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A review by mixedblessings89
The Prince by Niccolò Machiavelli
3.0
It's an interesting book, and certainly gives an insight in to the nature of kingdoms and governance in the author's time. There are many memorable lines, such as:
“It's better to be impulsive than cautious; fortune is female and if you want to stay on top of her you have to slap and thrust. You'll see she's more likely to yield that way than to men who go about her coldly. And being a woman she likes her men young, because they're not so cagey, they're wilder and more daring when they master her.”
However, they get washed out due to examples that were no doubt relevant back in the day, but are now lost to history, especially to a non-European reader. Other examples are less sexist than the one above, too :) which I remembered due to its content as well as placement towards the end of the book.
I found it a better read when I read it at here, rather than when I was reading it in book form, since the obscure references have been removed, and there are other interesting notes added.
This book also paints a sociological picture, which isn't pretty, but very fantasy-fiction-esque, and since I enjoy that genre, it added a little extra gloss to the words on the page for me. Anyone aspiring to a career writing in that genre should check this book out.
“It's better to be impulsive than cautious; fortune is female and if you want to stay on top of her you have to slap and thrust. You'll see she's more likely to yield that way than to men who go about her coldly. And being a woman she likes her men young, because they're not so cagey, they're wilder and more daring when they master her.”
However, they get washed out due to examples that were no doubt relevant back in the day, but are now lost to history, especially to a non-European reader. Other examples are less sexist than the one above, too :) which I remembered due to its content as well as placement towards the end of the book.
I found it a better read when I read it at here, rather than when I was reading it in book form, since the obscure references have been removed, and there are other interesting notes added.
This book also paints a sociological picture, which isn't pretty, but very fantasy-fiction-esque, and since I enjoy that genre, it added a little extra gloss to the words on the page for me. Anyone aspiring to a career writing in that genre should check this book out.