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lizflynn 's review for:
The Memoirs of Cleopatra
by Margaret George
I read Cleopatra: A Life by Stacy Schiff last year, and ever since then I have had a fascination, almost a reverence, for the woman that was Cleopatra. The Memoirs of Cleopatra had been on my radar for quite some time, but due to its 1,000+ page count, I was always a little hesitant to pick it up. What if it’s not good? What if the powerful tale of Cleopatra is degenerated into some smutty romance story? (This is unfortunately very common in the historical fiction genre). I finally found a copy at a used bookstore in Newport Beach, and I decided to invest five of my dollars and buy it. I was not disappointed!
The Memoirs of Cleopatra draws out the ideas, legends, and myths about Cleopatra to create a mostly realistic, substantial character. Whenever I was in history class, I would always imagine what historical figures would have been like. Not in an idealized way, but in a realistic, sometimes nitty gritty way. George helped me do that with Cleopatra by giving her a voice and giving her true human emotions. Much of what we know about Cleopatra is conjecture, legend, or Shakespearian. George draws on these sources but also takes liberties of her own in order to humanize the woman who was the ruler of Egypt. I’m writing this review a few months after having completed this book, so my memory is a bit foggy on specifics, but I remember the story being interesting the whole way through. Sure, there were some slow parts, but it was never unbearable.
George embellished on events that may (or may not) have happened during the course of Cleopatra’s life, and she did it with historical accuracy to the best of her ability. I could actually imagine myself walking the streets of Alexandria, attending Cleopatra’s famed boat party in Tarsus, and witnessing Marc Antony’s fall into ruin. Historical fiction walks a fine line. There are some books that are mundane but accurate, and there are some that simply use a “historical” setting for an unrealistic romance plot. George walks that fine line with grace and depicts Cleopatra as a believable human being, not the infamous seductress that common culture often says she is. And that was a refreshing breath of air.
The Memoirs of Cleopatra draws out the ideas, legends, and myths about Cleopatra to create a mostly realistic, substantial character. Whenever I was in history class, I would always imagine what historical figures would have been like. Not in an idealized way, but in a realistic, sometimes nitty gritty way. George helped me do that with Cleopatra by giving her a voice and giving her true human emotions. Much of what we know about Cleopatra is conjecture, legend, or Shakespearian. George draws on these sources but also takes liberties of her own in order to humanize the woman who was the ruler of Egypt. I’m writing this review a few months after having completed this book, so my memory is a bit foggy on specifics, but I remember the story being interesting the whole way through. Sure, there were some slow parts, but it was never unbearable.
George embellished on events that may (or may not) have happened during the course of Cleopatra’s life, and she did it with historical accuracy to the best of her ability. I could actually imagine myself walking the streets of Alexandria, attending Cleopatra’s famed boat party in Tarsus, and witnessing Marc Antony’s fall into ruin. Historical fiction walks a fine line. There are some books that are mundane but accurate, and there are some that simply use a “historical” setting for an unrealistic romance plot. George walks that fine line with grace and depicts Cleopatra as a believable human being, not the infamous seductress that common culture often says she is. And that was a refreshing breath of air.