An effective primer on the continued relevance of the writings of Marcus Aurelius.
Kelley revisits the philosophy of Marcus Aurelius in this nonfiction work.
“In the tapestry of human intellectual history,” writes the author, “few threads are as enduring and widespread as the philosophical musings captured in Marcus Aurelius’ ‘Meditations.’” Written in the solitude of his sparsely adorned tent during the Marcomannic Wars against Germanic tribes on the Roman Empire’s European frontier, the Meditations were more of a personal diary than a work of systematic philosophy. The writings have since emerged as one of the cornerstones of classical thought; the philosopher-emperor’s commentary on the burdens of leadership and approaches to cultivating inner peace amid external chaos continue to appeal to readers across the world to this day. After an introductory essay that contextualizes Aurelius within the history of the Roman Empire and Stoic tradition, the book presents seven chapters divided into three parts. The first is a straightforward exploration of Aurelius’ philosophy with a specific focus on his approaches to leadership, resilience, and personal virtual. Part two compares the emperor’s beliefs to the larger body of Greco-Roman philosophy, from Platonism to Cynicism. The book’s concluding chapters consider the relevance of Aurelius’ maxims to modern life, drawing parallels between contemporary societal issues and the plagues, proxy wars, and political instability that bedeviled the Roman Empire as Pax Romana gave way to a new era of unrest. The author of more than a dozen historical works, Kelley skillfully blends a well-researched, nuanced approach to Aurelius (which is backed by a network of footnotes and a 13-page bibliography) with an engaging writing style. One does not need to be well versed in the intricacies of Stoicism and Aristotelian cosmologies to grasp this down-to-earth primer (which comes in at just under 170 total pages). The book’s emphasis on accessibility is further reflected by its inclusion of AI-generated illustrations and ample backmatter, including a glossary of historical and philosophical terminology and reflection questions for readers to ponder if they seek to apply Meditations to their own life.
An effective primer on the continued relevance of the writings of Marcus Aurelius.Pub Date: May 7, 2024
ISBN: 9798325074967
Page Count: 195
Publisher: Self
Review Posted Online: June 28, 2024
Review Program: Kirkus Indie
Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.
Greed, depravity, and serial murder in 1920s Oklahoma.
During that time, enrolled members of the Osage Indian nation were among the wealthiest people per capita in the world. The rich oil fields beneath their reservation brought millions of dollars into the tribe annually, distributed to tribal members holding "headrights" that could not be bought or sold but only inherited. This vast wealth attracted the attention of unscrupulous whites who found ways to divert it to themselves by marrying Osage women or by having Osage declared legally incompetent so the whites could fleece them through the administration of their estates. For some, however, these deceptive tactics were not enough, and a plague of violent death—by shooting, poison, orchestrated automobile accident, and bombing—began to decimate the Osage in what they came to call the "Reign of Terror." Corrupt and incompetent law enforcement and judicial systems ensured that the perpetrators were never found or punished until the young J. Edgar Hoover saw cracking these cases as a means of burnishing the reputation of the newly professionalized FBI. Bestselling New Yorkerstaff writer Grann (The Devil and Sherlock Holmes: Tales of Murder, Madness, and Obsession, 2010, etc.) follows Special Agent Tom White and his assistants as they track the killers of one extended Osage family through a closed local culture of greed, bigotry, and lies in pursuit of protection for the survivors and justice for the dead. But he doesn't stop there; relying almost entirely on primary and unpublished sources, the author goes on to expose a web of conspiracy and corruption that extended far wider than even the FBI ever suspected. This page-turner surges forward with the pacing of a true-crime thriller, elevated by Grann's crisp and evocative prose and enhanced by dozens of period photographs.
Dogged original research and superb narrative skills come together in this gripping account of pitiless evil.Pub Date: April 18, 2017
ISBN: 978-0-385-53424-6
Page Count: 352
Publisher: Doubleday
Review Posted Online: Feb. 1, 2017
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Feb. 15, 2017
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
BOOK TO SCREEN
The author's youthfulness helps to assure the inevitable comparison with the Anne Frank diary although over and above the...
Elie Wiesel spent his early years in a small Transylvanian town as one of four children.
He was the only one of the family to survive what Francois Maurois, in his introduction, calls the "human holocaust" of the persecution of the Jews, which began with the restrictions, the singularization of the yellow star, the enclosure within the ghetto, and went on to the mass deportations to the ovens of Auschwitz and Buchenwald. There are unforgettable and horrifying scenes here in this spare and sombre memoir of this experience of the hanging of a child, of his first farewell with his father who leaves him an inheritance of a knife and a spoon, and of his last goodbye at Buchenwald his father's corpse is already cold let alone the long months of survival under unconscionable conditions.
Pub Date: Jan. 16, 2006
ISBN: 0374500010
Page Count: 120
Publisher: Hill & Wang
Review Posted Online: Oct. 7, 2011
Kirkus Reviews Issue: Jan. 15, 2006
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