Rome : Echoes of Imperial Glory

School Library Journal

Gr 9 Up-Two fascinating looks at the past. Through excellent-quality historical and contemporary photographs and well-researched texts, readers are shown the art, architecture, and artifacts of the respective civilizations. Greece provides views from the Bronze Age palace cultures to the classical period of city states to the eventual conquest by Rome. Rome highlights the importance of the forum as a center of politics and life, the career and personal life of the emperor Hadrian, colonial expansion, and the army as the instrument that actually forged and built the empire. Both volumes provide a history and commentary on the discoveries, excavations, and renovation of settlements and ruins. However, a good background in Greek and Roman history and culture are needed to fully appreciate these titles. Anton Powell's Ancient Greece and Mike Corbishley's Ancient Rome (both Facts on File, 1989) and Roy Burrell's The Romans (Oxford, 1991) are well-organized overviews with numerous maps, drawings, and photographs.-Cynthia M. Sturgis, Ledding Library, Milwaukee, OR