octavii42's review against another edition
challenging
informative
inspiring
medium-paced
4.0
A thorough telling of the life and death of the great Greek philosopher, Socrates. I really like the way in which the author told his story. The pacing was good. However, sometimes the language used could be over the top. I think it could have been written a little simpler and still have been just as enjoyable.
sheilabookworm3369's review against another edition
3.0
3 1/2 stars. An interesting history, and Bettany Hughes did her homework. This particular work doesn't flow, so I found it best to pick it up in 20 minute intervals. It took longer than normal to get through, but I was less distracted by the side trips, and enjoyed it a lot more in the smaller doses.
caitlin_89's review against another edition
4.0
Read this for school. Pretty interesting stuff, actually! It's all about getting a better look at Socrates by looking in-depth at his surroundings. Well chosen for my intro. to Philosophy class. Reads well; the journalistic narrative is lively. Hughes uses a LOT of big words. I thought my vocabulary was pretty good, but she had me pulling out the dictionary every chapter or so.
heregrim's review against another edition
4.0
I really enjoyed looking at the life of Socrates through the lens of Athens!
cerandor's review against another edition
5.0
One of the best history books I've read in a long time: Bettany Hughes illustrates the life and death of Socrates by evoking the world in which he lived, from day-to-day details to the larger political forces that eventually destroyed this philosophical gadfly. Despite the wealth of detail, it's a fascinating journey from beginning to end.
kitschbitsch's review against another edition
5.0
Socrates' life and times are brilliantly brought to life by Bettany Hughes.
chrudos's review against another edition
2.0
I was really looking forward to this book and initially it met my expectations, but after a while I spotted some historical inaccuracies which made me wonder how pervasive it is in the book. Later on it became obvious that the author had an agenda, she wanted to prove how visionary Socrates was and therefore she made him as appealing to today's tastes as possible. Quite a substantial part of the book was trying to argue that Socrates was a feminist and that this was one of the reasons why he was eventually so hated. Even if it was true that he treated women with more respect, I do not think it was very important aspect of who he was (unless you have an agenda like the author of the book). Granted, it shows what were his priorities and that he was open-minded. But it was not a political gesture. Overall, all that the author describes about Socrates ends up as a cultural event. That makes it probably very digestible for the target audience, but it also makes it very empty. Finally, the whole parallel between Socrates' life and the life of Athenian democracy was very repetitive and tiring. 2 stars.
tiagilles's review against another edition
4.0
a clever and fitting excuse to take a tour around 5th century Athens and its surroundings, fills in the picture and makes a very particular man in a very particular time matter then and matter now...
Alcibiades comes off like an absolute rock star
Alcibiades comes off like an absolute rock star