I had so much fun reading and blogging about Rebecca that I'm taking part in The Big Read II at Bookshelves of Doom. I'll be away for the last part of the reading schedule, and can't even promise to post frequently in the first couple of weeks, but I'll give it my best.

We're reading I, Claudius by Robert Graves, with today's portion being chapters 1-3. I admit this isn't a book I probably would have picked up on my own. I sure didn't vote for it. I'm a bit over Roman history, and the boring cover on my copy isn't doing the story any favours. But when I read the first lines, I relaxed a bit:


I don't know if it's the Bujoldian echoes of Ivan-you-idiot but I liked the tone. Claudius goes on to say he is writing his life's story as a record for those who will read it in 1900 years time (according to the local prophet). These first chapters are tales of his parents and grandparents, and various intrigues that feature many a divorce and poisoning. The scene is set for a novel full of intrigue and drama!

There started to be a real tangle of Roman names by the end of chapter three - I hope I can remember them all across the course of the month - one of the problems of slowly reading when you have a poor name memory!

Tags: books, graves, historical