The Histories
  • Published: 19 November 2014
  • ISBN: 9780140455397
  • Imprint: Penguin Classics
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 880
  • RRP: $24.99

The Histories

Formats & editions
Paperback
19 Nov 2014
Paperback
6 Mar 2003
EBook
26 Sep 2013
EBook
25 Jun 2009
EBook
30 Jan 2003
Audiobook
15 Jul 2021
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One of the great books in Western history and the very first work of non-fiction, in Tom Holland's compelling new translation

The Histories of Herodotus, completed in the second half of the 5th century BC, is generally regarded as the first work of history and the first great masterpiece of non-fiction writing. Joined here are the sheer drama of Herodotus' narrative of the Persian invasions of Greece, and the endless curiosity - turning now to cannabis, now to the Pyramids - which make his book the source of so much of our knowledge of the ancient world.

This absorbing new translation, by one of Britain's most admired young historians, allows all the drama and mysteriousness of this great book to be fully appreciated by modern readers.
  • Published: 19 November 2014
  • ISBN: 9780140455397
  • Imprint: Penguin Classics
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 880
  • RRP: $24.99
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About the author

Herodotus

Few facts are known about the life of Herodotus. He was born around 490 BC in Halicarnassus, on the south-west coast of Asia Minor. He seems to have travelled widely throughout the Mediterranean world, including Egypt, Africa, the area around the Black Sea and throughout many Greek city-states, of both the mainland and the islands. A sojourn in Athens is part of the traditional biography, and there he is said to have given public readings of his work and been friends with the playwright Sophocles. He is said also to have taken part in the founding of the colony of Thurii in Italy in 443 BC. He probably died at some time between 425 and 420 BC. His reputation has varied greatly, but for the ancients and many moderns he well deserves the title (first given to him by Cicero) of 'the Father of History'.

Also by Herodotus

The Madness of Cambyses
Snakes With Wings And Gold-Digging Ants
Xerxes Invades Greece
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Praise for The Histories

Holland's text makes for energizing reading . . . unquestionably the best English translation of Herodotus to have appeared in the last half-century . . . fast, funny, opinionated, clear and erudite . . . I am in awe of Tom Holland's achievement

Edith Hall, TLS

Tom Holland has been captivated by Herodotus since he was a child. His pleasure shines through his relaxed, idiomatic, expansive and often dramatic translation . . . He, like Herodotus, is a storyteller par excellence

Peter Jones, New Statesman

A labour of love . . . full of rattling good yarns . . . the minister for education should present each of his cabinet colleagues with a copy of Holland's admirable translation

Economist
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