Alexander The Great

by Nigel Cawthorne

Alexander the Great (356-323 BC), King of Macedonia, lived a life of mythical proportions. He modelled himself on Achilles and slept with a copy of the Iliad, annotated by Aristotle, his teacher, under his pillow. Unrivalled by any historical military figure, he conquered the Mediterranean, Persia, Afghanistan and north-west India during his brief life. By the time he died at the age of 33 he had introduced Greek civilisation to the world.

Genres: History, Biography, Nonfiction

176 pages, Paperback

First published January 24, 2004

About the author

Nigel Cawthorne is an Anglo-American writer of fiction and non-fiction, and an editor. He has written more than 80 books on a wide range of subjects and has contributed to The Guardian, The Daily Telegraph Daily Mail and The New York Times. He has appeared on television and BBC Radio 4's Today programme.

Many of Nigel Cawthorne's books are compilations of popular history, without footnotes, references or bibliographies. His own web site refers to a description of his home as a "book-writing factory" and says, "More than half my books were commissioned by publishers and packagers for a flat fee or for a for a reduced royalty".

One of his most notable works was Taking Back My Name, an autobiography of Ike Turner, with whom he spent a number of weeks working with him on, taking up residence in Turner's house. The book caused much controversy, resulting in court cases for three years following its release.

Cawthorne currently lives in Bloomsbury, London with his girlfriend and son, Colin (born 1982).

Reviews

[Marilyn · Rating 3 out of 5]

A little bit hard going, history can’t help being just that, the facts.

[Rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

It's so interesting that after Persia everyone was advising Alexander to just stop. Quit going after the world and just take what he's already got. I feel like that's not something you here about when Alexander the Great is brought up. I like seeing this aspect. It's also amazing how everything he did was undone almost immediately after his death, and yet his legacy lived on. He was truly remarkable.