yet another quote from this book: "Classics teaches you to grapple with ideas you don't understand, from an alien world you have never visited; to see how words can be used to enlighten, please, confuse, and deceive; and to realise that you sometimes have to struggle very hard to get the meaning."
Thanks to NetGalley and University of Chicago Press for this eARC
Passion, because any sufficiently motivated human can make any subject interesting and deeply moving simply by imbuing it with their force of feeling, and secondly, being willing to be passionate about something while equally holding the truth that you have more questions than answers, and that there may not even be objective answers in the first place, is one of the most difficult places for a human mind to continually inhabit, yet it is imperative for a well functioning society.
I have always been interested in the ancients (not just the Romans and Greeks, I also include, as Ms. Beard does, the Assyrians, the Egyptians, and ancient cultures from every language family and corner of the globe). Primarily because I do believe as a general rule that things which are handed down pass some sort of filtration system and are worth respecting, simply due to their survival of that process. Now, that process has a metric ton of caveats on both ends, things which are of incalculable value are lost, and things akin to excrement are preserved for decades, centuries or millenia.
The author begins the first half of the book by displaying her personal reasons for loving the classics, and how she has found a 50 year rewarding career out of it. I found this infectious and very useful, the author very emphatically NOT revering the classics but interrogating them as we would anything else, seeing the humor, putrescence, glory, and evil in turn, and calling it out as such. Don't let your view of this history be spoiled by some faux need for reverence of these dusty old figures, see them as real people and it will be far more rewarding.
But the way the author frames the value of the Classics today was the real gem of this book. To paraphrase a few of my favorite passages from the author: "The focus should not be on 'what does classics teach you about', and should be 'What does it teach you to do?':
- First, 'Classics teaches you to argue responsibly on the basis of inadequate evdience' (ancient history is always demanding that we face the gaps in what we know and then make a good case) - a sentiment in scant supply in our day and age.
- Secondly, 'Classics teaches you to discuss constructively questions to which there are no right answers, or any answers at all in the usual sense of the word'. ... "Part of the unashamed mission of humanities education is to celebrate and face up to complexity, not trade in false simplicity. That is what we do."
I will leave with yet another quote from this book: "Classics teaches you to grapple with ideas you don't understand, from an alien world you have never visited; to see how words can be used to enlighten, please, confuse, and deceive; and to realise that you sometimes have to struggle very hard to get the meaning."
Thanks to NetGalley and University of Chicago Press for this eARC
May 4, 2026
Four brilliantly essays exploring the relevance of the classics today written by the inimitable Mary Beard.
She has always made Ancient Greece and Rome accessible and this latest book takes us on an exploration as to how we relate to, further understand and fully value the classics from various perspectives.
Combining the past and present, raising pertinent and relevant questions, the case for the classics to be valued is challenging and highly rewarding.
An excellent read
She has always made Ancient Greece and Rome accessible and this latest book takes us on an exploration as to how we relate to, further understand and fully value the classics from various perspectives.
Combining the past and present, raising pertinent and relevant questions, the case for the classics to be valued is challenging and highly rewarding.
An excellent read
April 25, 2026
this is my first mary beard book! which feels weird because i’ve loved classics since i was a kid and even attended university to study it where im sure she was cited and placed in the recommended reading countless times. however im happy that i found her in my own time, completely by chance, as a result of waterstones advertisement and my love of the colour yellow (the uk version of the book is a bright yellow in case it’s different for you).
its very interesting this book, because it’s written like a conversation. albeit at times clunky, but that’s mostly because i am not fluent in some areas of the discussion and found it difficult to fully take in - but this simply means that i will have to reread the book in a few months perhaps, which is a thrilling task. i honestly think this might be the best book of mary’s to start with - it is a broad analysis of classics, its ever changing state and the various degrees of reception. the talk of class, the root word of classics and how greek and latin have always been a thing of exclusivity was really eye opening to me as someone who studied latin and hated it. perhaps i should pick it back up again, for those faced exclusion because of their lack of knowing it.
thanks mary, and thank you mr british museum employee who showed her the bread. and thank you rick riordan, my own introduction to classical studies.
i’m going to post a substack about this book in some coming days. my substack is (strangely) called debeanobeanbro. pls feel free to read about my (limited in comparison to mary beard as i’m only 22 at the time of reading) experience in classics!
its very interesting this book, because it’s written like a conversation. albeit at times clunky, but that’s mostly because i am not fluent in some areas of the discussion and found it difficult to fully take in - but this simply means that i will have to reread the book in a few months perhaps, which is a thrilling task. i honestly think this might be the best book of mary’s to start with - it is a broad analysis of classics, its ever changing state and the various degrees of reception. the talk of class, the root word of classics and how greek and latin have always been a thing of exclusivity was really eye opening to me as someone who studied latin and hated it. perhaps i should pick it back up again, for those faced exclusion because of their lack of knowing it.
thanks mary, and thank you mr british museum employee who showed her the bread. and thank you rick riordan, my own introduction to classical studies.
i’m going to post a substack about this book in some coming days. my substack is (strangely) called debeanobeanbro. pls feel free to read about my (limited in comparison to mary beard as i’m only 22 at the time of reading) experience in classics!
April 16, 2026
ik lees echt nooit nonfictie dus dit ging me niet zo makkelijk af maar ik ben wel ontzettend fan van mary beard en de klassieken. iedere dag heb ik spijt dat ik geen latijn of grieks heb gehad, het blijft mijn meisjesdroom om classicus te worden. maar misschien kan dat nog???!! wie weet..
February 3, 2026
I was permitted to read an advance copy of this book through Netgalley.
This book is going to surprise a lot of the people who pick it up and start it. I sat down and literally couldn’t stop reading.
Rather than attempting to explain why classic texts are important and relevant, this book instead takes a more remarkable approach. Author Mary Beard says, “Debate, disagreement, and questioning are what classics has to offer, not certainty, truth, beauty or relevance in the way that people often like to imagine. It's fruitless to pretend that the Greeks and Romans offer a useful guide to living now.”
