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Julian

4.14 of 5 stars 4.14 · rating details · 2,106 ratings · 154 reviews

The remarkable bestseller about the fourth-century Roman emperor who famously tried to halt the spread of Christianity, Julian is widely regarded as one of Gore Vidal’s finest historical novels.

Julian the Apostate, nephew of Constantine the Great, was one of the brightest yet briefest lights in the history of the Roman Empire. A military genius on the level of Julius Caesa...more

Paperback, 502 pages

Published August 12th 2003 by Vintage (first published 1962)

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Nov 19, 2011 Eric_W rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: historical-fiction

Julian the Apostate was emperor of Rome from 361-363 CE and the nephew of Constantine. Raised in a strict Christian environment (although of the Arian tradition), he formally announced his conversion to paganism in 361 and became a public enemy of Christianity.

That provides the background for Vidal's excellent historical novel (historical in the best sense in that Vidal tried to use as many actual events and recorded conversations as possible). Vidal is, of course, rather flagrant in rejecting C...more Julian the Apostate was emperor of Rome from 361-363 CE and the nephew of Constantine. Raised in a strict Christian environment (although of the Arian tradition), he formally announced his conversion to paganism in 361 and became a public enemy of Christianity.

That provides the background for Vidal's excellent historical novel (historical in the best sense in that Vidal tried to use as many actual events and recorded conversations as possible). Vidal is, of course, rather flagrant in rejecting Christianity himself, so it is easy to see why Julian's gradual rejection of what he viewed as a faith filled with contradictions both in belief and behavior would be appealing to Vidal.

The book is told from Julian's point of view as a form of autobiography with little side social commentaries of two of his friends. The debate between the supporters of Athanasius (who finally won out) and the Arians is well explained. In the fourth century (see also When Jesus Became God, http://www.goodreads.com/review/show/...) the debate over the divinity of Jesus was of huge consequence. The Arians (basing their case on John 14:25) believed in the doctrine of homoiousios: Jesus was a similar substance to God the father but created by him. The followers of Athanasius adopted that "pernicious doctrine" later codified in the Nicene Creed of homoousius (meaning that God, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit are one and the same).

It was essential for Julian to pretend to be one of the Galileans, as Christians were called then, because it was the declared religion of Rome after Constantine. As a potential successor to the throne, he was subject to all sorts of plots and political machinations, and these dangers form much of the tension of the book, as Julian tries to remain alive posing as a student of philosophy with no interest in politics. Julian's childhood was that of a prince with all that entails, including constant supervision, little access to people besides his siblings, and strict regulation of behavior. Julian's cousin, the reigning emperor Constantius, fearing for his throne, systematically murdered those who might be a threat -- especially his relatives -- so Julian had to tread very carefully. Fortunately, Julian was needed to be the titular head of Gaul, so he was removed from Athens, married to Constantius's sister, Helena, and sent to barbarian Europe. Julian, whom the emperor suspected had no military prowess, surprised everyone with his skill in battle as well as administratively, even though his hands were often tied by Constantius's Florentius, who had a great deal of administrative control. Constantius's attempts to subdue the Persians was to prove his undoing, and when he demanded that virtually all of Julian's troops be sent to him - despite Julian's promise to the troops from Gaul that they would not have to serve outside the province - those troops rebelled and demanded that Julian be appointed Julian Augustus, i.e., Emperor of the West. Helena, by this time, even though she was sister to Constantius, sided with Julian, because she knew that her brother had murdered her two children because he feared them as threats to his throne. Before a civil war could result Constantius died.

Julian's (Vidal's?) comments on power and the corrupting role of imperialism are as pertinent today as they might have been two centuries ago: " Wherever there is a throne, one may observe in rich detail every folly and wickedness of which man is capable, enameled with manners and gilded with hypocrisy." "I have often felt when studying history that not enough is made of those intermediaries who so often do the actual governing. . . As a result, factions within the court could form and reform, irrelevant to the nominal power. . . .On the throne of the world, any delusion can become fact." The corruption and greed become palpable in Vidal's words.

