Continuing the saga begun in I, Claudius, Robert Graves's Claudius the God
is a compelling fictional autobiography of the Roman emperor, published
with an introduction by Barry Unsworth in Penguin Modern Classics. Claudius
has survived the murderous intrigues of his predecessors to become,
reluctantly, Emperor of Rome. Here he recounts his surprisingly successful
reign: how he cultivates the loyalty of the army and the common people to
repair the damage caused by Caligula; his relations with the Jewish King
Herod Agrippa; and his invasion of Britain. But the growing paranoia of
absolute power and the infidelity of his promiscuous young wife Messalina
mean that his good fortune will not last forever. In this second part of
Robert Graves's fictionalized autobiography, Claudius - wry, rueful, always
inquisitive - brings to life some of the most scandalous and violent times
in history. If you enjoyed Claudius the God, you might like Marguerite
Yourcenar's Memoirs of Hadrian, also available in Penguin Modern Classics.
'I, Claudius and Claudius the God are an imaginative and hugely readable
account of the early decades of the Roman Empire ... racy, inventive, often
comic' Daily Telegraph 'One of the really remarkable books of our day, a
novel of learning and imagination, fortunately conceived and brilliantly
executed' The New York Times 'Graves made Roman history funny and familiar'
Guardian