As a lifelong explorer of the Greek and Roman worlds, the author possesses a deep and obvious expertise on this topic. Could she really be saying that the classics don’t matter? The answer, incredibly, is both yes and no.
Beard challenges many current assumptions about the ancient world. Was the burning of the library at Alexandria the worst disaster in human history? All that knowledge lost, all of the ancient voices and opinions and ancient accounts of everyday events snuffed out. Or was it? Beard reminds us that the sheer volume of material that we retain, compared to even more recent events, remains immense. Cataloguing the material that exists from Greece and Rome could occupy a lifetime.
Beard says, “Classical literature has forced me to think harder, face the uncomfortable, and to reread what I had thought I had understood.” This may be the ultimate value of classical literature, to force us to indulge in a life that asks us the hard, important questions. Are we capable of nuance? What do we expect from a friend? What is our responsibility to our parents?
Beard further argues that the meaning of those ancient words and symbols has been muddied by time or co-opted by men who scarcely understood their meaning. The original bits of the Ancient Greek temples that were exhibited in London were sneered at by academics as being undeserving of their glowing descriptions. “One or two critics concluded that some of them, at least, must be later Roman replacements, not classical Greek work of the 'finest age' at all. It was only gradually that they became widely acknowledged as the touchstone of ancient art.” John Kennedy’s ‘Ich Bin Ein Berliner’ speech borrowed from a Roman quote that had only a perverse attachment to the subject of human rights or to freedom. And bankers and dictators have been only too happy to grasp onto the rebuilt, militaristic and often fabricated history of Rome. The author offers that we might consider how more modern interpretations color our perceptions. “There is no way that we can now eradicate Mussolini's vision. The fabric of 'classical' Rome is in part a fascist creation. What we can do is look it in the eye and try to understand the politics that lie behind the way we now encounter the remains of the ancient city, and the choices that Mussolini made about what we should see (or not see), and how.”
I wish that some of my history professors had understood that we should view the classics through a variety of different lenses. The easy approach is to treat these works as the pinnacle of human civilization; reality is much more complex.
Beard again, says, about ancient history: “How do we build a picture of it from the vivid, but scattered, pieces of evidence we have? How do we make it make sense? How can we begin to imagine it? How can we not be startled by it?”
This book will challenge readers to re-imagine what history really looks like. If we were to walk into a restaurant in old Pompeii, where would we sit? Would women be welcome? Who would talk to us or take our orders? What would we be served? Beard walks us through many of these questions in novel and intriguing ways.
This book is going to surprise a lot of the people who pick it up and start it. I sat down and literally couldn’t stop reading.
Rather than attempting to explain why classic texts are important and relevant, this book instead takes a more remarkable approach. Author Mary Beard says, “Debate, disagreement, and questioning are what classics has to offer, not certainty, truth, beauty or relevance in the way that people often like to imagine. It's fruitless to pretend that the Greeks and Romans offer a useful guide to living now.”
As a lifelong explorer of the Greek and Roman worlds, the author possesses a deep and obvious expertise on this topic. Could she really be saying that the classics don’t matter? The answer, incredibly, is both yes and no.
Beard challenges many current assumptions about the ancient world. Was the burning of the library at Alexandria the worst disaster in human history? All that knowledge lost, all of the ancient voices and opinions and ancient accounts of everyday events snuffed out. Or was it? Beard reminds us that the sheer volume of material that we retain, compared to even more recent events, remains immense. Cataloguing the material that exists from Greece and Rome could occupy a lifetime.
Beard says, “Classical literature has forced me to think harder, face the uncomfortable, and to reread what I had thought I had understood.” This may be the ultimate value of classical literature, to force us to indulge in a life that asks us the hard, important questions. Are we capable of nuance? What do we expect from a friend? What is our responsibility to our parents?
Beard further argues that the meaning of those ancient words and symbols has been muddied by time or co-opted by men who scarcely understood their meaning. The original bits of the Ancient Greek temples that were exhibited in London were sneered at by academics as being undeserving of their glowing descriptions. “One or two critics concluded that some of them, at least, must be later Roman replacements, not classical Greek work of the 'finest age' at all. It was only gradually that they became widely acknowledged as the touchstone of ancient art.” John Kennedy’s ‘Ich Bin Ein Berliner’ speech borrowed from a Roman quote that had only a perverse attachment to the subject of human rights or to freedom. And bankers and dictators have been only too happy to grasp onto the rebuilt, militaristic and often fabricated history of Rome. The author offers that we might consider how more modern interpretations color our perceptions. “There is no way that we can now eradicate Mussolini's vision. The fabric of 'classical' Rome is in part a fascist creation. What we can do is look it in the eye and try to understand the politics that lie behind the way we now encounter the remains of the ancient city, and the choices that Mussolini made about what we should see (or not see), and how.”
I wish that some of my history professors had understood that we should view the classics through a variety of different lenses. The easy approach is to treat these works as the pinnacle of human civilization; reality is much more complex.
Beard again, says, about ancient history: “How do we build a picture of it from the vivid, but scattered, pieces of evidence we have? How do we make it make sense? How can we begin to imagine it? How can we not be startled by it?”
This book will challenge readers to re-imagine what history really looks like. If we were to walk into a restaurant in old Pompeii, where would we sit? Would women be welcome? Who would talk to us or take our orders? What would we be served? Beard walks us through many of these questions in novel and intriguing ways.