Vidal uses a triple narrative technique that intersperses Julian's "autobiography" with comments by two contemporaries, a philosopher and a rhetorician, whose views do not always coincide with Julian's, permitting Vidal to offer disparate views of events. Julian is ultimately portrayed as a pagan philosopher-leader struggling against the hypocrisy of the new Galilean religion and trying to recapture the glory of the lost Hellenistic past.

Julian used his military and imperial rights to revive paganism and subdue the upstart Christian cult, but was killed - Vidal suggests by one of his own men, perhaps at the direction of the bishops - during the war against the Persians.

Vidal has vividly captured the intense political maneuvering and danger of being in line to succeed to the throne. This is historical fiction at its nail-biting best.

minor editing 11/19/11(less)

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Apr 29, 2012 Erik Graff rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition Recommends it for: everyone

Recommended to Erik by: no one

Shelves: literature

Gore Vidal is a novelist with an agenda. Born in West Point, descendant of Aaron Burr and member of a prominent political family, Gore is credited with the first openly homosexual novel in American letters, the espousal of views generally to the left of the Democratic Party and general iconoclasm. He is also a decent historian and humorous socio-political essayist.

Julian is one of his historical novels, a defense of the last of the avowedly non-Christian emperors and of the best of the Hellenist...more

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Jan 27, 2008 Travis rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: history, fiction

I love Roman history. Had Julian (the Apostate) been less conciliatory, the Christians would have remained a fringe sect. Uncompromising themselves, and ultimately triumphant, the Christians stamped out what Julian loved most: knowledge.

This book is written as letters between Libanius and Priscus, who discuss what to do with Julian's diary. Vidal's prose is sublime--always informing and entertaining, sometimes sharp and often funny. Historical fiction is rarely this good.

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Mar 17, 2009 Terry Hawkins rated it 5 of 5 stars

I don't know how or why anyone would let a thirteen year old withdraw this book from a public library but someone did, and it went a long way towards forming my mind. For better or worse.

Julian the Apostate was born just a little too late: the last Hellenist (pagan) in the family of Constantine, who a few years before Julian's birth had converted the Roman Empire to Christianity. The novel chronicles his unlikely rise to power and its inevitable conclusion. Not a plot spoiler----aren't a lot of...more

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May 11, 2013 MoonButterfly rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: literature, 2012, reviews, stars-rating-4

This is a great historical novel that feels more like a history book than a work of fiction. The characters are authentic and it follows the historic record with a few exceptions. I was worried about the alternating point-of-view in the book, but it worked really well. The story takes the form an autobiography written by Julian. The Greek historian Priscus and the Greek philosopher Libanius interrupt the text and embellish or correct Julian's version of events. If history was taught like this in...more

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Jun 27, 2012 Elijah Kinch Spector added it

"I was now a gawky adolescent with a beard thick on the chin, spotty on the upper lip, invisible on the cheeks. I looked frightful but I refused to shave. I am to be a philosopher, I said proudly; and that was that."
- p. 58

Gore Vidal has worked on a good number of films, most famously (at least after the disowned Caligula) in uncredited rewrites for 1959's Ben-Hur, which is one of only a scant handful of big, epic, mid-century sword and sandal movies that's a genuinely good film. Vidal's role reportedly centered around strengthening the relationship between Ben-Hur and his best buddy/rival (supposedly by way of gay subtext, but that gets argued about a lot). Having read Julian: A Novel, I entirely understand why Vidal was brought in to do this: he's very good at making characters in ancient history feel relatable. Indeed, as I read Julian, I couldn't help thinking of the amazing film that it would have made, given the sort of financial backing that these epics were given in the 1960s.

Of course, no one in the U.S. would've bankrolled a sandal epic whose hero's main characteristic is an intense hatred of Christianity. Not to mention that it's a story of the Roman Empire that never, ever gets to Rome. (I don't remember there being very many Byzantine epics)

Really, though, more than anything else, Julian is the story of a beard.

I love the quote at the top because it's one of those instantly relatable details that make even the most grand and ancient figures feel real. Most of us have known, or been, that guy; if not literally the one who thinks his scraggly beard shows what a deep thinker he is, then at least someone very similar. Someone with lofty ambitions that really come down to stubbornness, with an intense desire to appear iconoclastic. I was joking when I said the book is about a beard, but really that beard does sum up Julian (or Vidal's version of him, anyway) in a nutshell.

