What are some good books for an introduction/overview of the "Classical Antiquity" period?

by MrShepherd4119

Hi all,

It seems like the Greco-Roman World produced many thinkers, artists, military strategists, leaders, etc. who have been incredibly influential throughout time, but I'm sad to say I know very little about them and their world. I have a STEM background, so I don't have a great deal of academic exposure to history, and am looking to learn more, particularly about Classical Antiquity. Any book recommendations you all have would be greatly appreciated. Thanks in advance!

P.s. I apologize if this is against the rules; from what I saw, a question like this seemed okay.

FlavivsAetivs

For the Roman Empire:

  1. SPQR by Mary Beard - Summarizes the period from roughly 100 BC to 200 AD in-depth, but Beard takes much more of an interest in what this period was like for the average Roman citizen, which reflects well throughout this work.
  2. Soldiers and Ghosts by J.E. Lendon - In a nutshell this pretty effectively serves as an overview of the history of battle from the 5th Century BC to the 4th Century AD. A good introduction and overview, tackling things ranging from how battles were fought to PTSD in soldiers.
  3. Daily Life in the Roman City: Rome, Pompeii, and Ostia by Gregory S. Aldrete - Aldrete covers far more than Mary Beard's Pompeii which focuses on well, Pompeii specifically.
  4. Policing the Roman Empire: Soldiers, Administration, and Public Order by Christopher Furhmann - This is an excellent book on how the military and civilian populace interacted in day to day life.
  5. Invisible Romans by Robert Knapp - A fantastic book on the members of Roman society often overlooked, like Slaves, etc.
  6. The Roman Army: A Social and Institutional History by Patricia Southern - A solid overview of the Republican and Principate Roman army.
  7. The Roman Imperial Army by Graham Webster - hands down the best single book on the topic I know of, even if a bit dated (1998, so 20 years old now).
  8. Handbook to Life in Ancient Rome by Leslie and Roy Adkins

Some of these are more expensive than others so I hope this selection has enough variety that you can find what you're looking for in an affordable price range.

Note - I considered 284 AD (the beginning of the Dominate) the cutoff for "Classical Antiquity" here. So I didn't include any books on Late Antiquity or the next 1000 years of Roman history (the "Byzantine" period).

Hopefully someone can help out with Classical Greece - it's not my area. There's also Classical China (where I can recommend one book - Trade and Expansion in Han China by Ying Shih Yu), and the rest of the Mediterranean (Persia, Carthage, etc.) too.