An imagination of dazzling and epic scope.

With “Steven Pressfield” on the cover, it took less than a heartbeat for me to grab this book—after Gates of Fire, I was more than eager to be caught up again in the author’s enthralling prose of storytelling.

Even with the author’s Note on the Reader expressly stating this as a work of fiction, I soon found myself actually believing that it really was Alexander speaking his own thoughts—as he tasted the first of his numerous victories, received the adoration of his men, and found himself later possessed of an empire that demanded too much for the price of an ambition.

For that alone, I stand in awe yet again of this author’s skill.

Every chapter is vivid with imagery and every conflict a real human drama. The king’s moments of anguish were brutal, eerily honest, and, sometimes, understandable, as he becomes torn between love for his army and the desire to conquer the world beyond India. Indeed, Alexander was thrown in a surreal mix of otherworldliness for his exceptional military prowess and glaring human frailty for succumbing to the snare of arrogance and pride.

There were times when Pressfield’s narration seemed like it was being apologetic of Alexander’s actions towards his men and their growing disquiet, but then I suddenly remember that this book ostensibly echoed only Alexander’s voice; so I suppose it couldn’t help but have that biased feel.

I only wished the book imagined a little bit more outside of the battlefield. Like his relations with his mother during his youth, with his wives (or even just with Roxanne), and with the other soldiers (besides his “dear mates”) who trekked with him across the plains of Asia. There were some parts as well that felt hurried, while others felt too protracted. And, in some instances I was on the verge of becoming almost bored whenever the book took the tone of becoming more of a manual for warfare, what with the winded accounts of the number of infantry, cavalry, archers, etc. But, I suppose you really cannot get to being an exalted commander without being anal about these things...

All-in-all, The Virtues of War is still a highly-recommended read—epic, artistic, and an honest-to-goodness page-turner...

I've always been amazed at Pressfield's uncanny ability to portray ideals of depth with such truth. Virtues of War is no different. At surface level, easily on par with Homer's Iliad for it's detailed and graphic action scenes, but there is so much more. The exploration of warrior culture digs into concepts of Honor, Valor, Loyalty, Humility, Trust, Courage, and other values known so well to soldiers of any generation. There's some inspirational muse that empowers Pressfield to depict universal meaning behind language, and it manifests here though his description of Alexander's "Daimon", and his monstrous abilities. This novel is more than highly accurate historical fiction, but a journey through unimaginable success and indescribable failure in search of fulfillment and human purpose.

"Life is a battle, is it not? And how better to train for it than to be a soldier?"

I have read or listened to this book about 4 times. One of my all time favorites. Granted, I am a bit obsessed with Alexander the Great and Pressfield is probably my favorite author.
However, this book is a must for any leader, as far as I’m concerned.
Stories stick with you.. it’s the human factor. Rather than tell someone “lead from the front” - recommend a book like this that showcases spectacularly a leader that leads from the front.

A beautifully written story detailing the compelling and euphoric tale of Alexander The Great's ascent to power, his campaigns and exploits. It extols the glory, beauty, and significance of war. The brotherhood and honor that come of purely shared and meaningful struggles. It's introspective and thoughtful and brings to the fore the doubts and misgivings of perpetuating a war endlessly against the foe where there is little meaning to be found. All military members should read it. All who would be leaders should also.

Although it was a good description of the campaigns of Alexander the Great and of what war was like more than two thousand years ago, this book lacked the human dimension. Alexander was a great general and strategist; he led his armies three quarters of the way across what was then the known world, making allies of some nations and cities, and conquering those who did not want to become part of his empire. Steven Pressfield captures this aspect of Alexander's life very well. At times, maybe the author captured it too well--too many pages are simply lists: how many thousand infantry, how many thousand cavalry, how many thousand men carrying bows, how many thousand men carrying slings, how many horses, how many oxen, etc, etc.

If I ever need to capture a pre-Roman country I'll be sure to consult this book. But the book lacked a human dimension. Yes, Alexander get angry, but by morning he seems to have got over it. e hear about how he loves and cares for his soldiers and his companions. But we learn little of his loves, jealousies, his humor, his cravings (other than to stand on the shores of the great ocean at the end of the world--that is the Pacific ocean on the far side of China). Infusion of a little more humanity would have improved this book greatly.

Written in first person, this novel tells the story of Alexander's conquests through his own words. This book was a major turn-off in the beginning because it was nothing more than a statistical summary of all the components of his army during one campaign versus another. He would list in detail the types of weapons his men carried, how much these weapons weighed, how they were utilized and why they were so effective in certain situations. Also a lot of detail on battlefield strategy, which interested me not in the least. What I was looking for was a story about Alexander and how he came to power, not a checklist of his supplies. But in the end, I realized that my expectations were probably set too high. When you consider that Alexander spent his entire adult life making war, it's probably a pretty accurate depiction of who he really was. What else could be said about a guy who was always thinking ahead to his next battle? So perhaps the novel's weaknesses shouldn't be blamed on Pressfield but instead on Alexander, who maybe just wasn't as interesting as I would've thought. I would like to add, however, that there were parts to the story that I liked very much, especially toward the end when Alexander begins to express a faint sense of regret. If this had been a bigger part of the plot, I would have given it a much better recommendation.