Julian the Apostate is an emperor I'd never heard of before, but a fascinating one...

[Full review, with pictures, on my blog. There are many Robert Graves comparisons made.](less)

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May 31, 2008 liirogue rated it 3 of 5 stars

I never knew that after Constantine, the Roman Empire reverted (briefly) to the old gods. Gore Vidal does a good job of describing the man who attempted to undo the religious changes and bring back the old ways.

I really liked the style he chose to write the book in - two old friends write letters to each other, reminiscing about the now deceased Julian. You then read Julian's autobiography, interspersed with humorous and enlightening comments from both of these old friends. These comments also b...more

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May 06, 2013 Kyle Muntz rated it 4 of 5 stars

I have no idea why it took me so long to finish this. It's not quite as good as Creation, but on the other hand it's about maybe one of the most interesting people in human history--a roman emperor who studied philosophy and might have made the world Pagan again. Vidal's prose is strong, insightful, well researched, and always clear. This book is maybe mostly interesting for its critique of the history/emergence of Christianity (still pretty relevant, maybe more than ever, as it deals with the b...more

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Nov 22, 2012 Betty Cross rated it 5 of 5 stars

The recent death of Gore Vidal reminded me I'd read his historical novel about Julian, the Roman Emperor known as "The Apostate" because he renounced Christianity and tried to bring about a pagan revival. Julian's character is very intelligent, witty, and self-aware; a reclusive scholar who suddenly finds himself appointed to repel a barbarian invasion of Gaul and does surprisingly well at it. His troops mutiny and declare him emperor. He marches on Constantinople and shocks the bishops by renou...more

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Oct 17, 2008 Jack rated it 5 of 5 stars

I suggest that those who can not accept criticism of their Christian religion skip this book. The Roman Emperor Julian was totally offended by the Christians of the 4th century AD.
I first read this historical novel back in the 1960's. I enjoyed it then and I enjoyed it even more now. This time I really picked up on Julian's flaws; 40 years ago I think I just was rooting for him to win (knowing, of course, he would ultimately fail) and I ignored this dark side.
Gore Vidal did extensive research...more

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Dec 18, 2012 Annarella rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: masterpiece, history, english, unmissable

Ogni tanto mi capita e leggo libri seri. E quando dico "seri", dico "grandi libri".

Dopo avere letto in giro un po' di recensioni entusiastiche ho deciso di metterci mano.

Il libro è "Julian" di Gore Vidal ovvero la biografia romanzata di Flavio Claudio Giuliano Augusto, nickname Giuliano l'Apostata.

Il libro ha quasi cinquantanni ma decisamente non li dimostra.

Molto accurato nelle ricerche storiche, scritto in inglese favoloso affronta sia il controverso personaggio di Giuliano sia l'affascinante...more

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Nov 27, 2012 Anna Engel rated it 3 of 5 stars

[3.5 stars]
Julian is a thoroughly likeable young man who, through a combination of birth, chance, and ambition, becomes Roman emperor. He's also apparently quite attractive, despite the beard. He's philosophical, charismatic, intelligent, and enthusiastic; he's hard not to like.

Fair warning: If you don't like your faith being criticized, you probably shouldn't read this book. Vidal's discussions of philosophy, religion, and eternity probably say more about his own views than they do Julian's, b...more

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Nov 04, 2012 Judith rated it 4 of 5 stars

Historical fiction is not my usual fare, but something about the write-up on this book in a magazine called "Bookmarks" caught my attention and I am glad I pursued it. Emperor Julian, not to be confused with Julius Caesar, followed the reign of his uncle, Constantine the Great, and Julian attempted to undo what Constantine had done, which was to establish Christianity as the official religion of the civilized world. It is humorous and interesting to read about Julian's attempts to restore Hellen...more

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Aug 28, 2012 Laura rated it 4 of 5 stars