April 3, 2026
4.25/5 RTF
April 22, 2026
Not sure how I've gone this long without reading Mary Beard yet, but after this book, I'll definitely pick up a few more, since I love the writing style and voice she has in Talking Classics and this entire book just spoke to me, reminding me of why I was so insistent on maintaining my love for the ancient mediterreanean world. There's a lot of other books out there on why people should study the Classics, and Beard succinctly shuts down a lot of the common reasonings, and her book doesn't carry the same level of pretension other such books do — the ancients should be read not because we want to put them on a pedestral or admire them or because they represent some level of logic and beauty, but because connecting with a world that existed millennia ago prompts new manners of thinking and helps us parse through the complexity of existence. One of my favourite parts of this book was all the coverage of Classical reception — what does it mean to co-opt these stories and historical figures, and how do we interpret them in our own modern day context? I'm convinced by Beard's book, but also I already love and studied Classics, so I'm not sure if I'm the audience that needs to be persuaded. That said, her discussions on her own experience in feeling out of place in academia really resonate, and she captures the difficulty in consolidating what really falls under the Classics umbrella really well.
Thank you to UChicago Press and NetGalley for the ARC.
Thank you to UChicago Press and NetGalley for the ARC.
March 24, 2026
Talking Classics by Mary Beard
Arguably the most recognizable classical scholar today, Mary Beard’s work in “Talking Classics” is fundamentally different from the other books she's written. “Talking Classics” proves to be a deeply personal work, exploring not only what Greek and Roman influence has on the rest of the world but also how these works have uniquely impacted her. Much of the book is dedicated to personal anecdotes mixed in with information from the classical world, with the first half focusing more on the author and the second half on how and why we engage with the classics today. Of the two halves, I found the second half more engaging, with Chapter 3 being my favorite. Discussions on the so-called “Greek Miracle” and its influence on American democracy led to the adoption of Greek and especially Roman symbols into far-right extremism, and ended with the gatekeeping of classics. Beard is able to blend her personal experiences with deep knowledge of the field, resulting in the strongest chapter of the four and a consistently strong narrative throughout.
I found Chapter 4 similarly strong with its discussion of avoiding hero worship over the discipline while making her case why classics deserve to be studied today. Beard manages to avoid common shortfalls that are often associated with defending the humanities and makes a compelling case without overstating her case. The only major weakness of the book is its length. The advanced copy was under 200 pages, many of which were taken up by pictures. Still, if you have both an interest in the subject matter and have enjoyed Beard’s books in the past, this is an easy recommendation. 4/5
Arguably the most recognizable classical scholar today, Mary Beard’s work in “Talking Classics” is fundamentally different from the other books she's written. “Talking Classics” proves to be a deeply personal work, exploring not only what Greek and Roman influence has on the rest of the world but also how these works have uniquely impacted her. Much of the book is dedicated to personal anecdotes mixed in with information from the classical world, with the first half focusing more on the author and the second half on how and why we engage with the classics today. Of the two halves, I found the second half more engaging, with Chapter 3 being my favorite. Discussions on the so-called “Greek Miracle” and its influence on American democracy led to the adoption of Greek and especially Roman symbols into far-right extremism, and ended with the gatekeeping of classics. Beard is able to blend her personal experiences with deep knowledge of the field, resulting in the strongest chapter of the four and a consistently strong narrative throughout.
I found Chapter 4 similarly strong with its discussion of avoiding hero worship over the discipline while making her case why classics deserve to be studied today. Beard manages to avoid common shortfalls that are often associated with defending the humanities and makes a compelling case without overstating her case. The only major weakness of the book is its length. The advanced copy was under 200 pages, many of which were taken up by pictures. Still, if you have both an interest in the subject matter and have enjoyed Beard’s books in the past, this is an easy recommendation. 4/5
May 4, 2026
Talking Classics aims to root out the answers at the heart of problems such as ‘how to make a case for the classics’ and ‘why classics is still worth learning’. It is a frank look at the state of the field early in Beard’s life and now, with a mixture of classical text, archaeology, and famous classicists scattered in. The book is a sort of wandering tour through anecdotes related to works, people, and institutions including the Aphrodite of Knidos, Thucydides’ Peloponnesian War, Oxford, Sophocles’ Antigone, Louis MacNeice’s Autumn Journal, graffiti on Pompeian walls, Jane Ellen Harrison, and more.
The book is very personable, as most of it is told through Beard’s own experience with her very own angle and tone (which, if you’ve read Beard, you have probably come to terms with this). However, sometimes her attempts at humility come off as insecure, which I dislike in such a renowned and public facing figure.
Overall, a neat little refresher and would probably make a good read for an undergraduate studying classics
I received an e-ARC from NetGalley and University of Chicago Press in exchange for an honest review.
The book is very personable, as most of it is told through Beard’s own experience with her very own angle and tone (which, if you’ve read Beard, you have probably come to terms with this). However, sometimes her attempts at humility come off as insecure, which I dislike in such a renowned and public facing figure.
Overall, a neat little refresher and would probably make a good read for an undergraduate studying classics
I received an e-ARC from NetGalley and University of Chicago Press in exchange for an honest review.
April 27, 2026
Great book. I even had a giggle reading some parts. It has made me admire Mary Beard even more for the person she is and has have me tips for teaching.
April 27, 2026
she’s done it again
April 2, 2026
Mary Beard’s Talking Classics: The Shock of the Old is a thoughtful and engaging reflection on what it means to study the ancient world today. Rather than presenting classics as something remote or overly reverential, Beard focuses on its continuing ability to unsettle, surprise, and prompt new ways of thinking.
One of the book’s strengths is its insistence that the ancient world should not be treated as a fixed or comfortable point of reference. Beard returns repeatedly to the idea that Greece and Rome can feel unfamiliar, even jarring, and that this is precisely what makes them worth studying.
Reading this as a classicist, I found it particularly satisfying. Beard puts into words something that often goes unspoken: that much of the appeal of classics lies in that balance between recognition and difference. Whether she’s discussing literature, history, or reception, there’s a consistent sense that the field is driven as much by curiosity as by tradition.
What I appreciated most was how the book reconnects the discipline with a sense of intellectual interest rather than prestige or nostalgia. It makes a quiet but convincing case for why classics still matters. For those already in the field, it’s a useful reminder of what drew them to it in the first place; for others, it offers a clear and unpretentious way into the subject.
