IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME: REVIEW AND GIVEAWAY

YIA' SOU!
MARCH 25 IS GREEK INDEPENDENCE DAY!
AS AN AMERICAN OF GREEK HERITAGE,
MAY I WISH ALL OF MY OTHER GREEK
FRIENDS A FINE DAY AND IN HONOR, HERE IS
WHAT I THINK IS AN APPROPRIATE
BOOK TO OFFER TODAY!

GIVEAWAY ENDED
IT'S ALL GREEK TO ME

BY CHARLOTTE HIGGINS

ABOUT THE BOOK:

An informative, smart, and very amusing narrative about the enormous influence Greeks and Greek culture have had on the rest of the world, from art to architecture to literature to politics to love.

Why is ancient Greece important? Because, quite simply, if we want to understand the modern Western world, we need to look back to the Greeks. Consider the way we think about ethics, about the nature of beauty and truth, about our place in the universe, about our mortality. All this we have learned from the ancient Greeks. They molded the basic disciplines and genres in which we still organize thought, from poetry to drama, from medicine to philosophy, from history to ethnography.

Packed with useful facts, including a timeline, a "mythology for dummies," a who's who, a guide to Homer's epics, and a handy map for those struggling to know their Lemnos from their Lesbos, It's All Greek to Me is an entertaining and insightful tour through the world of the ancient Greeks. Why are some laws Draconian? What is an Achilles' heel? Why were the Spartans spartan? Charlotte Higgins provides these answers and more, arming average readers with the knowledge they need to understand the Greeks and their tremendous contributions to our lives. This book aims to unlock the richness of a fascinating culture and place it where it should be—in the mainstream of life.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Charlotte Higgins has worked for the Guardian newspaper in various guises for over a decade, latterly as chief arts writer. She was born in Stoke-on-Trent, England, and studied classics at Balliol College, Oxford. She is the author of Latin Love Lessons: Put a Little Ovid in Your Life. She lives in London.

REVIEW:

IT’S ALL GREEK TO ME: From Homer to the Hippocratic Oath, How Ancient Greece Shaped Our World by Charlotte Higgins is a extraordinary introduction to the influence that the Ancient Greeks have had on our world. It is not a “dry” read but quite captivating as well as also very useful. Charlotte Higgins has surely done her homework on this as she is quite knowledgeable about all things Greek. In providing us with the ways that our society today has been influenced and enriched by the Greeks, the reader will discover information they never even thought about before. The book is easily enjoyable and thought provoking while not lecturing down to the reader. I hate to read a book and be made to feel like I just landed on the planet and have no educational background at all.

From the alpha to the omega, all the most important parts of Greek history and culture are spelled out in a way that makes the book very user friendly. It will stir your memories of literature even from your youngest elementary school days as the Greek Gods and Goddesses give way to much of our more sophisticated literature today. Of course, it wouldn’t be complete without references to Plato, Homer, and Aristotle just to name a few. Their contributions alone can fill volumes. The battles fought by the Greeks show the strength of the people as well as what we learned from these dedicated and skilled warriors.

At the back of the book is one of the most useful parts. Everything from a Timeline to maps, Who’s Who in Greece past and present, Greek Mythology, and even the Greek alphabet and my favorite part ten indispensable Greek quotes. So explore those ancient ancestors of mine and see if you aren’t fascinated by what Charlotte Higgins has given us in IT’S ALL GREEK TO ME. Lastly, from my favorite section, remember what Socrates said, “The unexamined life is not worth living”.

GIVEAWAY

THANKS TO KYLE AND GOOD PEOPLE
AT HARPER COLLINS PUBLISHING,
I HAVE 3 COPIES OF THIS INTERESTING
BOOK TO GIVE AWAY. HERE IS WHAT
YOU NEED TO DO TO WIN A COPY!

--U.S. RESIDENTS ONLY
--NO P. O. BOXES
---INCLUDE YOUR EMAIL ADDRESS
IN CASE YOU WIN!
--ALL COMMENTS MUST BE SEPARATE TO
COUNT AS MORE THAN ONE!

HOW TO ENTER:

+1 ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING YOU FOUND INTERESTING ABOUT AUTHOR CHARLOTTE HIGGINS WHEN YOU GO TO HER WEBSITE CLICK HERE

+1 MORE ENTRY: COMMENT ON SOMETHING INTERESTING ABOUT MY REVIEW OR DESCRIPTION OF THE BOOK ABOVE

+1 MORE ENTRY: BLOG OR TWEET ABOUT THIS GIVEAWAY AND LEAVE A LINK I CAN FOLLOW IN THE ENTRY

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GIVEAWAY ENDS

6 PM, EST, APRIL 9 !

GOOD LUCK