Shelves: being-human, history, metatexts

In my sad and maddening teenage years, I happened on my mother’s copy of the Oxford Book of British Verse and read through it with the doggedness I had at the time. One poem that hit me hard was Algernon Charles Swinburne’s Hymn to Proserpina, written in the voice of a Roman lamenting the passing of the old gods as Rome embraced Christianity. It begins with the line “Vicisti, Galilæe,” which, I am told, translates to “Thou hast conquered, Galilean,” and, I am told, was not said by the Emperor J...more In my sad and maddening teenage years, I happened on my mother’s copy of the Oxford Book of British Verse and read through it with the doggedness I had at the time. One poem that hit me hard was Algernon Charles Swinburne’s Hymn to Proserpina, written in the voice of a Roman lamenting the passing of the old gods as Rome embraced Christianity. It begins with the line “Vicisti, Galilæe,” which, I am told, translates to “Thou hast conquered, Galilean,” and, I am told, was not said by the Emperor Julian as he lay dying. I’m older and less full of fire and gothic sentimentality these days, but some of Swinburne’s lines still give me shivers. Viz, these:

Thou hast conquered, O pale Galilean; the world has grown grey from thy breath;
We have drunken of things Lethean, and fed on the fullness of death.
Laurel is green for a season, and love is sweet for a day;
But love grows bitter with treason, and laurel outlives not May.

I read and re-read the poem, and it gave me vague, mythic notions about this Emperor who both seems progressive, as he attempted to create a Rome of religious pluralism, and deeply conservative in the William F. Buckley mode of standing athwart history and yelling “Stop!” Constantine’s nephew, who tried, and failed, to undo what he did. If he had not died two years into his reign, history might have been very different.

On the occasion of Gore Vidal’s death, I thought to read one of his books, and more or less randomly picked Julian. Very readable, and it made me like Julian in a less soppy way. At least as portrayed by Vidal, while he got his hands dirty, he strove hard to be a good man and a good Emperor.

I’m startled, though, that according to the Guardian obituary, it was a best seller. http://www.guardian.co.uk/books/2012/.... It is, among other things, a scathing critique of Christianity. Julian despises it, and Christians are portrayed in this text as despicable; manipulative, treacherous, small minded, and murderous. It is an elegy for the world that could have been, had Julian lived.

I am also struck that it was a best seller (I don’t know when or by what metric) because it was published the year after JFK was assassinated. Julian, in this text if not by history, dies by a spear thrust from his own bodyguard, the victim of a plot by the Christians in his immediate circle who made a pact he would not live to return from the war. I don’t want to stretch the analogy too far, but in both times, the world was disrupted, and not, by the death of leader. While Julian may not have been loved by all, he was loved by Libanius, one of the narrators. Perhaps people turned to this book to take solace in another man’s grief after the death of a beloved leader.

It ends with a powerful quote, spoken by Libanius, who has been informed that the current emperor will not allow him to publish a biography of Julian at this time. Libanius is old, and nearly blind, and near death. He tells us:

“I have been reading Plotinus all evening. He has the power to sooth me; and I find his sadness curiously comforting. Even when he writes: “Life here with the things of earth is a sinking, a defeat, a failure of the wing.” The wing has indeed failed. One sinks. Defeat is certain. Even as I write these lines, the lamp wick sputters to an end, and the pool of light in which I sit contracts. Soon the room will be dark. One has always feared that death would be like this. But what else is there? With Julian, the light went, and now nothing remains but to let the darkness come, and hope for a new sun and another day, born of time’s mystery and a man’s love of life.” (502).

I would have loved this book when I was a soppy teenager. If Julian had prevailed, we might never have had the dark ages, the Inquisition, the men who feared witches and burned women, the condemnation of Galileo. Now it fills me with a mild regret for the untimely death of a man who might have built a better world.
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Feb 11, 2012 Al Bità rated it 5 of 5 stars · review of another edition

I have always wanted to read this book ever since I read about Julian the Apostate, but never quite got around to it. When a friend bought a copy at a local second-hand bookshop my friend kindly allowed me to read it before he got to it — thanks Wayne! So now it is done, and it is every bit as good as I thought it would be.

Many of the comments about this book on Goodreads suggest I am not alone in liking this book; some quibble about the conceits Vidal uses (I'm not quite sure why, but to be cri...more I have always wanted to read this book ever since I read about Julian the Apostate, but never quite got around to it. When a friend bought a copy at a local second-hand bookshop my friend kindly allowed me to read it before he got to it — thanks Wayne! So now it is done, and it is every bit as good as I thought it would be.

