The Aeneid stands as a towering work of Classical Roman literature and a gripping dramatization of the best and worst of human nature. In the process of creating this epic poem, Vergil (70–19 BCE) became a living legend.
But the real Vergil is a shadowy figure; we know that he was born into a modest rural family, that he led a private and solitary life, and ... Show More
Jan 14
Angie Hobbs, "Why Plato Matters Now" (Bloomsbury, 2025)
Does Plato matter? An ancient philosopher whose work has inspired and informed countless thinkers and poets across the centuries, his ideas are no longer taught as widely as they once were. But, as Angie Hobbs argues in this clear-sighted book Why Plato Matters Now (Bloomsbury, ... Show More
1h 18m
Jan 14
Douglas Greene, "In Stalin's Shadow: Trotsky and the Legacy of the Moscow Trials" (Resistance Books, 2025)
Most people on the contemporary left see Stalin as an unfortunate stain on the history of the global left, a part of the historical process that we’d be better avoiding in our attempts to build towards socialism. He does still have some scattered defenders though, putting out boo ... Show More
1h 3m
Mar 2023
493 Catullus - The Poet of Love and Hate
He loved and he hated. Other than that, not much is known about the life of Catullus, who scandalized the late Roman Republic with his bawdy poems, his aching love for the upper-class married woman he called "Lesbia," and his invective against Julius Caesar and other Roman notabl ... Show More
51m 13s
Jun 2017
Brad Gooch, “Rumi’s Secret: The Life of the Sufi Poet of Love” (Harper, 2017)
Ever since their composition in the 13th century the poems of the Persian writer Rumi have enthralled millions of readers around the world. In Rumi’s Secret: The Life of the Sufi Poet of Love (Harper, 2017), Brad Gooch describes the life of their author and the path that took h ... Show More
48m 39s