“Secrets of the Colosseum: Ancient Roman Gossip Book Reignites Scandal in the Modern Bestseller Charts!”
Andrea Ferrucci/Wikimedia CommonsA bust of Julius Caesar.
America’s republican system “was modeled on that of ancient Rome, but the [Roman] Republic ended up becoming an autocracy,” Holland said, “and so in America, there’s always been this anxiety that a Republican system of government may end up an autocracy, and I guess that at the moment, that anxiety has a particular salience.”
Even beyond the political sphere, though, Suetonius’ writing has remained fairly popular. People have always been drawn to sensational gossip and scandals — it’s the reason tabloids continue to exist. This new translation of Suetonius’ work may have sold the most copies, but that doesn’t discount how widely read it was in the past.
“Had there been bestseller lists in second-century Rome, Suetonius’ Lives of the Caesars would undoubtedly have been on them,” said Penguin Press’ Stuart Proffitt.
Holland’s translation was published on Feb. 13, 2025, and is available now from Penguin Classics.
After reading about Tom Holland’s new bestselling translation of The Lives of the Caesars, learn about ancient Rome’s worst emperors. Then, learn all about the salacious rumors regarding Julius Caesar’s bisexuality.
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