Many of the comments about this book on Goodreads suggest I am not alone in liking this book; some quibble about the conceits Vidal uses (I'm not quite sure why, but to be critical (if that's the right word) of his 'modern' stance in his comments, or the comments he places in his characters mouths seems to me to be missing the point). First of all this is a Novel; and within that category, it is an Historical Novel. Obviously, therefore, it is a work of Fiction; but that does not mean that the History part is fiction. Part of the brilliance of Vidal comes in his presentation of multiple points of view about the same events — the inference is that all history is 'biased' but not necessarily invalid: just multiple. Within this structure Vidal presents vying attitudes to important political decisions.

The 'book' starts at about the time the Spanish Roman Emperor Theodosius I's 380/1 CE Edict that Christianity, and only Christianity, would be the only State region (this is some 17 years after Julians death/murder). The compilers of Julian's 'memoir' and notes (Priscus and Libanus) tell us that they wish to publish these works in order to honour and perhaps perpetuate Julian's legacy. We know from the beginning how it is all going to end, so from this perspective, Vidal uses the 'historical facts' to regale us with an insight as to what life in that refined section of Roman Society was like: powerful, paranoid, murderous, dangerous, mistrustful, duplicitous, etc. On this level the novel is astonishingly effective.

While the historical details are precise and very well researched, it would help to know that the theological debates current during this turbulent time were very real power struggles, and their effect on the future history of the West is pivotal. When Constantine moved Rome to Byzantium ca 323 CE, rebuilt and renamed Constantinople, he also expressed a preference for Christianity as a unifying religion (as opposed to the more popular (at least among the Military) Persian Mithraism) and the Christians saw this as the opportunity par excellence to establish themselves as powerbrokers. The 325 Council of Nicaea came up with the first version of the Nicaean Creed Christians adhere to (more or less) but the wording is comparatively scant (a more complete version is produced at the First Council of Constantinople ca. 381 CE).

Constantine's acceptance of Christianity did not result in his imposing it on all his subjects — it is known to historians that other forms of worship were also allowed in Constantinople — and in any case there were as well many (dozens) of 'variations' of Christianity around at the time. The Arius/Athanasius controversy on the nature of Jesus was perhaps the most contentious. Athanasius' view predominated at Nicaea, and Arius banished; but Constantine wanted a reconciliation. Athanasius refused to compromise, but Constantine was prepared to forgive, and Arius was to be reinstated. It was while Arius was on his way in the palace to receive his reprieve that he suddenly (literally) falls ill and dies (many believed poisoned). On Constantine's death, when his son Constantius II becomes Emperor in the East, Constantius prefers the Arian doctrine, and he has Athanasius banished (he finds refuge in the West). Thus during Constantius' 24-year reign, the only true Christian belief in the East was Arian. It is in this environment that Julian finds himself.

It is all the public and bitter (and possibly even murderous) argumentations that contribute to Julian's cynicism; and his continuous actual and implied criticisms are deftly interspersed throughout the novel. Julian's preference for the 'old ways', particularly of the Greek philosophers and their approach to learning. The Christians' denial of the existence of the Greek and Roman gods makes Julian refer to them as atheists; bishops who destroy the old temples are 'barbarians', and their churches 'charnel-houses', etc. While Julian's anti-Christian stance is historical, it is not true that Vidal therefore believes that the old gods and old beliefs are a valid alternative, nor does he endorse them: indeed the sub-text right throughout is that they, too, are deficient; the rituals smack of superstitious drivel; the number of cattle and other animals killed by Julian in his acts of 'appeasement' is astonishingly large and appalling; and ultimately, despite all this, even Julian's gods desert him…

