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The Last of the Wine
A Virago Modern Classic
Series: Virago Modern Classics
Ratings/reviews counts are updated frequently.
Check link for latest rating. ( 6,392 ratings, 652 reviews)
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Format: Paperback / softback
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See moreCombining the scholarship of a historian with the imagination of a novelist, Mary Renault masterfully brings the ancient world to life in this page-turning drama of the Peloponnesian War.
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Description
‘All my sense of the ancient world – its values, its style, the scent of its wars and passions – comes from Mary Renault. Her Theseus novels are perhaps the most exciting of her Greek fictions, and The Last of the Wine the most moving. I turned to writing historical fiction because of something I learned from Renault: that it lets you shake off the mental shackles of your own era, all the categories and labels, and write freely about what really matters to you.’ — EMMA DONOGHUE
‘Mary Renault's portraits of the ancient world are fierce, complex and eloquent, infused at every turn with her life-long passion for the Classics. Her characters live vividly both in their own time, and in ours.’ — MADELINE MILLER
Combining the scholarship of a historian with the imagination of a novelist, Mary Renault masterfully brings the ancient world to life in this page-turning drama of the Peloponnesian War.Alexias, a young Athenian of good family, comes of age during the last phases of the Peloponnesian War. The adult world he enters is one in which the power and influence of his class have been undermined by the forces of war. Alexias finds himself drawn to the controversial teachings of Socrates, following him even though it at times endangers both his own life and his family's place in society.
Among the great teacher's followers, Alexias meets Lysis, and the two youths become inseparable—together they wrestle in the palaestra, journey to the Olympic Games, and fight in the wars against Sparta. As their relationship develops against the background of famine, siege, and civil conflict, Mary Renault expertly conveys the intricacies of classical Greek culture.
‘Mary Renault is a shining light to both historical novelists and their readers. She does not pretend the past is like the present, or that the people of ancient Greece were just like us. She shows us their strangeness; discerning, sure-footed, challenging our values, piquing our curiosity, she leads us through an alien landscape that moves and delights us.’ — HILARY MANTEL ‘The most vivid and convincing reconstruction of ancient Greek life that I have ever seen.’ — Sunday TimesSeries: Virago Modern Classics
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Book Hero Magic summarised reviews for this book. While it's new and still learning, it may not be perfect - your feedback is welcome! HOW HAS THIS BEEN REVIEWED?
The Last of the Wine by Mary Renault is highly praised for its vivid and convincing portrayal of ancient Greek life. Reviewers commend Renault's ability to immerse readers in the ancient world, highlighting its values and culture through a narrative that captivates and moves. Her talent for historical fiction is compared to classics like Robert Graves' I, Claudius, as she invites readers to explore an unfamiliar yet fascinating past.
Book Details
INFORMATION
ISBN: 9781844089611
Publisher: Little, Brown Book Group
Format: Paperback / softback
Date Published: 06 August 2015
Country: United Kingdom
Imprint: Virago Press Ltd
Contributors:
- Introduction by Charlotte Mendelson
Audience: General / adult
DIMENSIONS
Spine width: 26.0mm
Width: 128.0mm
Height: 198.0mm
Weight: 300g
Pages: 416
About the Author
Mary Renault (1905-1983) was born in London and educated at St Hughs, Oxford. She trained as a nurse at Oxford's Radcliffe Infirmary, where she met her lifelong partner, Julie Mullard. Her first novel, Purposes of Love, was published in 1937. In 1948, after North Face won a MGM prize worth $150,000, she and Mullard emigrated to South Africa. There, Renault was able to write forthrightly about homosexual relationships for the first time - in her masterpiece, The Charioteer (1953), and then in her first historical novel, The Last of the Wine (1956). Renault's vivid novels set in the ancient world brought her worldwide fame. In 2010 Fire From Heaven was shortlisted for the Lost Booker of 1970.
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