On a huge, crowded, canvas Holt paints with a sure and steady hand,
and a profusion of radiant colours, a story of ancient times which
is part fact, part history, part myth, about a man, near
super-human, who conquered the world, built an empire - and died
remantically young. Alexander the Great's dazzling exploits
sometimes blur the edges of the man himself, but the author's
affectionate regard, and his astonishing ability to inhabit a world
so distant in time, bring the young Alexander almost into the room
where the reader sits. The miracle is performed by Euxenus
(grandson of the great comic poet Eupolis of Pallene), apprentice
to Diogenes, student of philosophy and military history. When King
Philip of Macedon (Alexander's father) threatens Athens, Euxenus is
sent as one of a delegation on a diplomatic mission to meet Philip.
At Philip's Court he meets Alexander - a quick, intelligent but
impatient boy of ten. Perspicaciously Euxenus sums up the boy who
is to become his pupil as having 'no interest in anything that
wasn't needed for the work in hand; he selected the qualities that
made him up like a man packing for a long journey, taking with him
only the things he knew he'd need... ' a single-mindedness which
perhaps made Alexander Great - but not a well rounded character.
Nevertheless the boy made an impression on Euxenus - as Euxenus did
on Alexander and his father - a mutual regard that was to keep
Euxenus by Alexander's side as a tutor during his early, formative
years. But Euxenus had adventures of his own; this is more his
story than Alexander's. A good, meaty, scholarly novel, written
with the lightest of touches, an enormous amount not only of
scholarly expertise but of sheer enjoyment, which the author
transfers effortlessly to the reader; to be read leisurely - there
are too many good jokes, too much good writing, and too much
illuminating historical background to skim, or skip. (Kirkus UK)
Alexander the Great conquered Greece, Egypt and the Persian Empire in the course of eight years. Although he died at the age of 33, he left behind a legacy that would change the world. For some people, however, life can be very different ...
This is the story of two remarkable men, one of whom conquered empires with apparent ease and one of whom struggled with the day-to-day problems of a small provincial town. It is the story of two men whose paths crossed only briefly, but whose encounter changed both their lives - and the course of history. And it is a story which throws an extraordinary new light on the man who became Alexander the Great.
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