What does emerge out of all of this, however, is an astonishingly moving composite portrait of Julian as a person one has grown to love, with all his faults and foibles. Vidal's comments, mostly indirectly, on power and its uses and abuses finds comfortable location within the scheme of things — and they are comments that apply always in politics, so 'relevant' to today as much as to the 4th century CE. Some nice, chilling touches at the end are the Christian 'justification' of Julian's killing, and the introduction of one of Libanus' pupils, John Chrysostom (the 'golden mouthed' orator) who will later give a series of orations/lectures against the Jews wherein it is believed the first articulation of the idea of Jews as 'Christ killers' is made). Meanwhile, Athanasius 'wins out' and with the help of the West ('pope' Damasus I, Ambrose, Augustine, Jerome) takes over and stains forever the core teachings of the Church with its particular colours. Even so, Arian beliefs continue for quite some time, and can still be found in Unitarian and Jehovah's Witnesses beliefs today… But these are 'asides'…

All the above is available to the reader in clear, limpid prose that is easy, and a pleasure to read. This book is indeed a masterpiece.
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Aug 08, 2010 Steven E rated it 5 of 5 stars

You wouldn't think a 500 page epistolary novel swirling around a short-reigned Roman emperor would be at all engrossing, but here we are. The emperor Julian famously tried to arrest the spread of Christianity and reinstall Hellenism in the 4th century, and do so without bloodletting. He was nearly Plato's philosopher king incarnate, a just and admirable ruler who simply wanted peace.

Vidal's Julian dovetails nicely with his historical counterpart. He is learned and witty and self-aware, while br...more

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Dec 23, 2012 Lee Barckmann rated it 5 of 5 stars

Julian, a Novel by Gore Vidal

The 4th Century AD in the West was bracketed by the conversion of Constantine and the recognition of Christianity as the first among the many religions in the Mediterranean world (Edict of Milan 313) and the Capture of Rome by Alaric's Visigoths in 410. Between those years the power of Rome waned and Byzantine (newly named Constantinople in 330) rose. Christianity gradually began to assume the power of theocracy, controlling people's lives in a way that the Paganism...more Julian, a Novel by Gore Vidal

The 4th Century AD in the West was bracketed by the conversion of Constantine and the recognition of Christianity as the first among the many religions in the Mediterranean world (Edict of Milan 313) and the Capture of Rome by Alaric's Visigoths in 410. Between those years the power of Rome waned and Byzantine (newly named Constantinople in 330) rose. Christianity gradually began to assume the power of theocracy, controlling people's lives in a way that the Paganism that it replaced never did. As the church's power grew, the many variants of Christianity and the dogmas of those variants assumed a greater importance. Arianism, Monophysitism and Dyophysitism, all different ideas as to the nature of, and the relationship between, God and Jesus became rallying cry's for vicious mob violence and the military conflicts between various Christian sects of that epic. In a way that is hard to fathom today, arguments about whether Christ was the son of God or the same as God and whether he was a real physical presence on earth or part physical and part spiritual were the background of deadly struggles, all completing for allegiance of the as yet extremely civilized and culturally united Mediterranean world.

In the Middle of this convulsive century was a brief interlude, the 2 year reign of Julian 'The Apostate'. Gore Vidal's Novel, Julian is an unconventional biography of this little known Roman Emperor.

I say little known because his appellate 'the Apostate' put him outside the pale of traditional biography. After his death the Christians returned to power and they never again lost it. The final Fall of Rome led to the rise of the Ultra-Christian 'Dark Ages and Middle Ages, which of course has shaped the course of Western Civilization for better or worse.

Vidal clearly posits that it was for the worse. As anyone who has read Vidal, they know he takes a very personal, 'cui bono' view of history. His heroes are often history's villains. For example his Novel 'Burr' looks closely and sympathetically at the man who shot Alexander Hamilton and lent his name to a moribund rebellion against the young United States and was the indirect subject of the story that every school child of the early baby boom and before read in elementary school, "The man Without a Country". Vidal loved to give the finger to popularly accepted opinion.

The facts about Julian are well known, but the context that Gore gives those facts is startling. Julian was one of the greatest military generals in history. Vidal takes us through his campaigns and explains that genius in a very clear manner. Julian was also a writer on par with the other literary Emperor, Marcus Aurelius, he was a philosopher and a humanist of immense liberality, wishing, cajoling and legislating to to protect religious liberty in an increasingly intolerant Christian world. Vidal tells the story through letters between Julian and his friends from youth as well as letters among those friends talking about Julian, in frank and not always flattering terms. As in all of Vidal's historical novels he gives flesh and blood depiction and voice to some of the world's most influential figures, such as the emperor's who preceded and succeeded Julian.

