The Ancient Guide to Modern Life by Natalie Haynes, 3/5

Perhaps I developed too-high expectations of this book when I learned that the author is a stand-up comedian who read classics at Cambridge.  At any rate, I was not very impressed with the book.  Haynes doesn’t bother citing sources for many of her claims, which is an unconvincing way to go about dispelling myths about the ancient Greeks and Romans, as she claims to do.  The humor throughout the book is inconsistent – some parts are deadly serious and preachy, others are silly.  There were some things of interest, though, and Haynes is obviously passionate about the classics, which is somewhat contagious.  I guess I’m not disappointed that I read the book, but I’m disappointed in the book itself.

An interesting side note: Haynes thanks her friend Joss Whedon in the acknowledgments, which is pretty awesome.