Preowned copy in good condition. May have general signs of wear and tear, markings, highlighting, etc. Preowned copy in good condition. May have general signs of wear and tear, markings, highlighting, etc. See less

FREE delivery Monday, April 28. Details

Or fastest delivery Wednesday, April 23. Details

Only 1 left in stock - order soon.

$$20.32 () Includes selected options. Includes initial monthly payment and selected options. Details

Access codes and supplements are not guaranteed with used items.

Enhancements you chose aren't available for this seller. Details

${cardName} not available for the seller you chose

${cardName} unavailable for quantities greater than ${maxQuantity}.

Ships from and sold by -Bookworm-.

Other sellers on Amazon

New & Used (16) from $8.83 & FREE Shipping

Image Unavailable

Image not available for
Color:

To view this video download Flash Player

Follow the author

Livy

Follow

Mastering the West: Rome and Carthage at War (Ancient Warfare and Civilization) Reprint Edition

by Dexter Hoyos (Author)

51 ratings

Part of: Ancient Warfare and Civilization (11 books)

See all formats and editions

{"desktop_buybox_group_1":[{"displayPrice":"$20.32","priceAmount":20.32,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"20","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"32","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"fH4HrjF6XsJHGp9Bzau%2FJtVR0OU%2B1SVRtzuxWmXht5ihdVfxT5uRoo7kSJ%2F7Kem9QZp5cyvPamk%2FqBj1LgZ0T66Sh6RMg%2BjU7P8CPXus%2BvIDA0%2BppzT%2Ftjpjgqf%2B5jXpBkheXIBI9SstdrwW5M3xpnlXuSDkr3Coz6nv2Q%2BSXCvMaBfn9Bw7Gw%3D%3D","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"NEW","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":0}, {"displayPrice":"$8.83","priceAmount":8.83,"currencySymbol":"$","integerValue":"8","decimalSeparator":".","fractionalValue":"83","symbolPosition":"left","hasSpace":false,"showFractionalPartIfEmpty":true,"offerListingId":"fH4HrjF6XsJHGp9Bzau%2FJtVR0OU%2B1SVR1%2BOcBhSWogaNz%2BQEbp%2BD65WXJXHJqPq5GQLMQKkqw8dgoiXemn6CJez%2FuIxSXiYxLXwzDiCNzfT9DXUy3w45mdBBBGGx1kweie6l6cosP%2FjjGTQB7FjsArG0C6hwppg330yCm2F72VDP2NzXZIf6RpcXgnZFa8%2B7","locale":"en-US","buyingOptionType":"USED","aapiBuyingOptionIndex":1}]}

Purchase options and add-ons

To say the Punic Wars (264-146 BC) were a turning-point in world history is a vast understatement. These vicious battles pitted two flourishing Mediterranean powers against one another, leaving one an unrivaled giant and the other a literal pile of ash. To later observers, a collision between these civilizations seemed inevitable and yet, to the Romans and Carthaginians at the time, war erupted seemingly out of nowhere and was expected to be a short and trivial skirmish.

Mastering the West offers a superlative narrative of all three wars as they are generally divided, while treating a full range of themes: the antagonists' military, naval, economic, and demographic resources and strategic opportunities; the political structures of both republics; questions of leadership and the contributions of leaders like Hannibal, Fabius the Delayer, Scipio Africanus, Masinissa, and Scipio Aemilianus; and the postwar impact of the conflicts on the participants and victims. Dexter Hoyos, a leading expert of the period, treats the two great powers evenly, without forgetting the important roles played by Syracuse, Macedon, and especially Numidia. Written with verve in a clear, accessible style, with a range of illustrations and newly-commissioned maps, Mastering the West is sure to restructure our understanding of this critical period in ancient history.

Editorial Reviews

Review

"Dexter Hoyos combines a clear, scholarly, detailed storyline of these events with careful unpicking of the sources...Hoyos is very good on strategy....He is also adept at outlining the tactics of various parties, skilfully explaining how Hannibal's early brilliant victories meant nothing because Rome realised that guerrilla tactics would gradually wear him down.... All in all, this account is a great success." --BBC History Magazine

"Mastering the West offers a fluent introduction to the wars that set Rome on the threshold of a Mediterranean-spanning empire. It will also spur those who think they know these wars to reappraise long-held notions about Rome and her deadliest enemy."--Bret Mulligan, Washington Independent Review of Books

"A solid and eminently readable contribution to the fields of Punic and middle Republican studies. Its accessibility, erudition and scope will make it an essential addition for either the general reader or those pursuing undergraduate studies."--David Colwill, Classics for All

"No one has greater mastery over the history of the conflict between Carthage and Rome than Dexter Hoyos, whose fluent and exciting account of the three Punic Wars brightly illuminates the ancient Mediterranean." --David Abulafia, author of The Great Sea

