The Letters of the Younger Pliny (Penguin Classics)

A readable translation of the many letters of one of history's most famous letter writers, and also a good source on his eventful life. Caius Plinius Secundus had correspondence with many of the great men of his time, including Emperor Trajan and the historians Tacitus and Suetonius, and wrote of such fascinating topics as the Dacian Wars, Christians in his province of Bithynia, the excesses of the recently murdered Emperor Domitianus, and various obscure topics from hunting to an alleged haunted house in Greece. A great book for someone, who, like me, likes to read about the Romans from their own pens.

Pliny the Younger was a disciple of Musonius Rufus, the great Stoic teacher who taught Epictetus. Epictetus wrote discourses which influenced Emperor Marcus Aurelius. A reading of Pliny the Younger will shed light on Stoic thoughts.

Pliny's self-selected letters comprise a fascinating bit of ancient autobiography, and should be of interest to a wide variety of readers. His descriptions of trials, and of his often slimy opposing counsel, will amuse modern attorneys. The letters between Pliny and the Emperor Trajan read much like modern e-mails between a CEO and a diligent corporate manager. I first read Pliny at the same time as the "Meditations" of Marcus Aurelius; the two books provide a striking contrast between two typically Roman world-views -- Pliny wanting nothing so much as posthumous fame, Aurelius musing on the vanity of all earthly pursuits given their utter meaninglessness after we turn to dust. Ms. Radice's translation is smooth and enjoyable, retaining a certain air of distance given the source's antiquity but not becoming stilted or precious.

Pliny's letters are simply a delight. In this world of instant communication we forget the vast distances letters had to travel in the past and therefore the care that their authors put into writing them. Pliny is no exception to the rule, his letters are teeming with light and a love of life and contemplation. But if nothing else he gives us a window on an age that peaks the imagination like few others.

This is a great edition of the collected letters of Pliny the Younger, ably translated and introduced by Betty Radice who for many years was the editor of the Penguin Classics. While many readers will immediately look for Pliny's most famous letters, i.e. his description of the eruption of Vesuvius, written for his friend Tacitus, and his letter to the Emperor Trajan asking for an opinion on how to deal with those troublesome Christians, there's a great deal more here, including Pliny writing on ghosts, talking about Roman politics and law, and just chatting to his friends. Especially interesting is the final section of letters which Pliny wrote to the Emperor Trajan when Pliny was the emperor's representative in Pontus and Bithynia. Pliny's obsequious tone is quite different from his personal letters, and I can almost picture Trajan rolling his eyes when his secretary arrived with another of Pliny's overly deferential missives. Overall there's a lot to enjoy here; not only do we obtain a unique glimpse into the workings of the Roman Empire at its height under one of its best emperors, but we also get more of a feel for Pliny than we do for Cicero in his equally famous but often less personable letters.