Beard also touches on the idea of thauma (a Greek term for wonder or amazement) which feels like a fitting way to think about the discipline as a whole. My own thauma was visiting Pompeii for the first time at 14; it was the moment I realised I wanted to continue studying classics.
Thank you Profile Books for gifting me this book! I am so grateful :)
One of the book’s strengths is its insistence that the ancient world should not be treated as a fixed or comfortable point of reference. Beard returns repeatedly to the idea that Greece and Rome can feel unfamiliar, even jarring, and that this is precisely what makes them worth studying.
Reading this as a classicist, I found it particularly satisfying. Beard puts into words something that often goes unspoken: that much of the appeal of classics lies in that balance between recognition and difference. Whether she’s discussing literature, history, or reception, there’s a consistent sense that the field is driven as much by curiosity as by tradition.
What I appreciated most was how the book reconnects the discipline with a sense of intellectual interest rather than prestige or nostalgia. It makes a quiet but convincing case for why classics still matters. For those already in the field, it’s a useful reminder of what drew them to it in the first place; for others, it offers a clear and unpretentious way into the subject.
Beard also touches on the idea of thauma (a Greek term for wonder or amazement) which feels like a fitting way to think about the discipline as a whole. My own thauma was visiting Pompeii for the first time at 14; it was the moment I realised I wanted to continue studying classics.
Thank you Profile Books for gifting me this book! I am so grateful :)
April 30, 2026
4.25*
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
In our education experience, we have all studied the ancient classics of Greece and Rome. To some, the subject may have seemed dry, but to others, it means so much more. But the deeper we dive into the past, the more questions arise about the subject of studying the classics. Why do people study the classics? How has our understanding of the classics changed over time? Why do some political groups choose to use the classics to make their points? Do you need to learn Greek and Latin to understand the classics? As someone who has been a scholar and a professor of the classics, Mary Beard explores these questions in her latest book, “Talking Classics: The Shock of the Old.”
I would like to thank The University of Chicago Press and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. As someone who mainly reads about medieval and 16th-century history, I usually don’t dive further into the past, but this year I have decided to get outside of my comfort zone. I have been reading about medieval humanism, but I have not dived into the classics that the great humanists did. I wanted to learn more about the classics, and I heard that Mary Beard is a great place to start, so I decided to give her latest book a try.
This is not your typical nonfiction book about the classics. This is a book that explores themes surrounding the classics in a series of essay-like chapters. Beard begins with her own journey into antiquity when she was a young girl exploring the British Museum and found some Egyptian bread. This was the start of Beard’s exploration into thauma, or wonderment, of the ordinary. It's by connecting to the ordinary of the past that we can better understand it, although the significant writings of Homer, Virgil, Plato, and Aristotle are important in their own ways.
Beard explores questions like why we tend to focus on Greece and Rome when we think about the ancient world, as well as exploring how the art and architecture of antiquity inspired future generations. One of the bigger topics that she explores is how different political groups have used the classics to press their own agendas. Beard argues that the classics are for everyone and that they do not belong to one side or another. She also explores how the classics should be for everyone, and that you don’t necessarily need to know Latin and Greek to appreciate and study the classics. Finally, Beard looks to the future and asks why we should continue to study the classics while leaving the field open for everyone.
I think Beard has a wonderfully engaging writing style, and her knowledge about the classics and antiquity is superb. I think for my first book, diving into the world of antiquity and the classics, it may not have been the best fit, but I did enjoy it. I think I will read more books by Mary Beard in the future. If you are interested in the classics and want to explore deeper questions about the subject, I would suggest you give “Talking Classics: The Shock of the Old” by Mary Beard a try.
I would like to thank The University of Chicago Press and Net Galley for sending me a copy of this book. As someone who mainly reads about medieval and 16th-century history, I usually don’t dive further into the past, but this year I have decided to get outside of my comfort zone. I have been reading about medieval humanism, but I have not dived into the classics that the great humanists did. I wanted to learn more about the classics, and I heard that Mary Beard is a great place to start, so I decided to give her latest book a try.
This is not your typical nonfiction book about the classics. This is a book that explores themes surrounding the classics in a series of essay-like chapters. Beard begins with her own journey into antiquity when she was a young girl exploring the British Museum and found some Egyptian bread. This was the start of Beard’s exploration into thauma, or wonderment, of the ordinary. It's by connecting to the ordinary of the past that we can better understand it, although the significant writings of Homer, Virgil, Plato, and Aristotle are important in their own ways.
Beard explores questions like why we tend to focus on Greece and Rome when we think about the ancient world, as well as exploring how the art and architecture of antiquity inspired future generations. One of the bigger topics that she explores is how different political groups have used the classics to press their own agendas. Beard argues that the classics are for everyone and that they do not belong to one side or another. She also explores how the classics should be for everyone, and that you don’t necessarily need to know Latin and Greek to appreciate and study the classics. Finally, Beard looks to the future and asks why we should continue to study the classics while leaving the field open for everyone.
I think Beard has a wonderfully engaging writing style, and her knowledge about the classics and antiquity is superb. I think for my first book, diving into the world of antiquity and the classics, it may not have been the best fit, but I did enjoy it. I think I will read more books by Mary Beard in the future. If you are interested in the classics and want to explore deeper questions about the subject, I would suggest you give “Talking Classics: The Shock of the Old” by Mary Beard a try.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
Thank you NetGalley and publishers for the ARC.
This was one of the best books I have read. I fully enjoyed it! Mary Beard has a wonderful way of writing that entrances the reader.
What I understood the book to be saying was, classics aren't only for the upper class, because Classics are inherently built from an entirely different people outside of our class structure. Classics could, and should, be enjoyed by everyone. While in our current society we applaud the study of sciences, we shouldn't forget to also study classics as well. Sometimes there doesn't seem to be a physical item gained from studying classics (whether in school, or as an extracurricular) but classics change the way we think and treat others just as STEM teaches us how to use technology.