"Dexter Hoyos is the doyen among historians of the Punic Wars, and he is at the height of his powers here. This volume synthesizes a lifetime's study of Rome and Carthage to offer readers a masterful account of the dramatic events that transformed the ancient world." --Nathan Rosenstein, author of Rome and the Mediterranean 290 to 146 BC

About the Author

Dexter Hoyos is retired Associate Professor of Classics and Ancient History at the University of Sydney, Australia. His many books include, most recently, Hannibal: Rome's Greatest Enemy, The Carthaginians, A Companion to the Punic Wars, Livy: Rome's Italian Wars (with J. C. Yardley), and A Companion to Roman Imperialism

Product details

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Oxford University Press; Reprint edition (May 1, 2017)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 360 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0190663456
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0190663452
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.09 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.1 x 0.9 x 9.1 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #558,523 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #125 in North Africa History
- #158 in Ancient History (Books)
- #977 in Ancient Roman History (Books)

Customer Reviews:
51 ratings

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Videos

Help others learn more about this product by uploading a video!

Upload your video

About the author

Follow authors to get new release updates, plus improved recommendations.

Livy

Brief content visible, double tap to read full content.

Full content visible, double tap to read brief content.

Discover more of the author’s books, see similar authors, read book recommendations and more.

Customer reviews

51 global ratings

How customer reviews and ratings work

Review this product

Write a customer review

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews. Please reload the page.

J.L.
The short book deals with the wars fought between Carthage ...
Reviewed in the United States on November 26, 2015
Verified Purchase

The short book deals with the wars fought between Carthage and Rome, leading to Rome becoming the dominant power. The book arrived in the condition and date promised, thank you.

Read more

Helpful

Report
Will Farlow
AVOID THE AUDIO the narrator is out of his depth
Reviewed in the United States on September 20, 2024
The book "proper", i.e. the content, is informative and clear, although more of an "overview" or "introduction" than anything else, there's not much particularly in-depth analysis here. The narrator, however...I'm no expert in the pronunciation of Latin or ancient world names, but this guy uses very odd pronunciations that I have never heard. He also stumbles quite a bit over many of the place-names, which can be tricky, but this is purportedly a professional production. Does Audible even have editors who listen to these? It got so bad I didn't finish listening to it, it's that noticeable and aggravating.

Read more

Helpful

Report
S. H. Wells
Military History of the Punic Wars
Reviewed in the United States on June 1, 2019
Verified Purchase
While I had some knowledge of the Punic Wars going into this books, I was surprised by how deep the connection between the two rival powers was. They shared a similar republican government (dominated by an elite few). They even shared a common reliance upon Greek culture.

That said, the book does an excellent job of describing the commanders and strategies of each side across the three wars. The author also points out critical “what if” moments that may have altered the events of history. Thinking about sometimes even minor changes in initiative that could have changed the strategic balance is fascinating.

The book early on gives us some demographic data about the human cost in waging war on such a scale and for so many years. But the focus here is really on the armies and commanders rather than on economics or sociological aspects of the wars.

Anyone interested in a blow-by-blow account of the Mediterranean superpowers’ struggle for domination will find a gripping narrative between these covers.

Read more

2 people found this helpful

Helpful

Report
Indra Gunadi
Another great book on military history between Rome and Carthage
Reviewed in the United States on May 9, 2015
Verified Purchase
Another great book on military history between Rome and Carthage. Also recommend books: the author Adrian Goldsworthy(Punic wars) and Brian Todd Carey (Hannibal's last battle)

Read more

3 people found this helpful

Helpful

Report
Greg Hoyos
An easy read
Reviewed in the United States on March 29, 2015
Verified Purchase
The book makes a complex subject much clearer for the average reader; and finally, Hannibal is put into perspective.

Read more

One person found this helpful

Helpful

Report
john mclaughlin
Three Stars
Reviewed in the United States on March 4, 2016
Verified Purchase
Another tale with an overwhelming amount of information.

Read more

Helpful

Report
Jim Farmer
Roman Victory
Reviewed in the United States on April 4, 2015
Verified Purchase
interesting reading of the Punic Wars, rich in detail

Read more

Helpful

Report
Raul RIvera
The Borinqueneer
Reviewed in the United States on September 20, 2016
Verified Purchase
Excelente!!

Read more

Helpful

Report

Top reviews from other countries

Glenn
Five Stars
Reviewed in Canada on August 2, 2017
Verified Purchase

A very good book on the struggle between Rome and Carthage.

