Telling the story of Alexander the Great this is the first part of a trilogy and covers Alexander’s childhood. This is a fictionalised account but Renault has a keen eye for historical detail and an obvious interest in her subject matter. A great start to a superb trilogy.
'The Alexander Trilogy contains some of Renault's finest writing. Lyrical, wise, compelling: the novels are a wonderful imaginative feat' SARAH WATERS
'The Alexandriad is one of the twentieth century's most unexpectedly original works of art' GORE VIDAL In the first novel of her stunning trilogy, Mary Renault vividly imagines the life of Alexander the Great, the charismatic leader whose drive and ambition created a legend.
Alexander's beauty, strength and defiance were apparent from birth, but his boyhood honed those gifts into the makings of a king. His mother, Olympias, and his father, King Philip of Macedon, fought each other for their son's loyalty, teaching Alexander politics and vengeance from the cradle. His love for the youth Hephaistion taught him trust, while Aristotle's tutoring provoked his mind and Homer's Iliad fuelled his aspirations. Killing his first man in battle at the age of twelve, he became regent at sixteen and commander of Macedon's cavalry at eighteen, so that by the time his father was murdered, Alexander's skills had grown to match his fiery ambition.
Shortlisted for the 1970 Lost Booker Prize. Introduced by Tom Holland.
'This is not just a novel: it's also the best imagining we are ever likely to have of a man who tore up history' - Emily Wilson, Guardian
'The Alexander Trilogy stands as one of the most important works of fiction in the 20th century . . . Renault's skill is in immersing us in their world, drawing us into its strangeness, its violence and beauty' - Antonia Senior, The Times
A welcome return to print of this first volume in the Alexander the Great trilogy, originally published in 1970. The story focuses on the boy Alexander and the strange events that turned him into the mighty warrior he became. As a boy Alexander is blessed with good looks and lineage that on the face of it seems impressive - although his mother is reluctant to discuss his paternity. Not that this matters too much, for Alexander is willing to learn from experience and is a keen observer of everything that is likely to shape him into the character he is determined to become. His role model at first is his father, whose capacity for war and kingcraft are impressive. On the other hand there is the father's sexual depravity, which disgusts Alexander. Mary Renault has spun a tale of rare impact, bringing one of history's greatest characters to life and making him seem human in a way the history books can never do. (Kirkus UK)
Author
About Mary Renault
Mary Renault was educated at Clifton High School, Bristol and St Hugh's College, Oxford. Having completed nursing training in 1937, she then wrote her first novel Promise of Love. Her next three novels were written during off-time duty whilst serving in the war. In 1948 she went to live in South Africa but travelled widely. It was her trip to Greece and her visits to Corinth, Samos, Crete, Delos, Aegina and other islands, as well as to Athens, Sounion and Marathon, that resulted in her brilliant historical reconstructions of Ancient Greece. Mary Renault died in 1983.
