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Hello Everyone,

For the week of October 28th - November 3rd, we are reading Part Three - Victories and Defeats - 39 BC to 37 BC - Sections 13 - 14 of the book Antony and Cleopatra.

The sixth week's reading assignment is:

Week 6 � October 28th - November 3rd
Part Three - Victories and Defeats - 39 BC to 37 BC - Sections 13 - 14 - (225-264)

We will open up a thread for each week's reading. Please make sure to post in the particular thread dedicated to those specific chapters and page numbers to avoid spoilers. We will also open up supplemental threads as we did for other spotlighted books.

This book was kicked off on September 23rd.

We look forward to your participation. Amazon, Barnes and Noble, Borders and other noted on line booksellers do have copies of the book and shipment can be expedited. The book can also be obtained easily at your local library, or on your Kindle. This weekly thread will be opened up on October 28th.

There is no rush and we are thrilled to have you join us. It is never too late to get started and/or to post.

Vicki Cline will be moderating this discussion and the back-up will be Jill.

Welcome,

Bentley

TO ALWAYS SEE ALL WEEKS' THREADS, SELECT VIEW ALL

by Colleen McCullough

REMEMBER NO SPOILERS ON THE WEEKLY NON SPOILER THREADS - ON EACH WEEKLY NON SPOILER THREAD - WE ONLY DISCUSS THE PAGES ASSIGNED OR THE PAGES WHICH WERE COVERED IN PREVIOUS WEEKS. IF YOU GO AHEAD OR WANT TO ENGAGE IN MORE EXPANSIVE DISCUSSION - POST THOSE COMMENTS IN ONE OF THE SPOILER THREADS. THESE CHAPTERS HAVE A LOT OF INFORMATION SO WHEN IN DOUBT CHECK WITH THE CHAPTER OVERVIEW AND SUMMARY TO RECALL WHETHER YOUR COMMENTS ARE ASSIGNMENT SPECIFIC. EXAMPLES OF SPOILER THREADS ARE THE GLOSSARY, THE BIBLIOGRAPHY, THE INTRODUCTION AND THE BOOK AS A WHOLE THREADS.

Notes:

It is always a tremendous help when you quote specifically from the book itself and reference the chapter and page numbers when responding. The text itself helps folks know what you are referencing and makes things clear.

Citations:

If an author or book is mentioned other than the book and author being discussed, citations must be included according to our guidelines. Also, when citing other sources, please provide credit where credit is due and/or the link. There is no need to re-cite the author and the book we are discussing however.

Here is the link to the thread titled Mechanics of the Board which will help you with the citations and how to do them.

http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/2...

Introduction Thread:

http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...

Table of Contents and Syllabus

http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/1...

Glossary

Remember there is a glossary thread where ancillary information is placed by the moderator. This is also a thread where additional information can be placed by the group members regarding the subject matter being discussed.

Here is the link:

http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/8...

Bibliography

There is a Bibliography where books cited in the text are posted with proper citations and reviews. We also post the books that the author may have used in his research or in her notes. Please also feel free to add to the Bibliography thread any related books, etc. with proper citations or other books either nonfiction or historical fiction that relate to the subject matter of the book itself. No self-promotion, please.

Here is the link:

http://www.goodreads.com/topic/show/8...

Book as a Whole and Final Thoughts - SPOILER THREAD

by Colleen McCullough

Chapter Overview and Summaries

Part III

Victories and Defeats - 39 BC to 37 BC

Section � 13

Agrippa returns to Rome after two years in Gaul, winning victories entitling him to a triumph. But when he isn’t greeted on the Campus Martius by Octavian, he’s a bit worried. Finally, Maecenas arrives to tell him Octavian is a virtual prisoner in his house because the people are in an uproar over the high price of grain and high taxes. Even though it will cost him his triumph, Agrippa hurries to Octavian’s villa to see him. Once there, he meets Livia for the first time, and is surprised that she joins him and Octavian in discussing what needs to be done to fix the problems. Livia has suggested that Octavian should borrow rather than increase taxes, and she’s pleased that Agrippa agrees with her. She had been worried that he would try to diminish her influence, perhaps drive a wedge between her and her husband. There are plenty of rich men very happy to loan the needed funds, since investment opportunities in the East have dried up, thanks to Antony’s laziness. But the final solution has to be the total defeat of Sextus Pompey.

Maecenas is sent to Athens to convince Antony to send ships to Rome so that Sextus can finally be eliminated. The triumvirs meet in Tarentum and hash out the terms of their new agreement. Antony will send as many ships as possible and in return, he’ll get to keep forty percent of Sextus� hoard (which is quite large), while Octavian gets fifty percent and Lepidus, ten. It takes a lot of arguing to get Antony to accept the deal, but he finally gives in.

Section � 14

Antony has acquired a new adviser, Gaius Fonteius Capito, now that Dellius has left. Capito is intelligent and understands Antony (or thinks he does). During their talk, Antony comes to understand that Rome is too small a place for him, that he needs a wider theater of operation. When Capito suggests that he find an Eastern adviser with “power, influence and wealth,� meaning Antony’s son-in-law Pythodorus of Tralles, Antony immediately thinks of Cleopatra and sends Capito to Egypt to ask her to join him in Antioch. She agrees, believing she can gain power over Egypt’s future, and Caesarion’s, by manipulating Antony.

Livia and Octavia make interesting contrasts. They're almost complete opposites, Livia being so non-maternal and interested in governing, and Octavia being all about the children and not even understanding how Livia can't love her own children.

Livia is so cool & calculating. You can see why she's the ideal match for Octavianus. Octavia, on the other hand is warm, nurturing & maternal. Funny how they both pity one another.

I think if I met them, I'd like Livia more than Octavia. Or maybe I mean I'd find Livia interesting and Octavia sort of boring, although she's obviously a very kind person.

Octavia is almost too sweet, but surely she isn't all good. I have to think she is a little jealous of Cleopatra, even though she tells Anthony that she isn't.

I do agree that Livia and Octavianus are well matched.

I wonder what made Anthony finally give in to Octavian on the split of Sextus' hoard. They have that bit of argument over it, then McCollough just says it takes days (or was it weeks) but they finally agreed.

Maybe when he realized Sextus had more loot than he had thought, his share looked about as big as he had thought it would be with a bigger slice, and he was just tired of arguing.