Ancient Biography

Belisarius and Antonina were titans in the Roman world some 1,500 years ago. Belisarius was the most well-known general of his age, victor over the Persians, conqueror of the Vandals and the Goths, and as if this were not enough, wealthy beyond imagination. She made a name for herself by traveling with Belisarius on his military campaigns, deposing a pope, and scheming to disgrace important Roman officials. This unadulterated power and wealth did not mean that Belisarius and Antonina were universally successful in all that they undertook.

The only novel written by the legendary songwriter and performer, Johnny Cash—the incredible story of the apostle Paul. In this historical novel about the life of Paul before and after his conversion, discover the passionate, fiery, and destructive man once known as Saul of Tarsus. Paul's...

From Aristotle to Ada Lovelace: a brief history of the mathematical ideas that have forever changed the world and the everyday people and pioneers behind them. The story of our best invention yet. From our ability to calculate the passing of time to the algorithms that control computers and much else in our lives, numbers are everywhere. They are so indispensable that we forget how fundamental they are to our way of life.

Pompey, Caesar, Cicero, Brutus, Antony: the names resonate across thousands of years. Major figures in the civil wars that brutally ended the Roman republic, their lives still haunt us as examples of how the hunger for personal power can overwhelm collective politics, how the exaltation of the military can corrode civilian authority, and how the best intentions can lead to disastrous consequences. Plutarch renders these history-making lives as flesh-and-blood characters.

Read by the author. Have you ever wanted to learn more about hymns, but weren’t sure where to start? In this follow-up to his bestselling original book, pastor Robert J. Morgan shares the incredible stories behind 150 beloved traditional hymns of faith. Each week millions of Christians around...

Rumi's inspiring and deceptively simple poems have been called ecstatic, mystical, and devotional. To writer and activist Melody Moezzi, they became a lifeline. In The Rumi Prescription, we follow her path of discovery as she translates Rumi's works for herself - to gain wisdom and insight in the face of a creative and spiritual roadblock. With the help of her father, who is a lifelong fan of Rumi's poetry, she immerses herself in this rich body of work, and discovers a 13th-century prescription for modern life.

In this stunning memoir, beloved internationally acclaimed earth advocate chronicles her journey to reconnect with the earth, offering a model for how we all can nurture the wild around and inside ourselves. In 1991, twenty-four-year-old Lynx Vilden crawled out of a sweat lodge covered in mud...

“Captivating...Mah channels Kennedy and brings postwar Paris to life with exquisite detail and insight.” -- People From the bestselling author of The Lost Vintage, a rare and dazzling portrait of Jacqueline Bouvier’s college year abroad in postwar Paris, an intimate and electrifying story...

How to think clearly, act purposefully, overcome any obstacle, and find peace and happiness along the way. The Meditations is a collection of Marcus' personal journal entries. They were not intended for publication but to remind Marcus himself of his principles and priorities. As a result, they are intimate, direct, and extremely useful. This new edition is rendered in contemporary English, with a foreword by Sam Torode.

At the age of 32, on an assignment to walk the most famous pilgrimage in the world – the Camino de Santiago, in northern Spain – Phoebe Smith somehow lost her way. Having spent a lifetime exploring unfamiliar places, she quit her dream job, ended her long-term relationship and headed home to North Wales to discover the point to…everything. In her search for answers she found herself – quite by accident – walking some of Britain’s oldest pilgrim paths. And in following these old ways, she ended up confronting past traumas that she thought she had laid to rest.

While he was one of the most influential men in the ancient world, research on Cyrus the Great is simultaneously fascinating and frustrating. Of course, this reality has deepened the mystique that surrounds Cyrus even to this day, and it has elevated his status from conqueror and king to enlightened humanist monarch and ideal ruler. Whatever the underlying issues, the incredible achievements of Cyrus distinguish him as one of the greatest kings in history, and his life, conquests, reforms, and rule continue to be of great interest over 2,500 years later.

The son of a former slave, Pertinax was the Roman Emperor who proved that no matter how lowly your birth, you could rise to the very top through hard work, grit and determination. This previously untold story brings a fascinating and important figure out of the shadows. A self-made everyman, a man of principle and ambition, a role model respected by his contemporaries, Pertinax's remarkable story offers a unique and panoramic insight into the late 2nd century AD Principate Empire.

In this succinct portrait of Alexander the Great, distinguished scholar and historian Norman Cantor draws on the major writings of Alexander's contemporaries, as well as the most recent psychological and cultural studies to illuminate this most legendary of men - a great figure in the ancient world whose puzzling personality greatly fueled his military accomplishments.

Socrates was not a teacher. He wasn’t a guru, a prophet, or a preacher. He was a barefoot stonecutter who wandered the streets of Athens asking uncomfortable questions — and refusing to stop when the answers didn’t make sense. This is the story of the philosopher who left no writings behind but changed the trajectory of human thought forever. From his youth in the bustling Agora to his final moments with the hemlock cup in hand, this book follows the man, the method, and the madness of Socratic philosophy — not as a subject of study, but as a way of life.

During the infamous eruption of Mount Vesuvius, one boy struggles to escape. Can he survive the most devastating disaster of ancient times? In this thrilling addition to the best-selling I Survived series, listeners are taken back to antiquity with a young boy trying to escape as the giant Mount Vesuvius erupts. Does he have what it takes to survive the epic destruction of Pompeii?

The day after Jesus' death, whatever small mark he made on the world seemed destined to disappear. Instead, his impact on human history has been unparalleled, leading believers and nonbelievers alike to ask, Who Is This Man? In Who Is This Man, bestselling author John Ortberg explores the...

Denied citizenship by the Roman Empire, a soldier named Alaric changed history by unleashing a surprise attack on the capital city of an unjust empire. Stigmatized and relegated to the margins of Roman society, the Goths were violent "barbarians" who destroyed "civilization," at least in the conventional story of Rome's collapse. But a slight shift of perspective brings their history, and ours, shockingly alive.

“Rebecca Nagle gives a clear and compelling narration of her look into how a small-town murder in the Muscogee Nation led to a significant 2020 Supreme Court case—and the largest restoration of Native tribal land in American history. . . . An illuminating listen.” — AudioFile...

“Many of my ardent admirers would be roundly shocked and disturbed if they realized that everything I believe is thoroughly moral, thoroughly Catholic, and that it is these beliefs that give my work its chief characteristics.” —Flannery O’Connor Flannery O’Connor’s work has been...

Read by the author. In this special seasonal edition, bestselling author Robert J. Morgan shares the incredible stories behind traditional holiday hymns of faith, including Christmas, Easter, and more. Is there a festive season of the year that is complete without one of your favorite hymns? Not...