Classics is also not for the single use of any political leaning, religion, or person at all. There is no modern Caesar or Augustus. We are not all Greeks.
There could be no 'outlander' of someone from the modern time traveling to the ancients. It wasn't simply a different culture, but an unthinkable one. A modern person would simply not be able to compute the basic items of life if they were to time travel back. To that point, we may linguistically translate classical literature and plays. We may be able to admire the same art, but we will never be able to view any of the above in the same eye as ones of which were from time period it was produced.
And what are classics? Is it right to just limit the term for Greeks and Romans? Mary Beard says we should expand it. Classics, the term, is for all culture's ancient studies, and she believes we should study them all.
If you think of Rome once a day, if you find yourself enjoying the retellings of ancient myths, if your vacation plans include travelling to old sites around the world... it doesn't matter if you studied it for years on end or just picked up the hobby on a whim. Classics teaches us how to argue, and how to understand.
I recommend reading this book on a bright afternoon with a thick slice of cake and a nice cup of tea. Sit by the window with your favorite view, or better yet outside where you feel most at ease. Classics should be a comfort.
This was one of the best books I have read. I fully enjoyed it! Mary Beard has a wonderful way of writing that entrances the reader.
What I understood the book to be saying was, classics aren't only for the upper class, because Classics are inherently built from an entirely different people outside of our class structure. Classics could, and should, be enjoyed by everyone. While in our current society we applaud the study of sciences, we shouldn't forget to also study classics as well. Sometimes there doesn't seem to be a physical item gained from studying classics (whether in school, or as an extracurricular) but classics change the way we think and treat others just as STEM teaches us how to use technology.
Classics is also not for the single use of any political leaning, religion, or person at all. There is no modern Caesar or Augustus. We are not all Greeks.
There could be no 'outlander' of someone from the modern time traveling to the ancients. It wasn't simply a different culture, but an unthinkable one. A modern person would simply not be able to compute the basic items of life if they were to time travel back. To that point, we may linguistically translate classical literature and plays. We may be able to admire the same art, but we will never be able to view any of the above in the same eye as ones of which were from time period it was produced.
And what are classics? Is it right to just limit the term for Greeks and Romans? Mary Beard says we should expand it. Classics, the term, is for all culture's ancient studies, and she believes we should study them all.
If you think of Rome once a day, if you find yourself enjoying the retellings of ancient myths, if your vacation plans include travelling to old sites around the world... it doesn't matter if you studied it for years on end or just picked up the hobby on a whim. Classics teaches us how to argue, and how to understand.
I recommend reading this book on a bright afternoon with a thick slice of cake and a nice cup of tea. Sit by the window with your favorite view, or better yet outside where you feel most at ease. Classics should be a comfort.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
The latest book by the queen of classicists - and treasure - is 'classic' Mary Beard. It's not the history lesson one would expect, but a series of fun and engaging stories mixed in with Beard's accessible approach to teaching. Beard discusses why classics matter, and what classics has meant to her over a career spanning five decades. Whether she's sharing personal anecdotes or trivia and gossip from Tacitus or Suetonius, Beard's writing feels like a conversation, and her enthusiasm for the subject is always infectious.
As a girl, a museum curator noticed her curiosity to see a piece of 4,000 year old Egyptian bread up close. 'Never underestimate how powerful the simple act of unlocking a museum case can be'. She was hooked on the past, and explains how the wonder and excitement of that moment is still vivid in her memory. There are stories like these that capture her curiosity, but she gives equal time to the idea that the past should not always be revered, that there was no Greek 'miracle' of democracy, and that we shouldn't always idolize the ancients. Beard acknowledges that we don't have to love classics, nor should we expect to learn life lessons from classics that can be applied as modern day problem solvers- but this doesn't diminish why it is still important to study this time period.
Beard attempts to answer why classics should still be studied, and what classics means to her after 60 years in the field. How her thoughts have changed over the years and the meditative way she thinks about her evolving ideas feels delightfully personal but always educational. The 'career prospects' may be in trouble, the relevance may be in question, yet Beard illustrates that in spite of these factors, classics still has much to teach and impress modern students and enthusiasts. Beard ends her questions on this positive note, and dedicates the book to that unknown curator who unlocked a case and a lifelong love of the subject all those decades ago.
Thank you to Net Galley for this advance copy.
As a girl, a museum curator noticed her curiosity to see a piece of 4,000 year old Egyptian bread up close. 'Never underestimate how powerful the simple act of unlocking a museum case can be'. She was hooked on the past, and explains how the wonder and excitement of that moment is still vivid in her memory. There are stories like these that capture her curiosity, but she gives equal time to the idea that the past should not always be revered, that there was no Greek 'miracle' of democracy, and that we shouldn't always idolize the ancients. Beard acknowledges that we don't have to love classics, nor should we expect to learn life lessons from classics that can be applied as modern day problem solvers- but this doesn't diminish why it is still important to study this time period.
Beard attempts to answer why classics should still be studied, and what classics means to her after 60 years in the field. How her thoughts have changed over the years and the meditative way she thinks about her evolving ideas feels delightfully personal but always educational. The 'career prospects' may be in trouble, the relevance may be in question, yet Beard illustrates that in spite of these factors, classics still has much to teach and impress modern students and enthusiasts. Beard ends her questions on this positive note, and dedicates the book to that unknown curator who unlocked a case and a lifelong love of the subject all those decades ago.
Thank you to Net Galley for this advance copy.
February 4, 2026
A search on Wikipedia and a conversation with a friend at Cambridge University inform me that Mary Beard is something of a legend in Cambridge circles. Beard recently retired as Professor of Classics there, holding that role from 2004-2022. I hadn’t read any of her other books before picking up Talking Classics, but my interests in the ancient world from the angle of New Testament studies, as well as a general interest in literature, attracted my attention.