Read more
Report
Roger Meek
There is also a comment to the effect that Philip V of Macedon was a useless ally for Hannibal - which is difficult to disagree ...
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on August 27, 2017
Verified Purchase
A first class account of the three Punic Wars with a sound critique of the handling of the wars from both sides. Hoyes postulates that, for example, that the military strategy adopted by Hannibal during the second war was flawed with at least two missed opportunities to end it (after Lake Trasimene in 217 and Cannae in 2016) and is critical of those historians who present excuses for the failures. Hoyes also indicates that the tactic used at by Hannibal at Cannae may not have been original but was actually used by the Spartan general Xanthippus to defeat the Romans at the Battle of Bagradas in (255 BC) in the first Punic War. Hannibal who spoke Greek and was well educated was likely aware of this event perhaps even from his father Hamilcar Barca. There is also a comment to the effect that Philip V of Macedon was a useless ally for Hannibal - which is difficult to disagree with.

Overall Hoyes narrative and analysis is pretty insightful including criticisms of the ancient sources (e.g. Livy and Polybius) who mostly present a Roman view of the conflicts.

If you are interested in Classical History you should read this book. It is the best I have read so far on the subject.

Read more
Report
JPS
Good, up to date and with original and/or controversial strands
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on April 21, 2015
Verified Purchase
This book is currently the most recent and therefore the most up to date reference on the so-called Punic Wars. It is well supported by a good set of maps and sketches for the main battles. It also includes a useful glossary of key terms and a no less useful timeline at the end of the book. Finally, there is also a relatively short (ten pages) but good appendix that is a review and discussion of the main written sources and their limitations. All in all, the book provides a comprehensive overview and rather neat package for anyone looking for an overview of the Punic Wars which were, as its title emphasises so well, all about "Mastering the West".

I also found the narrative style to be very good to the extent that it stroke the right balance between scholarship, liveliness and entertainment. This is also a book that makes the reader think and wonder, even if, at times, it comes close to being speculative. However, it is neither written in the kind of "friendly prose" that many authors feel obliged to adopt in a (somewhat condescending?) effort to reach out to the so-called "general non-specialist reader", nor is it written in an over-scholarly, with masses of notes sprinkled across each and every page.

Another merit of this book is to mention in passing, and, at times, present, most of the main historical debates and controversies while refraining from scholarly discussions. It also avoids given the impression that the author needs to make a point. You never really get the feeling that Dexter Hoyos is really trying to demonstrate his thesis and that his is attempting to convince you that his interpretations happen to be the correct ones. Of course, this is precisely what he does but it is done in such a skilful way that it never becomes tedious. It also appears convincing to the extent that some of the points made can even seem to be, at times, blindingly "obvious", although they are not.

While not quite perfect - I will pass on the "factual error" mentioned by another reviewer - the book does have some original strands that make it stand out when compared to the numerous other histories of the Punic Wars that are available. One is to show that there was far more to the Barcids that just Hannibal and his father, and that the family and its allies managed to dominate the political scene at Carthage for about half a century. A related point shown by the author is that they could rely on what seems to have been a rather large faction and a network of allies that were sufficiently powerful and influential to assure their almost complete dominance even if absent from Carthage for decades. Another point made by the author and derived from his work on the Barcids (see his book titled "Hannibal's Dynasty) is that Hamilcar, his son-in-law Hasdrubal the Fair, and his son Hannibal were not military dictators acting in a quasi-independent way from Carthage.

Just as interesting and original, but perhaps a bit more controversial, is the author's analysis and take on the first two Punic Wars. A valuable (but controversial) point is to show that Rome was not at all bound to win these wars and that, in both instance, Carthage had the resources, both financial and human, to match its opponent. Another interesting point was to show to what extent the First and the Second Punic War were very different. The First was mostly fought in and around Sicily, apart from Rome's failed invasion of Africa, and fought on both land and sea. The Second saw fighting mostly on land, although there were some naval encounters also, but the fighting took place across most of the West and, at times, on three or four fronts simultaneously, with Spain and Italy becoming battlegrounds in addition to Sicily (for a time) and Africa (in the end).

Further valuable insights are the rather huge collections of missed opportunities by both sides and during both long wars to take advantage of specific situations and crushing, but not quite decisive, victories. The author tends to overwhelmingly explain these squandered opportunities by the shortcomings and mistakes of the various generals or admirals, including numerous errors and failed gambles by Hannibal himself. This is where I was, at times, not entirely convinced by the author, especially when he tries to show that, following Hannibal's crushing victory at Cannae, his military genius seems to have declined. This is perhaps one of the most controversial, if only because there are multiple causes explaining how the Romans, little by little, managed to pin Hannibal down in Southern Italy and turn the tables on him by conquering Spain before invading Africa. It is also, however, one of the most original and interesting - aspects of the book.

