Two Athenian Citizens - fed up with the unending litigiousness of their compatriots - leave the hustle-and-bustle of the City to seek a better life... Coming upon the mythical king Tereus - a man whom the gods had turned into "the Hoopoe" - they decide to found a new city, with him, among the birds: Cloudcuckooland... Here, for the first time, even those without the mastery of Ancient Greek will come as close as the Greeks themselves to speaking the language of the gods, and to understanding the songs of birds... This book offers all those wishing to read, sing, play, or study Aristophanes' Birds - his most celebrated masterpiece - all that they need to truly appreciate the genius of the original: a lively and modern text offering two complimentary versions of the play - one in fleetfooted verse, where much once obscure has been stood to reason by a few carefully concocted rhymes - and a second, a near-verbatim interlineal, woven into a curated copy of the original Attic Greek. Like its forerunner in this series - the Peace "worth more than the paper it's printed on" - this volume includes a customized glossary of explanatory notes, offering tidbits and insights once only ever glimpsed from the dizzying heights of Cloudcuckooland itself... Oh, and a warning: This book contains fowl language.

Trebia. Trasimene. Cannae. With three stunning victories, Hannibal humbled Rome and nearly shattered its empire. Even today Hannibal's brilliant, if ultimately unsuccessful, campaign against Rome during the Second Punic War (218-202 BC) make him one of history's most celebrated military leaders. This biography by Cornelius Nepos (c. 100-27 BC) sketches Hannibal's life from the time he began traveling with his father's army as a young boy, through his sixteen-year invasion of Italy and his tumultuous political career in Carthage, to his perilous exile and eventual suicide in the East. As Rome completed its bloody transition from dysfunctional republic to stable monarchy, Nepos labored to complete an innovative and influential collection of concise biographies. Putting aside the detailed, chronological accounts of military campaigns and political machinations that characterized most writing about history, Nepos surveyed Roman and Greek history for distinguished men who excelled in a range of prestigious occupations. In the exploits and achievements of these illustrious men, Nepos hoped that his readers would find models for the honorable conduct of their own lives. Although most of Nepos' works have been lost, we are fortunate to have his biography of Hannibal. Nepos offers a surprisingly balanced portrayal of a man that most Roman authors vilified as the most monstrous foe that Rome had ever faced. Nepos' straightforward style and his preference for common vocabulary make Life of Hannibal accessible for those who are just beginning to read continuous Latin prose, while the historical interest of the subject make it compelling for readers of every ability.

This handbook is a study of Latin literature, including not only the classical and post-classical pagan authors, but also a representative selection of the Christian writers down to the death of St. Augustine.