Talking Classics is not an introduction to the field (Beard has done some of that in 2013’s Confronting the Classics, as well as in 1995’s Classics: A Very Short Introduction), but it still functions as something like an entry point. Her approach alternates between memoir-like reflections on a life spent with western classics, chatty dismantling of the myth of the “Greek miracle,” and brief but careful discussion of particular works. She aims to blow the dust off her readers’ ideas about the ancient world, encouraging us to expect to be surprised as we read or observe its works.
Beard’s book conveys the possibilities of immediate connection while warning against eliding the distance and difference between the ancient Greek and Roman world and our own. She tells a moving story about her own introduction to the classical world: a childhood visit to the British Museum, where a generous museum curator unlocked a glass case and allowed her to handle a 4000 year old piece of Egyptian bread. The shock of the reality of this otherwise vanished world allowed young Mary Beard to develop a love for that place and time. Yet throughout Talking Classics she is careful to caution us against trying to connect with past millennia by pretending its world was “just like ours.” The study of classics is finally possible and worthwhile because of the tension between these two poles. She writes:
“I have repeatedly returned to a question about the ancient world that was very nearly drummed out of me when I was a student: what on earth was it like to be there? That was, I was told, a sentimental and naïve line of enquiry, unanswerable and incompatible with proper historical rigour. Maybe it is naïve. Yet it is also a question that goes straight to the heart of our relationship with the past, to the differences between ‘us’ and ‘them,’ as well as the similarities.” (Kindle location 242)
Throughout the book, Beard is working against the idea that the “classical world” is something above us which we should be in awe of. But she is also arguing for the idea that it is remote and different from us. Her desire to know what is was like recognizes that we do not know what it was like from our own vantage point. We live in a different world.
Classics, then, is a pathway to wisdom and discernment for moderns if taken a certain way: “I have learned that you get a lot more out of classics if you allow it to be a disruptive challenge to self-serving modern certainties, rather than turn it into an untouchable ancestor in whose shadow you should count yourself lucky to sit.” (Loc. 884)
I found Talking Classics to be an appealing argument for the value of at least exploring the world Mary Beard has devoted her life to studying. The title suggests a conversation, and that is the tone Beard adopts in the book. She is casual and confiding even as she makes her points strongly. She assumes that we will hear her out and be convinced to be allies in her cause. The fact that after finishing Talking Classics I started reading my copy of Herodotus is the proof that she has at least persuaded me to give it a try.
Talking Classics is not an introduction to the field (Beard has done some of that in 2013’s Confronting the Classics, as well as in 1995’s Classics: A Very Short Introduction), but it still functions as something like an entry point. Her approach alternates between memoir-like reflections on a life spent with western classics, chatty dismantling of the myth of the “Greek miracle,” and brief but careful discussion of particular works. She aims to blow the dust off her readers’ ideas about the ancient world, encouraging us to expect to be surprised as we read or observe its works.
Beard’s book conveys the possibilities of immediate connection while warning against eliding the distance and difference between the ancient Greek and Roman world and our own. She tells a moving story about her own introduction to the classical world: a childhood visit to the British Museum, where a generous museum curator unlocked a glass case and allowed her to handle a 4000 year old piece of Egyptian bread. The shock of the reality of this otherwise vanished world allowed young Mary Beard to develop a love for that place and time. Yet throughout Talking Classics she is careful to caution us against trying to connect with past millennia by pretending its world was “just like ours.” The study of classics is finally possible and worthwhile because of the tension between these two poles. She writes:
“I have repeatedly returned to a question about the ancient world that was very nearly drummed out of me when I was a student: what on earth was it like to be there? That was, I was told, a sentimental and naïve line of enquiry, unanswerable and incompatible with proper historical rigour. Maybe it is naïve. Yet it is also a question that goes straight to the heart of our relationship with the past, to the differences between ‘us’ and ‘them,’ as well as the similarities.” (Kindle location 242)
Throughout the book, Beard is working against the idea that the “classical world” is something above us which we should be in awe of. But she is also arguing for the idea that it is remote and different from us. Her desire to know what is was like recognizes that we do not know what it was like from our own vantage point. We live in a different world.
Classics, then, is a pathway to wisdom and discernment for moderns if taken a certain way: “I have learned that you get a lot more out of classics if you allow it to be a disruptive challenge to self-serving modern certainties, rather than turn it into an untouchable ancestor in whose shadow you should count yourself lucky to sit.” (Loc. 884)
I found Talking Classics to be an appealing argument for the value of at least exploring the world Mary Beard has devoted her life to studying. The title suggests a conversation, and that is the tone Beard adopts in the book. She is casual and confiding even as she makes her points strongly. She assumes that we will hear her out and be convinced to be allies in her cause. The fact that after finishing Talking Classics I started reading my copy of Herodotus is the proof that she has at least persuaded me to give it a try.
April 29, 2026
In this book, Mary Beard discusses the questions everyone asks when it comes to classics: what are classics? Why do we study them? How do they influence us? And my favorite, what was it like to actually live in the ancient world?
I always love hearing other people's experiences with studying the ancient world, and Beard's opinions and thought processes were surprisingly similar to my own. Although we'll never truly know what it was like to live 2000+ years ago, she makes a very interesting point: we are able to find similarities to ourselves in the ancient world, so much so that it almost feels tangible sometimes, but it is simultaneously inaccessible. To me, this makes it the ultimate conundrum. I want to know everything, and the fact no one ever will makes the tiny bits we do know and can understand all the more precious.
I've really enjoyed Beard's other book, and hearing about what it was like to study in an era where there were few (if any) women classicists only amplifies the respect I have for her. Barriers to entry still exist, and it's a major reason why I don't have a true classics degree. Funding and accessibility to programs are only part of the problem, and the job market for those lucky enough to study classics at the graduate level is a horrifying prospect. Still, I walked away from this book with a sense of hopefulness. There will always be people who are just as fascinated with the ancient world—even moreso in many cases—than I am.
Thank you @netgalley and @uchicagopress for the opportunity to read and review this lovely book!
