Real Men Read: ‘A Fatal Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum’ by Emma Southon

Thursday, June 27, 2024
7:00 pm - 8:30 pm

About the Book

In Ancient Rome, all the best stories have one thing in common—murder. Romulus killed Remus to found the city, Caesar was assassinated to save the Republic. Caligula was butchered in the theater, Claudius was poisoned at dinner, and Galba was beheaded in the Forum. In one 50-year period, 26 emperors were murdered.

But what did killing mean in a city where gladiators fought to the death to sate a crowd? In A Fatal Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Emma Southon examines a trove of real-life homicides from Roman history to explore Roman culture, including how perpetrator, victim, and the act itself were regarded by ordinary people. Inside Ancient Rome’s darkly fascinating history, we see how the Romans viewed life, death, and what it means to be human.

About the Author

Dr. Emma Southon holds a PhD in ancient history from the University of Birmingham. The author of A Fatal Thing Happened on the Way to the Forum, Marriage, Sex and Death: The Family and the Fall of Rome, and Agrippina, she co-hosts a history podcast with writer Janina Matthewson called “History is Sexy” and works full time as a bookseller at Waterstones Belfast.

About the event

Real Men Read meets on the fourth Thursday of every month(Except for November and December!) at 7:00 pm in our Cold Spring branch meeting room. We read various fiction titles ranging from classics to modern sci-fi, as well as non-fiction including history, biography, and popular science.

Check out ALL our programs in our online newsletter, https://www.cc-pl.org/connections

Please note any accommodation requests in the Special Needs section of the registration form. If you wish to attend via Zoom, or have any other questions, please contact Dave Anderson at danderson@cc-pl.org

Cold Spring Branch