The novel is regarded by some as Vidal's greatest work.. That might be - to me it is the most thought provoking of the works of Gore that I have read. The 4th Century was the caldron that formed much of what the modern western world would become. Julian was a champion of a road not taken, a road that to me held out the promise of a more tolerant and hopeful world. If the Roman Empire had chosen religious tolerance who knows what the result would have been? Islam (or something like it) might have arose with a much less belligerent character. The Mediterranean might not have split and Serbs and Croats might not have hated each other. Persians would still be Zoroastrians.

'What If History' is a fun game to play but ultimately not useful because as far as I know we can't go back or sideways in time.. But it is important that we see history as clearly as possible if we are to successful plot the future which is what we do with every action we take in life.. Because history is the only real guide that we have to what we are and what we will become.

Julian is a wonderful book and gave me a deeper appreciation of Gore Vidal's literary talent.(less)

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Sep 09, 2010 Faith Justice rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: favorites, given-away

Finished this while on vacation in Italy working on an archaeology site of a Roman villa. Loved it! The structure is clever. Julian "The Apostate", Emperor of Rome is dead and a philosopher friend of his wants to edit and publish his memoirs in spite of pressure from the new Christian Emperor. The book opens with correspondence between two philosophers - one who has the much coveted papers and the other who wants them - bickering over the price of making copies. The book continues with the the f...more

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Jan 02, 2013 Frank Edwards rated it 5 of 5 stars

For lovers of historical fiction and late Roman history, this book is a must read. It's written in a very clever quasi-epistolary narrative form in which two philosopher-friends of Julian comment on Julian's memoirs posthumously, Vidal tells the story of the last Roman emperor to openly worship the ancient Hellenistic gods. Julian was a well-intentioned man, a philosopher and poet at heart, who believed that his uncle, Constantine the Great committed a big mistake making Christianity, for all in...more

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Mar 09, 2009 Lucas Zeppetello rated it 4 of 5 stars

Julian by Gore Vidal is a historical fiction novel about the emperor Julian who ruled in the years after Constantine. He was an intellectual who, in his early life, wanted nothing to do with power in the empire but over time, he became recognized as a legitimate contender for emperor. He was a worshiper of the old gods (zeus as opposed to Jesus) who was murdered after four years as emperor after a failed attempt to restore worship to his gods and stop the growth of Christianity. A passage that...more

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Aug 08, 2011 Mel rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: eastern-mediterranean

Once again Vidal uses his phenomenal knowledge to create a novel which brings to life a vast array of characters in a setting that's not merely plausible, but engrossing.

Julian is a man after Vidal's own heart - a highly-educated Pagan who despises the barbarity of the Christians, or Gallileans as he prefers to call them. As heir to the Roman Empire in the wake of the official conversion of Constantine in the 4th century AD, he plays a dangerous waiting game for the throne, but once he reaches i...more

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Apr 09, 2013 Dorothy rated it 5 of 5 stars

This was great. Given my interest and reading about how Christianity took root and how the dogma of the Church evolved, the focus of much of this book on the early disagreements and rancor among competing Christian belief systems was an absolute treat. For a confirmed atheist, this "story" offered great philosophical fellow-thinking. In most tellings Julian is treated as little more than a short-lived emperor who sought to return to paganism and failed and is thus a footnote to the history of Ch...more

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May 05, 2010 Vicky rated it 4 of 5 stars

I am nearly at the end of this book, around 100 pages left. This is a book that takes a long time to finish. I had to stop, to read something else and to return. The language is so rich, the historical background is very complex and well researched and the references to the ancient philosophers are amazing. This period of history when the power of Roman Empire divided between West and East was declining and the Dark Ages were replacing the glamour of Rome is not very well known. The Christianity...more

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Sep 08, 2011 La Stamberga dei Lettori added it · review of another edition