I always love hearing other people's experiences with studying the ancient world, and Beard's opinions and thought processes were surprisingly similar to my own. Although we'll never truly know what it was like to live 2000+ years ago, she makes a very interesting point: we are able to find similarities to ourselves in the ancient world, so much so that it almost feels tangible sometimes, but it is simultaneously inaccessible. To me, this makes it the ultimate conundrum. I want to know everything, and the fact no one ever will makes the tiny bits we do know and can understand all the more precious.
I've really enjoyed Beard's other book, and hearing about what it was like to study in an era where there were few (if any) women classicists only amplifies the respect I have for her. Barriers to entry still exist, and it's a major reason why I don't have a true classics degree. Funding and accessibility to programs are only part of the problem, and the job market for those lucky enough to study classics at the graduate level is a horrifying prospect. Still, I walked away from this book with a sense of hopefulness. There will always be people who are just as fascinated with the ancient world—even moreso in many cases—than I am.
Thank you @netgalley and @uchicagopress for the opportunity to read and review this lovely book!
Review of advance copy received from Publisher
A thoughtful, erudite read on the interconnectivity between modern life and history, and how we all seek wonder in this wild world. A memorable mix of Beard’s usual fascinating insights as well as memoir moments that light the path between what crafted her love – and still does – for the ancient world. Beard has always been a classicist that approaches her subject with pure fascination and aims to write and explore in a way that makes it accessible to everyone; Here Beard crafts together an interrogation of ‘the classical world’ as we have come to know it and a sample of its nuances and pitfalls. Beard gives a feast for thought and as always, left me deliberating on my own obsession with the ancient world and all that we can gain from communicating with a past we can never truly see in all of its facets. I especially adored her analysis on how we frame the classics and its allowance for us to discuss subject matters that cross the millennia, cultural barriers and belief systems. Beard discusses a range of aspects including some of my absolute childhood obsessions like Sophocles Antigone which did make me rather happy as I could talk for hours on that play and its continual relevancy. She also brings into focus an analysis on the power and prestige certain movements have manipulated or addressed to their causes in times of political or social strife for their goals. She also explores the humanity of our ancestors we can really see the shades of our future in, with discussions on Roman graffiti and jokes, as well as how we are also in a moment in Earths timeline where we are different, set apart from our predecessors, but that doesn’t mean we cannot connect to it. This was an invigorating, powerful call to why the classics still (and will always) matter and how our relationship with the past is one we can continually learn from as well as the much needed reminder that the classics are for everyone, and not the elitist upper-class who we have been conditioned to believe they are golden gated for.
April 27, 2026
One of the things that really sets Mary Beard apart from other good Classics scholars is that she is always devising new ways to think about Antiquity and our relationship to it.
That is the beauty of Talking Classics, which isn’t really presenting any new information about the Classics, but instead finds new ways to examine and interpret what we know.
I’m always interested in how the present interprets the past, as this is a huge part of my currently-in-progress dissertation and, I think, a fascinating subject in general. Beard speaks to the topic here, discussing how we think about Antiquity, including the things we get wrong.
Almost every society makes mistakes about its predecessors by interpreting their culture through the values of our own, and perhaps no one has been more repeatedly subjected to this than the Greeks and the Romans, being both a subject of fascination to most cultures that came after as well as old enough that the quantity of those curious cultures coming after is significant.
No one is better than Beard at pondering this sort of conundrum, and her erudite but conversational style feels both approachable and enlightening.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
That is the beauty of Talking Classics, which isn’t really presenting any new information about the Classics, but instead finds new ways to examine and interpret what we know.
I’m always interested in how the present interprets the past, as this is a huge part of my currently-in-progress dissertation and, I think, a fascinating subject in general. Beard speaks to the topic here, discussing how we think about Antiquity, including the things we get wrong.
Almost every society makes mistakes about its predecessors by interpreting their culture through the values of our own, and perhaps no one has been more repeatedly subjected to this than the Greeks and the Romans, being both a subject of fascination to most cultures that came after as well as old enough that the quantity of those curious cultures coming after is significant.
No one is better than Beard at pondering this sort of conundrum, and her erudite but conversational style feels both approachable and enlightening.
*I received an ARC of this book in exchange for an honest review.*
May 1, 2026
I received a copy of Mary Beard’s Talking Classics from the publisher through NetGalley.
I always get excited when Mary Beard releases a new book consisting of essays or chapters adapted from her lectures. The tone is always a bit less formal and more conversational, and it feels a bit like discussing Classics over a cup of tea with someone who is warm and endlessly knowledgeable about her subject matter.
Beard has several fascinating ideas and arguments in this book about the ways in which the Classics have been co-opted by modern learners in ways that are both helpful and unhelpful. Her primary thesis can be found in the subtitle of the book itself, The Shock of the Old. She reminds us that although much of Ancient Greek and Roman history and literature can feel uber-traditional and well-trod, the Classics are actually less pristine white marble and more technicolor polychrome.
After reading this book, I was left with the feeling that the Classics are simultaneously more relevant and more strange than I could have imagined.
You’ll love this is your Roman Empire is the Roman Empire, or if you’ve ever wanted to eavesdrop in on the conversations of Classics professors in the faculty lounge.
I always get excited when Mary Beard releases a new book consisting of essays or chapters adapted from her lectures. The tone is always a bit less formal and more conversational, and it feels a bit like discussing Classics over a cup of tea with someone who is warm and endlessly knowledgeable about her subject matter.
Beard has several fascinating ideas and arguments in this book about the ways in which the Classics have been co-opted by modern learners in ways that are both helpful and unhelpful. Her primary thesis can be found in the subtitle of the book itself, The Shock of the Old. She reminds us that although much of Ancient Greek and Roman history and literature can feel uber-traditional and well-trod, the Classics are actually less pristine white marble and more technicolor polychrome.
After reading this book, I was left with the feeling that the Classics are simultaneously more relevant and more strange than I could have imagined.
You’ll love this is your Roman Empire is the Roman Empire, or if you’ve ever wanted to eavesdrop in on the conversations of Classics professors in the faculty lounge.
