"Mike Duncan's popular podcast, The History of Rome and Revolutions, packed facts, dry humor and historical parallels into easily digestible 20-minute episodes. His new book, The Storm Before The Storm, focuses on the decades that led up to the fall of the Republic. From income inequality to questions about who does and doesn't deserve citizenship to the rise of populism, it's consistently surprising how the issues we're facing today were relevant two millennia ago. And if you're worried about those parallels, this book provides a dose of reassurance. We're divided, but hey, at least we're not laying siege to our political rivals' cities just yet!"—National Public Radio, Best Books of 2017
"The Storm Before the Storm is massively entertaining and relevant to our own time. All times, in fact. War, politics, money, power, corruption, and class warfare seem to overwhelm the republican Roman political system and the results are horrifying. Huge personalities like Marius and Sulla cast a large shadow, but forces beyond anyone's control seem to drive the narrative. A chilling reminder of what can happen in any republic. Masterfully told."—Dan Carlin, host of Hardcore History podcast
"Never has a book about history that's two millennia old been so timely. Duncan, in the sort of narrative prose that caused his podcasts to electrify history lovers everywhere, tells the story of the decay of Republican Rome-and its contemporary relevance drips off every page. The Storm Before the Storm has everything from vividly portrayed populist demagogues exploiting economic and social inequality to the failure of calcified republican institutions to adapt to changing circumstances. You'll learn as much about the problems we face today from this book as from any newspaper."—Benjamin Wittes, editor-in-chief of Lawfare and senior fellow at the Brookings Institution
"Written with the humor and the storytelling instincts that made him such a popular podcaster, Duncan brilliantly answers a vital question that is rarely asked: What weakened the late Roman Republic enough that it collapsed under the ambitions of the Caesars? This is history as it should be-compelling, witty, and ultimately revealing."—Lars Brownworth, author of In Distant Lands: A Short History of the Crusades
"Mike Duncan turns his talent for clear and engaging exposition to an underappreciated period of Roman history: the last days of the Republic, before the rise of Caesar and the agonizing civil wars that yielded the Roman Empire. Duncan's readable and witty style, and his eye for the telling detail and memorable anecdote, carry the reader through a gripping narrative."—Peter Adamson, professor philosophy, LMU Munich, and host of History of Philsophy
"Remarkably engaging."—Washington Post
"Written in Duncan's usual congenial style. He zeros in on Rome's polarization between 'optimates' (conservatives) and 'populares' (populists), the disintegration of participatory democracy, and the concomitant rise in inequality, uncivil discourse, and violence. The parallels with modern times, and particularly contemporary America, leap off the page."
—Huffington Post
"This companionable and sprightly book captures the political drama and human passion of that extraordinary story."
—New Criterion
"Marvelous... A highly enjoyable historical narrative that reads almost like a modern political thriller."—New York Journal of Books
"A stark warning about what can happen to a civilization that has lost its way."—Smithsonian Online
"If you're a fan of Roman history, you will dig this. And if you're just a fan of good storytelling, you will dig this."—Jonah Keri, host of CBS Sports' The Jonah Keri Podcast
"A fantastic primer on the causes behind... the things we must be so careful about in our own politics today. Why norms must be respected. Why problems can't be kicked down the road. Why populism is so dangerous. Definitely read this book."—Ryan Holiday, media strategist, writer, and author of The Obstacle Is the Way, Ego Is the Enemy, The Daily Stoic and Perennial Seller
"An amazingly enjoyable history... With his fresh approach, Mike Duncan shows that it is important to understand what happened two thousand years ago to understand what is happening now and in the coming centuries."—Washington Book Review
"An impressively well written, exceptionally informative, inherently fascinating historical study, The Storm Before the Storm is an extraordinary read from beginning to end."—Midwest Book Review
"A lively, extremely well-informed chronicle of nearly seven decades of Roman political and social life... Drawing on ancient sources as well as modern histories, the author reveals chilling parallels to our own time... Crucial decades in the history of the ancient world vividly rendered."
—Kirkus Reviews
"Excellent... Award-winning podcaster Duncan proves to be just as effective at working in a written medium, presenting historical personalities and complex situations with clarity and verve."—Library Journal
"Disentangles well some complex events others neglect."—Wall Street Journal
10/01/2017
Plenty of people, notes Duncan (creator of the History of Rome podcast), are familiar with the facts of the end of the Roman Republic, including Julius Caeser's dictatorship and the rise of the emperor Augustus. But far fewer could tell you about the Gaius Marius's consulships, Sulla's march on Rome, or other events that weakened the Republic. Roughly covering the 130s to the 80s BCE, Duncan makes an excellent effort at familiarizing readers with those events. He lays out a narrative of how external conflicts, internal uprisings, political corruption, and even well-intentioned movements toward reform eroded the established rules and unwritten social codes that kept the straining Republican government together. While Duncan refrains from making explicit comparisons to modern events, threaded throughout the book is the reminder that the issues that provoked Roman unrest—economic and social inequality, questions of citizenship and legal rights, and the employment of intimidation and violence as political tools—parallel issues the United States is currently grappling with. VERDICT Award-winning podcaster Duncan proves to be just as effective at working in a written medium, presenting historical personalities and complex situations with clarity and verve.—Kathleen McCallister, Tulane Univ., New Orleans
Duncan’s examination of the early subversion and corruption of the Roman Republic, while broadly competent, suffers from errors in writing and narration that should have been caught and corrected. The history is informative and flows well as a story, and, for the most part, he delivers it clearly in a well-paced and expressive reading. Though his voice and manner are not especially engaging, and there’s a touch of amateurishness to his performance, he’s effective at using tone, pauses, and emphases to convey the text’s meaning. But mistakes in the writing, for example, “approbation” where “opprobrium” is meant, and in the reading, such as his persistent mispronunciation of plebeian as “pebleian,” are distracting and off-putting. This program could have been much improved by more care. W.M. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
Duncan’s examination of the early subversion and corruption of the Roman Republic, while broadly competent, suffers from errors in writing and narration that should have been caught and corrected. The history is informative and flows well as a story, and, for the most part, he delivers it clearly in a well-paced and expressive reading. Though his voice and manner are not especially engaging, and there’s a touch of amateurishness to his performance, he’s effective at using tone, pauses, and emphases to convey the text’s meaning. But mistakes in the writing, for example, “approbation” where “opprobrium” is meant, and in the reading, such as his persistent mispronunciation of plebeian as “pebleian,” are distracting and off-putting. This program could have been much improved by more care. W.M. © AudioFile 2018, Portland, Maine
