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Cleopatra's Daughter
- Author
- Jane Draycott
- Narrator
- Joan Walker
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Publish Date
- 23 May 2023
- Run Time
- 7 hours 39 minutes
- Format
- Audiobook
What to expect
The first biography of one of the most fascinating yet long-neglected rulers of the ancient world: Cleopatra Selene, daughter of Antony and Cleopatra.
Years ago, archaeologists excavating near Pompeii unearthed a hoard of Roman treasures, among them a bowl depicting a woman with thick, curly hair and sporting an elephant-scalp headdress. For decades, theories circulated about her identity―until, at last, she was ascertained to be Cleopatra Selene, the only surviving daughter of Roman Triumvir Marc Antony and Egyptian Queen Cleopatra VII. Using this discovery as her starting point and creating a narrative from mere fragments in the archaeological record, historian Jane Draycott reconstructs the exceptional life of this woman who, although born into royalty and raised in her mother’s court, was held captive by Augustus Caesar and his sister, Octavia, after her parents’ demise. Yet as Draycott shows, Cleopatra Selene was destined to emerge as an influential ruler in her own right, as queen, alongside King Juba II, of Mauretania, an ancient African kingdom. A long-overdue historical corrective, Cleopatra’s Daughter reclaims a mighty regent―and her infamous family―for posterity.
Critics Review
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“[As] Joan Walker narrates…the overall effect of a favorite professor chatting informally with students makes what could be a dry text enjoyable and approachable.”
AudioFile
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“Packed with fascinating information, sometimes droll, about Roman and Egyptian culture, Antony and Cleopatra’s relationship, and their daughter’s possible descendants.”
New York Times Book Review
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“[An] immensely readable account of a great queen, Egyptian and Roman, who wielded power at a time when women were largely marginalized.”
New Statesman
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“Selene is a figure for our times…a woman who wielded power in a male-dominated world, a wife who crossed racial boundaries in her marriage, an exile who found success in two adoptive homelands.”
Wall Street Journal
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“Well-researched and full of interesting facts and details that history buffs will find satisfying and exciting.
San Francisco Book Review
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“Anyone who wants to learn more about [an] underappreciated female ruler should read this book.”
All about History
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“An engaging portrait of Cleopatra Selene and her turbulent times.”
Booklist
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“Draycott sheds intriguing light on race and ethnicity in the Roman empire…This peek into the ancient past enthralls.”
Publishers Weekly
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“Presents a useful portrait by which she can ‘be judged on her own merits as an individual rather than as an idea or an archetype.’”
Kirkus Reviews
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“Here, Cleopatra Selene finally attains her rightful place in history.”
Barry Strauss, author of The War that Made the Roman Empire
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“Fascinating! Full of fabulous facts about ancient Rome, Egypt, and North Africa.”
Caroline Lawrence, author of The Roman Mysteries
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“Draycott brings to life the little-known story of an intelligent, powerful woman…making her own way in exciting historical times.”
Adrienne Mayor, author of The Amazons
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“A vibrant, fascinating portrait of a great woman who deserves her place in the pantheon of Roman queens…[A] brilliantly different perspective on the end of the republic and beginning of the empire.”
Emma Southon, author of A Fatal Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum
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“A woman who, against all odds, successfully maintained the delicate balance of remaining in the good graces of the Roman imperial family while still honoring her Egyptian heritage.”
Donna Zuckerberg, author of Not All Dead White Men
User Reviews
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Details
- Author
- Jane Draycott
- Narrator
- Joan Walker
- Duration
- 7 hours 39 minutes
- Release Date
- 23 May 2023
- ISBN
- 9798212385794
- Format
- Audiobook
- Publisher
- Blackstone Publishing
- Genre
- Biography: historical, political and military
Synopsis
The first biography of one of the most fascinating yet long-neglected rulers of the ancient world: Cleopatra Selene, daughter of Antony and Cleopatra.Years ago, archaeologists excavating near Pompeii unearthed a hoard of Roman treasures, among them a bowl depicting a woman with thick, curly hair and sporting an elephant-scalp headdress. For decades, theories circulated about her identity―until, at last, she was ascertained to be Cleopatra Selene, the only surviving daughter of Roman Triumvir Marc Antony and Egyptian Queen Cleopatra VII. Using this discovery as her starting point and creating a narrative from mere fragments in the archaeological record, historian Jane Draycott reconstructs the exceptional life of this woman who, although born into royalty and raised in her mother’s court, was held captive by Augustus Caesar and his sister, Octavia, after her parents’ demise. Yet as Draycott shows, Cleopatra Selene was destined to emerge as an influential ruler in her own right, as queen, alongside King Juba II, of Mauretania, an ancient African kingdom. A long-overdue historical corrective, Cleopatra’s Daughter reclaims a mighty regent―and her infamous family―for posterity.
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