Claudius the God

By: Robert Graves

Narrated by: Derek Jacobi

Read in the style of a secret diary, this famous sequel to I, Claudius gives a wry and human view of the Roman world, bringing to life some of the most scandalous and violent times in history.

Claudius has survived the murderous intrigues of his predecessors to become, reluctantly, Emperor of Rome. He recounts his surprisingly successful rule; how he cultivates the loyalty of the army to repair the damage caused by his nephew Caligula; his friendship with the Jewish King Herod Agrippa; and his invasion of Britain.

Yet beneath the surface, Claudius' good fortune is under threat. With the growing paranoia of absolute power, and his young wife Messalina causing trouble, how long can Claudius survive?

©2009 CSA Word (P)2009 CSA Word

Critic reviews

"Following Caligula�s murder, stammering Claudius becomes emperor, his belief in old republican virtues in conflict with his imperial role. Jacobi�s brilliant delivery of Claudius�s inner thoughts gives the latter a vital reality."( The Observer)

The story was revealing of a time long gone and forgotten

Loved the reader for his delicate touch with the words his simple way of making you long for more

The only problem was that it was too short

It was wonderful hearing Sir Derek perform this role again. I only wish it had gone on longer. There were some tidbits not heard from the BBC series, so that was fun. Highly recommended; I listened to it in almost one greedy gulp.

Abridged with enough of the intent.

Jacobi played Claudius on the BBC series, did a good job then, and did a good job playing all the parts in this audiobook.

Second only to I, Claudius

Derek Jacobi's reading is exceptional. The story line is a direct follow-up to I, Claudius and second in quality and suspense. Perahps this is due to the abridging of this tome, but the abridged version here has characters that are not quite as interesting as the first three Emperors and Claudius' rise to power.

Still, the tension and back-stabbing nature of high power reads like today's headlines...war, rumors of war, myterious deaths, infidelities and a public that mainly wants its bread and circuses.

Worth a visit with your old friend Claudius

If you're a fan like me, and even think of old Claudius as a friend, you'll definitely enjoy a retelling of his reign. There are details that are not told in I, Claudius. It made me realize that perhaps they originally meant to have all this info in the first place, but edited for time? Things like Claudius and Herod writing each other a bunch of times, instead of the one sad time Herod writes near the end of I, Claudius. The info is even a little different at times like how Messalina's betrayal is dealt with. My only disappointment is that Derek Jacobi does not stutter as Claudius at all, the entire time. I understand that towards the end of his life, Claudius didn't stutter nearly as much, but come on, the Claudius we all know and love doesn't speak as smoothly as you and I do. Come on Derek Jacobi, what's the deal with that?! Still, I enjoyed the story.