2,5/5 Ένα βιβλιο για τον Μέγα Αλέξανδρο. Μια αρκετά μοναδική ματια και ενας Αλεξανδρος με το προσωπικό του Δαιμόνιο και μια μεγαλομανία . Υπήρχε μελέτη σε επίπεδα γεωγραφίας και καταγραφών και αρκετά καλές περιγραφές των μαχών με αριθμούς και σχεδιασμούς που θα κερδίσουν τους αναγνώστες που τους αρέσουν αυτές οι αρχαίες πια στρατηγικές μάχης . Υπήρχε και μια σχετικα όμορφη ανάλυση του γραφειοκρατικού και εκμεταλλευτικού συστήματος που επικρατούσε στην Μεσοποταμία όταν την κατέκτησε ο Αλέξανδρος και οι δυσκολίες να την κυβερνήσει και να αλλάξει τα μυαλά των καταπιεσμένων της ανθρώπων .

Αν εξαιρέσεις τον Αλέξανδρο ο οποίος σκιαγραφείται μέσα από μια συγκεκριμένη οπτική που δεν με κάλυψε δεν υπήρχε και μεγάλη σκιαγράφηση των υπολοίπων προσώπων . Δεν ξερω δεν με κέρδισε προσωπικά . Σίγουρα δεν το θεωρώ ενδεικτικό και δεν θεωρώ ότι είναι ότι καλύτερο έχει γραφτεί για τον Μ.Αλέξανδρο παρότι κάποιες αντιφάσεις του ήταν αρκετά ειλικρινής . Επίσης θεωρώ ότι το πνεύμα που διακατείχε όλο το βιβλιο δεν αντιπροσωπεύει την εποχή του και παρά τις αρκετές θρησκευτικές αναφορές η μελέτη στο κομματι των θρησκειών και του σεβασμού τους ήταν ελλιπής αν οχι ανύπαρκτη .

Стивън Пресфийлд има таланта да описва военното дело в доста романтични краски и макар понякога много да му се получава, в случая нещо я е оплескал... или по-скоро не си е дал много зор.

В описанието на живота и битките на Александър Македонски виждаме само неговата (демек на Александър) гледна точка и на никой друг. Може би това е похват на автора, за да влезем в главата и начина на мислене на този очевидно нарцистичен и маниакален човек, за когото не е съществувало нищо друго, освен жаждата за завоевание и всички останали хора, даже най-"близките" му, не са нищо повече от пионки, които да бъдат местени, жертвани и после прежалени след час.

Предполагам точно затова самата книга е доста скучна - подробното описание на всяка битка на тактическо ниво, с всяка военна част, нейното разположение и движение е интересно в началото, но е толкова надребно разказано, че човек губи всякаква ориентация какво се случва.

А друго в книгата почти няма.

Σαφώς πολύ καλύτερο από τα δύο προηγούμενα, μα τις... "Πύλες".... δεν τις περνάει!
Εκεί ο συγγραφέας ξεπέρασε και τον εαυτό του.

Solid 3 stars but not because of any fault of the author!! Just too technical for my tastes. His knowledge of Alexander's campaigns is unbelievable and any student of Alexander, I'm sure, will rave about this read. I appreciated, near the end, the description of what is needed to vanquish an army utilizing guerrila tactics and that logic would explain the U.S. inability to have success against such an eney in Vietnam!

Steven Pressfield does it again with this haunting tale of Alexander the Great. I believe this book was released the same year as the Alexander movie starring Collin Farrell, and fans of the movie would probably enjoy this book as well. Both painted a vivid picture of Alexander's life through a brilliant narrative. Some of the battle sequences were written as if Pressfield was sitting astride his own mount on the periphery of the battlefield. Spectacular technical description was combined flawlessly with gruesome action.

The sarissa's song is a sad song
He pipes it soft and low.
I would ply a gentler trade, says he,
But war is all I know.

In case you are curious as to what a "sarissa" is, the link below shows one in all its glory and illustrates why Alexander's army was so terrible to face on the field. The Macedonian and his sarissa are on the left*

http://slinging.org/forum/yabbfiles/A...

Pick this one up if you enjoy fiction involving history, war, military life, biography, philosophy ... bah just read it!

Five stars all the way.

Get your copy here: https://amzn.to/2juW3n9

This is my first Pressfield book, recommended by a friend. I loved it. Alexander’s indomitable courage, ambition and willingness to risk his life over and over for a higher (questionable) cause - military conquest and glory - are all foreign virtues in our day, virtues that as a Christian are to be pursued in service to Christ. I was inspired by the depiction of Alexander’s leadership - generous to a fault, ferociously single-minded, always leading the the way into the teeth of the enemy. His deep and abiding love for his friends, and their respect and love for and loyalty given in return, are also sorely lacking in our culture. Yet his monstrous ambition is also the downfall and destruction of many cultures and people.

My favorite part of the book were his speeches. One of them, on the eve of Gaugamela, the decisive battle for the Persian empire:

“This is an article of faith with me, brothers. I believe that a man, witnessing the selflessness of another, is compelled by his own nobler nature to emulate that virtue. No harangue can make him do this; no prize or bounty. But the sight of his fellow's gallantry cannot be resisted.
This is why you officers must always be first to strike the foe. By your example, you compel the hearts of your men to follow. And their courage ignites valor in the ranks of our countrymen succeeding.
And I believe more, my friends. I believe that heaven itself is compelled by witness of intrepidity. The gods themselves cannot stand aloof from an act of true courage, but are impelled by their own higher nature to intercede in its behalf.”

This is an entertaining, edifying read; highly recommended.