Quatrième de couverture :
When Tiro, the confidential secretary of a Roman senator, opens the door to a terrified stranger on a cold November morning, he sets in motion a chain of events which will eventually propel his master into one of the most famous courtroom dramas in history.
The stranger is a Sicilian, a victim of the island's corrupt Roman governor, Verres. The senator is Cicero, a brilliant young lawyer and spellbinding orator, determined to attain imperium - supreme power in the state.
This is the starting-point of Robert Harris's most accomplished novel to date. Compellingly written in Tiro's voice, it takes us inside the violent, treacherous world of Roman politics, to describe how one man - clever, compassionate, devious, vulnerable - fought to reach the top.
'Sometimes it is foolish to articulate an ambition too early - exposing it prematurely to the laughter and scepticism of the world can destroy it before it is even properly born. But sometimes the opposite occurs, and the very act of mentioning a thing makes it suddenly seem possible, even plausible. That was how it was that night. When Cicero pronounced the word "consul" he planted it in the ground like a standard for us all to admire. And for a moment we glimpsed the brilliant, starry future through his eyes, and saw that he was right: that if he took down Verres, he had a chance; that he might - just - with luck - go all the way to the summit...'
Oliver Ford Davies has been working in theatre, film, and television for the last 30 years. He recently played Philip Larkin in the acclaimed Larkin With Women at the Orange Tree Theatre. Other theatre credits include: The Shaughraun, Hamlet, David Hare's trilogy of Racing Demon (Best Actor-Olivier Awards '90), Murmuring Judges and Absence of War at the Royal National Theatre and The Shape of the Table. Between 1975 and 1986, he was in twenty-five RSC productions.
Ford Davis's film credits include Sense and Sensibility directed by Ang Lee, Mrs Dalloway directed by Marleen Gorris, Scandal directed by Michael Caton-Jones and more recently Star Wars Episodes I, II and III.His television credits are numerous and include the popular mini-series A Dance to the Music of Time and The Way We Live Now.
An abridgement of Imperium (c) Robert Harris 2006
Published by Hutchinson in hardback
Produced by Stuart Owen
Abridged by Kati Nichol
Design/jacket by
Manufactured and printed in the UK
(P) Random House Audiobooks 2006
Revue de presse :
"Meticulous, absorbing and informative." - The New York Times Book Review
"A joy to read in every way." - The Independent
"An entertainingly vivid picture of one of history's most fascinating elected officials." - USA Today
"Harris's zest for political machinations serves the material well." -- The Washington Post
"A minutely observed political novel...set during the most poignant era in ancient Roman history." -- Newsday (New York)
"In Harris's hands the great game [of politics] becomes a beautiful one." -- The Times (London)
"Excellent.... Full of back-biting and double-dealing, compromise and intrigue." -- Time Out
Les informations fournies dans la section « A propos du livre » peuvent faire référence à une autre édition de ce titre.