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Title: Rome for Dummies c119 AD
Review: It is a sad fact of history that of all the histories of the Roman Emperors that were written, including the contemporary biographies and autobiographies, that most have been lost forever. Suetonius came into Imperial favour riding the coat(or toga) tails of the success of Pliny The Younger - it is quite likely that we may otherwise have never have heard of him. It isn't an entirely useless work, as it does give some interesting insights as to how second century Imperial Rome looked upon its founding fathers. Still, for historians, Suetonius' work is far from an evidentiary goldmine. The best comparison one can give to this work is as a compilation of anecdotes and contemporary reports - many of which are indeed interesting - but do leave the historian in us all pining for that which has been lost.
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