Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans

By: Plutarch

Narrated by: Charlton Griffin

Length: 83 hrs and 11 mins

Publisher's summary

Plutarch (c. AD 46-AD 120) was born to a prominent family in the small Greek town of Chaeronea, about 20 miles east of Delphi in the region known as Boeotia. His best known work is Parallel Lives, a series of biographies of famous Greeks and Romans, arranged in pairs to illuminate their common moral virtues and vices. The surviving Lives contain 23 pairs, each with one Greek life and one Roman life as well as four unpaired single lives. Currently only 19 of the parallel lives end with comparisons while possibly all of them did at one time.

Plutarch was not concerned with history so much as the influence of character, good or bad, on the lives and destinies of men. Whereas sometimes he barely touched on epoch-making events, he devoted much space to charming anecdotes and incidental triviality, reasoning that this often revealed far more about his subjects than even their most famous accomplishments. In many ways he must be counted among the earliest moral philosophers.

This volume follows the translation of Arthur Hugh Clough and John Dryden. Please see the accompanying PDF file for duration and starting times of all biographies.

Download the accompanying reference guide.

Public Domain (P)2015 Audio Connoisseur

Charlton Griffin is the best!

If you could sum up Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans in three words, what would they be?

A crazy amount of stuff happened before Jesus was even born y'all!

Who was your favorite character and why?

I don't play favorites.

What about Charlton Griffin’s performance did you like?

Can't recommend Charlton Griffin enough- check out all his work! He is a world-class storyteller, really knows when to slow things down or speed it up, using his voice like a finely-tuned instrument.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

If you are physically capable of listening to this book in one sitting only, you might want to consult your doctor

Any additional comments?

Shout out again to Charlton Griffin- I'm slowly making my way through your audio connoisseur library and loving it... (as a lifelong sufferer of insomnia who "had to" drink heavily to put myself to sleep, listening to your voice has been a big part in me getting sober and adopting healthier nighttime habits; now I actually look forward to going to sleep, because of storytime with you). Anyhow, keep up the great work!

Great book wonderfully performed

To understand life in any age, the is the book to listen to and it has a great narration. It is often as exciting as an epic movie and often as revealing as a great character drama. What cause fights and quarrels, Plutarch will help you to understand.

A classic among classics

What does Charlton Griffin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

The narration of Charlton Griffon is good - well-paced and clearly enunciated - though he tends to average about one misread word per page; it's not very distracting.

Any additional comments?

Happily audible.com uses the same edition I own in hard copy - Modern Library, translated by John Dryden, revised by Arthur Hugh Clough. Or luckily, rather, since audible.com is bad about telling you which translation of a classical work you are buying.

Shakespearean!

Charlton Griffon is Shakespearean in his narration of "Plutarchs Lives." I literally look for books that he has narrated and buy the ones
in my topic area. It's powerful to listen to a man bring back to life words written two thousand years ago. I imagine i am on a porch in the ancient world having this read to me by my grandfather. Quite powerful.

A treasure of history

A fantastic performance of a lengthy and rich series of amazing biographies. I look forward to revisiting many of my favourites in the future.

Great narration

So I want to point out here that this is Plutarch's lives COMPLETE. Other audiobooks break it down into multiple parts but this version has it all and is 83 hours long. I admit that I have not yet finished the entire thing (it's 83 hours long) but the audio quality and the narrator are great. You know how the narrator can really make or break a title? This guy brings it home. If you're a history fan and have 83 hours free this title is probably for you.

Timeless

A must read for lovers of history and Roman culture. It is a very long book, but it has kept me company for many daily commutes.

"A bible for heroes" -Ralph Waldo Emerson

One of the greatest pieces of literature I have read. Plutarch with attention to detail and appreciation for scope catalogues the lives of men we can all learn from.
His anecdotes are memorable gems, and are as relevant today as 2000 years ago. His wit is worth emulating. His contribution is priceless.
I recommend this book to any with even a passing interest in the qualities of virtue, courage, education, or reason. It provides templates off of which to judge our own actions and intentions, and often illuminates parts of ourselves we have not fully understood.

Well told stories of virtue and vice

These biographies are as relevant to read now as they were when Plutarch authored them, making an interesting study in human character (the good, the bad, and the ugly). They are well-narrated and broken into digestible chunks, and the "parallel lives" sections contain handy character comparisons that sum up the key traits of each leader.

Great read and translation

The book of course is good but I look for Charlton Griffin audio. Accent, tone, and rhythm. Especially listening to speeches.