It is always a pleasant surprise when (ancient) history is presented in such a memorable and accessible way, making for an informative, fun and easy read. Greenfield and Radford’s Your Cheeky Guide to the Roman Empire is a collection of facts presented in an academic short-story style that is hard to put down. The book is divided into 11 chapters (which feature numerous punny titles and pop-culture references) with a detailed bibliography, a useful timeline and glossary, further reading suggestions, and a conversational introduction that braces the reader for some interesting, shocking, and frankly bizarre stories from Roman history. It is worth noting that between the serious discussions on violence and sexual assault (with a whole section on Priapus) and the ‘b*tches’, ‘bullsh*ts’, not-so-subtle f-bombs (‘Clucking bell!’ or ‘f***ing Gallus’), and the GoT references, this book would easily earn a 15+ rating on Common Sense Media.

Greenfield and Radford begin with perhaps the most popular topics of interest in Roman history: military conquests and political upheaval. A significant portion of Chapter 1 is dedicated to Marcus Licinius Crassus, but it is informative and narrates his rise and fall in an engaging way. Chapter 2 (‘Let’s Get Mythical’) does well to cover some of the less well-known myths and beliefs in ancient Roman society, including bizarre tales surrounding fiery phantom phalluses. Chapter 3 is arguably where the authors’ style of writing reaches a happy medium of accessible information, well-placed humour with minimal pop-culture references, and an easy-to-read narration of what could have been quite a dull topic compared to the content of Chapters 1 and 2. Chapter 3 sets an excellent standard for engaging audiences on the more ordinary, but no less important, aspects of ancient Roman life (i.e. infrastructure). That said, I was surprised to not find ‘stelae’ nor ‘sarcophagi’ in the glossary, as these terms are less familiar outside academic circles. An explanation of these terms (or even a footnote) would have been helpful for the target audience. Teachers will find that this book generally provides a helpful overview of certain aspects of Roman history and culture but may need to provide some extra context or explanations when the book assumes too much prior knowledge. Chapters 4 to 7 take on the challenge of narrating the complex reigns, lives, and relationships of emperors and other famous Roman figures. Where one may find the many names and ‘who is married to whom?’ summaries confusing, Greenfield and Radford manage to ground the reader in a straightforward and humorous narrative enough to come away with a fuller appreciation of, for example, the lesser-known Fulvia (compared to Cleopatra) or even some of the finer details of the Roman emperors’ lives.

Chapter 8 shifts gears towards animals in ancient Roman society, particularly focusing on dogs, aquatic life and birds, and the intriguing ideas and artwork associated with them. The inclusion of a certain mosaic depicting the she-wolf from the Romulus and Remus myth is especially chuckleworthy. This chapter also ties into some of the divine matters discussed in Chapter 9, where the authors give the reader a chance to have a broad overview of the shifting power dynamics alongside belief systems throughout Roman history. A slight misnomer appears in the overlaps between the use of ‘cults’ and ‘religions’ since the two words are not interchangeable and can misinform the reader. Additionally, the topic of martyrdom would have benefitted from some direction to further reading (such as James Corke Webster). Still, Chapter 9 covers a large swathe of the imperial era, the belief systems and several political changes, which are explained clearly. The concluding remark about the realities of human nature is an apt way to round off the chapter. Lastly, Chapters 10 and 11 deal with divisiveness (societal and political, such as class structures) and death of all kinds in Roman history, in some ways, ending on lesser-known but similar topics to where the book began: in conflict and political upheaval. Highlights include the diagram of Servilius between a rock and a hard place, Vindex’s book, ‘How to Lose a Dynasty in 10 Days’, as well as finishing Chapter 11 with Caracalla’s lavatory assassination.

This book is, overall, accessible to those who know very little about Roman history, and a fun time even for the more knowledgeable readers. Additionally, the variety of humour and pop-culture references is impressive: from Bob the Builder and Disney to LotR and GoT (among many others). The lack of Horrible Histories references was a missed opportunity; there was not even an honourable mention in Chapter 1 regarding Marcus Licinius Crassus (see ‘Minted’, 2013). There are also certain references which are, in my opinion, too obscure to be appreciated by the target demographic. For example, the Fawlty Towers ‘Don’t mention the war!’ comment is a joke which the authors then explain in a footnote – the comical moment goes down like a lead balloon. I’m all for expanding one’s knowledge of British comedy, but there also comes a point where obscure 1970s–1990s references and cringeworthy attempts to inject often outdated internet slang (‘LOLZ’) into the chapters make it painfully obvious to any younger reader that the book has not been written by someone from Gen Z.

All this aside, Your Cheeky Guide is an informative read that shines most of all in the well-rounded and accessible narration of events, facts, and figures, making large sections of Roman history memorable, engaging, thought-provoking, and understandable. Aptly, in the concluding remarks, the authors draw attention to the importance of the Humanities and the threat that the subjects face through cutbacks and other financial (or political) decisions, encouraging the reader to see the great value in learning about humanity across time. As is applicable to any classroom tackling Roman history – indeed, any historical events – Greenfield and Radford consistently (but not in a ‘lecturing’ manner) remind the reader of historical biases (including our own), different retellings of events, and the possible interpretations from modern academia, reiterating the very important point that we just don’t have all the answers, and that’s okay.