Colleen McCullough’s The First Man in Rome is a hefty tome (896 pages) of historical fiction, which details the military and political career of historical figure Gaius Marius (157 BC – 86 BC), as well as the history of Rome during his lifetime. It sounds dry, but it was actually quite fascinating. It just took me ages to get through because there is so much detail—not to mention learning Roman naming conventions, which are at first very confusing, and keeping track of the many, many characters. I think I’ve just learned more about ancient Rome than I ever learned in school – not surprising, since it was probably close to nothing. After finishing the body of the story I continued, working my way through the 94-page glossary (slightly dry, but it is helping to round out my understanding of the Roman world). Looking forward to taking on the rest of the series.