Shelves: livia-medullina

Siamo nel 380 d.C., l'anno del famoso editto di Tessalonica con cui l'imperatore Teodosio proclama il cristianesimo unica religione tollerata dell'impero. Amareggiato per la progressiva ghettizzazione dei pagani, il retore Libanio, ripensa al suo antico discepolo, l'imperatore Giuliano e decide di "ricostruirne la memoria". Per farlo avrà bisogno dell'aiuto di Prisco, "compagno-filosofo" dell'imperatore il quale, a sua volta, è in possesso del diario di Giuliano. La testimonianza di Prisco, quel...more

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Jun 07, 2009 Linda rated it 5 of 5 stars

Shelves: a-to-z-lit-blog-project, international-like-things

Julian is stunning and awesome. Perhaps I am just being a snob when I am sometimes surprised that I have never even heard of a book and then it turns out to be amazing and I want everyone to read it. I shouldn't be, though, since often when the masses like something it is less than spectacular.

Not usually a fan of historical fiction, I was drawn to this because I had decided to finally read Gore Vidal and I liked the idea of the plot: a Roman emperor attempting to squelch the wacky upstart reli...more

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Sep 09, 2012 Carlos Serrano Nouaille rated it 4 of 5 stars · review of another edition

Muy buena novela histórica, con un protagonista diferente a cualquier otro emperador romano del que hayamos oído hablar. Juliano era un enamorado de la cultura griega, y como tal dedicará su vida a luchar contra los cristianos y declarará la libertad religiosa en el Imperio. También era un filósofo, y cuando recurría a tácticas insólitas como decir la verdad, renunciar a los harenes de esclavas o combatir a los especuladores de grano, conseguía dejar perplejos a todos sus súbditos.

El recurso de...more

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Mar 17, 2012 Ray Ziemer rated it 5 of 5 stars

Great book! I can only imagine the amount of research that went into this historical novel of Julian the Apostate, Emperor of the Roman Empire. The nephew of Constantine the Great, Julian was educated by Hellenist philosophers and teachers in the East while his uncle Constantius, ruled from Constantinople. When he was finally brought out from his obscure position, he surprised everyone by his military abilities, defeating German armies that threatened the Empire by invading Gaul. As Augustus in...more

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Jul 25, 2011 Justin rated it 5 of 5 stars

Historical fiction is notoriously difficult to execute successfully. This is one of the rare fine examples of the genre. Vidal does a masterful job of allowing his imagination to draw compelling, vivid sketches of Julian's life while incorporating the agreed-upon facts as appropriate and necessary. A triumph.

Those who enjoyed this novel are encouraged to seek out and read (if not buy) Volumes II & III of Julian from the Loeb Classical Library--the many extant private letters contained therei...more

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Dec 24, 2010 Gini rated it 5 of 5 stars

It's christmas eve, an apt time to finish Gore Vidal's Julian, the story of the last Hellenic or "pagan" emperor of Rome, who died at 32 (so near the age Christ died) battling to keep Christianity from over taking the Roman empire. The novel is extremely detailed, and Vidal says in his intro he stuck to the facts to portray a complex man: a philosopher and writer before he became emperor, he was equally familiar with the Bible and the ancient texts, thus making his choice from knowledge, not bli...more

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May 30, 2010 Leigh-ann rated it 5 of 5 stars

And my love affair with the Roman Empire continues. This was an excellent, compelling novel about Emperor Julian Augustus' attempt to restore worship of "the old gods" in the face of Christian opposition. I picked up this book 48 hours ago and barely put it down until I was finished... now I'm off to the library to see if I can read more about Constantine, one of Julian's predecessors and the first Roman Emperor to declare himself a "Galilean". I'm also going to look for something to read on the...more

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About Gore Vidal

Eugene Luther Gore Vidal was an American writer known for his essays, novels, screenplays, and Broadway plays. He was also known for his patrician manner, Transatlantic accent, and witty aphorisms. Vidal came from a distinguished political lineage; his grandfather was the senator Thomas Gore, and he later became a relation (through marriage) to Jacqueline Kennedy.

Vidal ran for political office twi...more

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“How marvelous books are, crossing worlds and centuries, defeating ignorance and, finally, cruel time itself.” — 67 people liked it

“Traitors who prevail are patriots; usurpers who succeed are divine emperors.” — 18 people liked it

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