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
I received an ARC from NetGalley in exchange for my review.
This book is brilliant. Imagine you are in a room where the esteemed classicist Mary Beard is holding court. Someone asks about the relevance of teaching the classics today and she answers. And when she answers, she cites specific ancient works, works inspired by ancient forms, a history of the study of the classics, and the importance of the classics today. And every sentence shows her vast knowledge of the subject at hand.
I was so engrossed in this book, I could not put it down. I wish Dr. Beard had written this treatise forty years ago when I was a classics major who was not sure of my path forward.
My only criticism was that the photos were not of the best quality. Perhaps that will be better in the print version.
I will be purchasing this one.
This book is brilliant. Imagine you are in a room where the esteemed classicist Mary Beard is holding court. Someone asks about the relevance of teaching the classics today and she answers. And when she answers, she cites specific ancient works, works inspired by ancient forms, a history of the study of the classics, and the importance of the classics today. And every sentence shows her vast knowledge of the subject at hand.
I was so engrossed in this book, I could not put it down. I wish Dr. Beard had written this treatise forty years ago when I was a classics major who was not sure of my path forward.
My only criticism was that the photos were not of the best quality. Perhaps that will be better in the print version.
I will be purchasing this one.
May 5, 2026
Some really spirited quasi-manifestos about the creative and curious approach one can take to understanding classics, but as a bit of an outsider this was a little incoherent, less of an inspiring primer than I had assumed. "Talking Classics" feels as though it is talking much more to the insiders about how to invite others in, which ironically I found quite alienating at points as the one with my nose against the glass. But ultimately it makes sense - the acknowledgments reveal that this brief musing started life as a lecture series.
While it wasn't as big a call to arms as I might have wanted, I still feel mildly inspired to start digging in on some foundational work, including Beard's own back catalogue.
While it wasn't as big a call to arms as I might have wanted, I still feel mildly inspired to start digging in on some foundational work, including Beard's own back catalogue.
May 7, 2026
This was an enjoyable memoir by a notable classics scholar. She makes the case for why they matter in a way decidedly different than what she calls "the column crowd". I liked how she describes this:
"They are often a pleasure, frequently destablizing, but most of all unfailingly eye-opening and interesting. Classics change your mind about the distant past, not only that, it gets you to rethink the present. You will not read much here, if anything, on what I have to say about classics as "the wellspring of Western Civilization" and there will be no hype about "the timeless truths" that classics impart."
She is a debunker of myths, while also praising the virtues of the field. There were numerous interesting facts and anecdotes peppered throughout this.
"They are often a pleasure, frequently destablizing, but most of all unfailingly eye-opening and interesting. Classics change your mind about the distant past, not only that, it gets you to rethink the present. You will not read much here, if anything, on what I have to say about classics as "the wellspring of Western Civilization" and there will be no hype about "the timeless truths" that classics impart."
She is a debunker of myths, while also praising the virtues of the field. There were numerous interesting facts and anecdotes peppered throughout this.
Review of advance copy received from NetGalley
This was a quick read and had some real high points for me, including the author’s reflections on why people get interested in the ancient world, and how small moments can kick-start that fascination early in life.
I’m not particularly well-versed in ancient Greek and Roman stuff or in the debates about what place it should have in academia, so I wouldn’t say the entire book was right up my alley, but I am a lover of museums and the forever-elusive query of “What was it really like?” The author writes very engagingly in those areas.
Thanks to NetGalley and University of Chicago Press for this review copy!
I’m not particularly well-versed in ancient Greek and Roman stuff or in the debates about what place it should have in academia, so I wouldn’t say the entire book was right up my alley, but I am a lover of museums and the forever-elusive query of “What was it really like?” The author writes very engagingly in those areas.
Thanks to NetGalley and University of Chicago Press for this review copy!
April 26, 2026
Reclaiming the Classics
As a classics major I really enjoyed this book (as I have all of Professor Beard’s books). I so agree with Professor Beard’s plea to look at the messiness of the classics - not to treat them as museum pieces but as reflections of peoples who lived, had foibles and were both rational and (to take a page from Dodds) irrational. I also love her point about Greek accents who tortured me in my Greek Prose Composition class and were actually not in the original documents. Thank you Professor Beard’s for taking ‘the classics’ off the shelf and letting us see them again in a new light. Highly recommend
As a classics major I really enjoyed this book (as I have all of Professor Beard’s books). I so agree with Professor Beard’s plea to look at the messiness of the classics - not to treat them as museum pieces but as reflections of peoples who lived, had foibles and were both rational and (to take a page from Dodds) irrational. I also love her point about Greek accents who tortured me in my Greek Prose Composition class and were actually not in the original documents. Thank you Professor Beard’s for taking ‘the classics’ off the shelf and letting us see them again in a new light. Highly recommend
Review of advance copy received from Netgalley
Mary Beard's knowledge of her subject is clearly vast, and she has many fascinating things to say about the history, the uses, the abuses, and the future of the study of Ancient Greece and Rome. However, reading this book sometimes felt like a chore: it started as a series of lectures, and it often felt like she wasn't coming to a point.
Overall, I do appreciate what Beard is saying, but I just don't think she said it very well here.
Received via NetGalley.
Overall, I do appreciate what Beard is saying, but I just don't think she said it very well here.
Received via NetGalley.
April 26, 2026
The most shocking thing for me about this book was the colour scheme for the cover - ancient GrecoRoman statue painters would approve, probably - but I suspect I might not be the target audience for this one.
May 4, 2026
I love Mary Beard and I love reading about the classics, and she had some good points but I felt the book was a letdown. It was hard to get through and I didn't really get the reason for the book, I wasn't sure what she was trying to get across. I had such high hopes but was disappointed.
May 7, 2026
Interesting book on Classics and what it means for today and how it has been used in the past as a 'blocker' to inclusion. Good read and well put together with some very thought provoking ideas/themes. Enjoyed it.
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