Search - Cleopatra: A Biography

I don't read a lot of nonfiction, but I'd heard so many interesting things about Cleopatra: A Life that I decided I had to give it a shot. I'm quite glad I did.

To the victor go the spoils...and also the scribes who write the history. I've been aware for a long time that history is subjective and the myth of Cleopatra VII clearly illustrates that. Most of what is known about her life is written from the perspective of a patriarchal Roman society that feared the intelligent, independent woman and thus painted her as the beautiful, seductive, devious creature she's known as today.

Stacy Schiff does a remarkable job in sifting through the known record, not just on Cleopatra's life, but also on the culture and people of the era in which she lived. The result is perhaps less romantic than Shakespeare's version of events, but no less dynamic or enthralling.

If you're looking for 'truth', Cleopatra: A Life may frustrate you. The truth about the last Queen of Egypt has been lost to the centuries and buried beneath the sensationalized accounts of her exploits - often written by those who were hostile toward her. What you will get is a carefully weighed narrative that deconstructs the patriarchal viewpoint of Cicero, Plutarch, Dio, etc. in order to present a more balanced and realistic picture of a woman born to be a queen.

Schiff champions Cleopatra with common sense and an amazing understanding of the era in which she lived, often at the amusing (at least to me) expense of her detractors. To some, the bias may be annoying, but in my opinion, after two-thousand years of being annointed the 'wickedest woman in the world' I'd say it's about time someone championed her. Schiff's Cleopatra is a strong-willed, well-educated, ambitious and enthralling woman who's greatest skill is not her feminine wiles, but her ability to read people and manipulate them to serve her agenda. She is a consummate politician...which is why it makes perfect sense that the Roman society that defeated her has had to reduce her to little more than a whore.

I liked Stacy Schiff's writing style very much and if she happens to write about another figure or historical era that I'm interested in, I will definitely read it.

Couldn't do it...try and just felt like I was sitting in a college history class. Not to say the writing and research aren't extraordinary, but not something I find myself compelled to read. If you pick it up, know this is serious stuff, not fluff.

I had a difficult time getting through the book. Very dry and full of facts. I did get some information and a clearer picture of her.

For anyone interested in reading this book and being put off by so many of the reviews I say: Stick with it the first 50-75 pages are slow going but once you get into it you will find it fascinating. I thought it was very well written and not dry as some claim. Schiff does a splendid job of sifting through all the various accounts to give a very reasonable and life-like picture of Cleopatra. For a woman in her position trying to juggle her role as queen of both the Egyptians and the Ptolemaic Greeks as well as a vassal to the squabbling Romans, she did remarkably well to last as long as she did. You feel her anguish and desperation as her world begins to implode all around her and her final thoughts were for the well-being of her children.
P.S. Octavian (Caesar Augustus) was a real weasel.

This has gotten such fantastic reviews in the press- touted as "alluring" and "compelling" but it is heavy slogging. I usually like biographies and non-fiction, but couldn't get past page 50. I have no doubt that the research is excellent, and it is not that the writing is bad, it is just too dry. This book is an example of a brilliant marketing campaign and a beautiful cover.