A number of the author's assertions can be disputed. Others, however, are quite striking, such as the fact that Hannibal's crossing of the Alps which has earned him undying fame, was in fact a near disaster that his otherwise much less competent younger brother and general would entirely avoid some ten years later. Another - related - limitation is that the author's explanations for what he presents as failures in generalship may be ascribed to other or to multiple factors with the typical (and puzzling) example of Hannibal's dual failure to march on Rome straight after his victories of Lac Trasimene and of Cannae, respectively, being the best known and most widely discussed examples.

All in all, however, explaining how the Punic Wars started, what the battle plans are likely to have been and how the various campaigns and battles played out by presenting the Roman and Punic viewpoints and the choices made by the various players in the field is certainly among the major qualities of this remarkable book. Four very strong stars.

Addendum on 22 April 2014:
There are several additional points which I did not mention in the review, particularly in relation with the SEcond Punic War, above with these omissions possibly giving the misleading impression that the book is somewhat incomplete

- One is that the author shows to what extent Hannibal's near disaster when crossing the Alps had far-reaching conséquences, given the considerable losses that his army had to suffer during the crossing

- A related point is that while these losses were initially replaced by Gauls, Hannibal's strategy to detach Rome's Italian allies from it ultimately failed and, even in the case of the citie that did rally to him, most of them seemed to have been a drag on his dwindling "human resources", hampered his mobility and obliged him to immobilise troops to defend or rush to their rescue when they were threatened

- A third well-made point is to show that, apart from Hannibal himself, the other Carthaginian commanders seem to have been relatively mediocre while the Romans could align at least half a dozen of competent (although not excellent). One of the consequences was that Hannibal in Italy was forced to rush from one emergency to another and lost the initiative, with the Romans defeating his lieutenants and attacking the cities allied to him in his absence

- A fourth omitted point well-presented and discussed by the author was to show that a number of strategic mistakes were made after Cannae, with Hannibal's army receiving reinforcements from Carthage only once while forces were sent to Spain and new fronts were opened up in Sicily and then in Liguria, after the loss of Spain. In particular, the author shows well to what extent these choices and deployements turned out to be wasteful because the various armies did not support themselves and could be dealt with in isolation by the Romans. However, and while very interesting, these considérations do smack of hindsight.

- Perhaps a more contentious point, associated with the one above, is to claim that throughout the Second Punic War, it was Hannibal who was in overall command and control and he who was designing Carthage's "strategy" and taking the main decisions. This is perhaps questionable and I did not find this point entirely convincing because, because of the distances involved and the period of time (i.e. Antiquity), I did not quite see how a single commander, however talented, could exercice command and control over multiple fronts several hundreds of kilometers apart. This is one of the only parts of the book where I wondered to what extent the author's considérations were anachronistic.

Read more
Report
Mr. Michael LJ Feehan
Be wary of prejudice.
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 7, 2019
Verified Purchase
This book was a bit of a struggle, the English is a bit wayward at times. I learnt from my mother, who was herself an historian, to treat ancient historians with caution. They all have their own knives to grind and their own masters to please. Apparently the author isn't so picky taking most of these guys at their word, except when their exaggerations go beyond the realms of possibility. I have to say that I was somewhat disappointed. The narrative was loaded with anti Carthaginian prejudice, Hannibal himself being a villain of the worst kind, whilst the Carthaginian were military buffoons to a man. How they ever managed to cause the Romans so much trouble is a conundrum. A bit of a letdown but thankfully Hannibal, probably because of the elephants, has been the subject of thousands of books and I do have quite a few of them, therefore I have choices.

Read more
Report
Trackaline
Happy Boy!
Reviewed in the United Kingdom on November 2, 2015
Verified Purchase
Bought for my son's 17th birthday as requested. He is happy so I am happy :D

Read more
Report

See more reviews

Follow the author

Mastering the West: Rome and Carthage at War (Ancient Warfare and Civilization) Reprint Edition

Purchase options and add-ons

Frequently bought together

Customers who viewed this item also viewed

Editorial Reviews

Review

About the Author

Product details

Videos

About the author

Livy

Customer reviews

Review this product

Images in this review

Top reviews from the United States

There was a problem filtering reviews. Please reload the page.

Top reviews from other countries

5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars

5.0 out of 5 stars There is also a comment to the effect that Philip V of Macedon was a useless ally for Hannibal - which is difficult to disagree ...

4.0 out of 5 stars Good, up to date and with original and/or controversial strands

3.0 out of 5 stars Be wary of prejudice.

5.0 out of 5 stars Happy Boy!

Five Stars

There is also a comment to the effect that Philip V of Macedon was a useless ally for Hannibal - which is difficult to disagree ...

Good, up to date and with original and/or controversial strands

Be wary of prejudice.

Happy Boy!