Product Description

Herodotus tells us that not all of the three hundred Spartan warriors died at the hands of Xerxes, King of the Persians, in the battle of the Thermopylae: two were saved bringing a life-saving message back to the city...

This is the saga of a Spartan family, torn apart by a cruel law that forces them to abandon one of their two sons - born lame - to the elements. The elder son, Brithos, is raised in the caste of the warriors, while the other, Talos, is spared a cruel death and is raised by a Helot shepherd, among the peasants.

They live out their story in a world dominated by the clash between the Persian empire and the city-states of Greece - a ferocious, relentless conflict - until the voice of their blood and of human solidarity unites them in a thrilling, singular enterprise

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #27469 in Books
• Published on: 2006-02-03
• Format: Unabridged
• Original language: English
• Binding: Paperback
• 260 pages

About the Author

Valerio Massimo Manfredi is professor of classical archaeology at Luigi Bocconi University in Milan. He has published nine works of fiction, including the bestselling Spartan and The Last Legion. The Alexander trilogy has been translated into 24 languages in 38 countries. He has written and hosted documentaries on the ancient world, and has written screenplays for cinema and television.

Customer Reviews

Best reading in months
I have literally just finished this book and I am sorry to have done so ... the pleasure that this book brought me is so great that I could easily pick it up again from the beginning.

Altough I suspect that the Italian original must be better than the English translation, as is usually the case, I found no fault in either the language or the story. It is like a breath of fresh air.

I found the way that the story is told so close to how real life is, that the unavoidable historical dicrepancies fade into insignificance. And after all who is there to know exactly how close this story is to the reality of the Ancient world? The pictures it paints are clearly believable and the life messages conveyed are valuable lessons about honesty, loyality, true love and fairness. Thus I highly recommend it to young people.
Its interesting story and the narrative flow keep your interest keen at all times and makes learning about life and customs in Ancient Greece a pleasure!

I look forward to reading the Alexander trilogy and any other book by Valerio Massimo Manfredi.

Most Enjoyable
I must say that I found this book hard to put down. I read 'The Last Legion' (same author) prior to reading 'Spartan' and was suprised by the difference in the two styles the author had used, Spartan was the better book and kept rolling along in such a way it was painful to put it down.

Superb read
A fantastic read. I read Manfredi's tyrant before this and enjoyed that book but this one outstripped it totally. A fantastic portrayal of the Spartan customs and life, with a gripping plot that half way through I thought it was good enough to be a book in it's self and left in tears, the second half equally as good. WELL WORTH THE READ