2023: Once upon a time, I would reread a biography of Cicero about this time of year. Now I think St Augustine has replaced him. He resonates with me in important ways, enough so that he could break through my agnosticism and opened up a way of seeing the world that makes the whole thing simply beautiful. He’s much closer to St. Francis than a superficial glance might guess at. And I have never crossed any other philosopher who has balanced the inherent goodness of everything with the existence of evil so well.

I enjoyed this book and the pages kept flying by, a sure sign of a good read.
*********************
An excellent biography on one of the Western World's greatest philosophers. It is not a substitute for reading St. Augustine himself, but it is a wonderful supplement for putting his ideas into a historical context. Hippo Regius and North Africa in general were Roman but with a particular local flair, in the same sense that New York is part of the United States but not a perfect representation of it. Brown's book wonderfully illustrates the connections that did (and did not) exist throughout the Empire which shaped St. Augustine's world. The Saint himself comes off as very human, in large part because he was very human, which has been my main attraction to him. He was more than his books; if you choose to read this biography, I recommend the 45th Anniversary edition. Brown is able to use new sources (including, incredibly, letters and sermons from St. Augustine himself that have only recently been discovered) to get an even better view of the man in his day to day life. The youth, the man, the priest, and the bishop: different facets but the same drive to find and do Good.

Incredible. Well-researched. Well-written. Engaging and balanced. Best all around biography I’ve ever read. Top 3 out of my favorites.

Really enjoyable. Brown is a historian, not a theologian, which makes this a better biography (in my opinion). He contextualizes Augustine rather than focusing on his theology. This contextualization allows for a better understanding of the development of Augustine’s thoughts which led to his theology.

If you're a student of history, and have been forced to read any previous Peter Brown, you will know that his usual writing style amounts to stuffing an overwhelming chunk of ideas into a very small amount of pages. What would take one historian 50 pages to explain, Brown can perfectly synthesis in 5. His use of language is intensely precise and rigorously academic (a quality that in practice should make his writing seem stuffy if not for the sheer breadth of his ideas).

Augustine of Hippo: A Biography is not the usual Peter Brown. The typically dense and highly complex pattern of writing that one has come to expect is, to the readers delight, relaxed in this study. Instead, we get a comparatively 'plain' language investigation into the infinitely interesting life and mind of St. Augustine: a man so complex (and important), that if it weren't for Brown's name on the cover, you might be amazed at how it could have been left complete at a mere 500 pages. I am not trying to be flippant when I say that this might be the greatest biography ever written; it is without a doubt the best personal study of any Late Antique figure. Brown exposes the changing shades of Augustine's psychology with breathtaking clarity and analysis, a feat that at the same time gives us an immense understanding of the Roman world that is falling to pieces all around him. Augustine's African upbringing, his various intellectual explorations (Manichaeism/Neo-Platonism), the Donatist controversy, the death of Monica and the conception of The City of God; it's all there, displayed with brilliant scrutiny and an ease of understanding that makes it clear the author has an exhaustive comprehension of his subject. For me it's always a rare delight when a far removed historical figure can be plucked out of the fog of time and displayed without bias in such an insightful fashion. The closest example of this type of work I can think of is Marguerite Yourcenar in her Memoirs of Hadrian. Unlike Yourcenar, however, Brown doesn't have to resort to imaginative writing to give us an intimate understanding of Augustine of Hippo, and each time I read this book the affect is like that of revisiting an old friend.

Furthermore, it should be noted that Brown doesn't get bogged down in the theological aspects of Augustine's life. This isn't because he isn't well versed in these subjects (he is a leading religious scholar), but rather because he chooses to take the more rounded approach. This allows those who have minimal interest in the intricate religious debates to also enjoy the study. It removes the clutter of certain theology (although obviously not all) and gets to the fundamental purpose of the biography. This is a source of some criticism among various scholars, but even those that shake their head at Brown's lack of intricate religious detail cannot find much at fault with his end result. This is a model biography and a scholarly triumph. Read it even if you don't care about Augustine and I promise you'll be sucked into this fascinating Roman world.

An in-depth read yet still accessible. I'd consider reading this only after getting your feet we with a couple shorter Augustine bios.

A work of art.

A golden standard of scholarship and of prose.

St. Augustine served as a bridge between the late Roman Empire and the Middle Ages in Christian thought. Starting out as a Manichee in his youth (a religious sect who only believes in the New Testament), he later converted to Catholicism and became a Bishop in North Africa. His writings on Theology are considered to be classics and were extremely influential on Medieval thought in the church. In them he unites a neo-Platonist perspective with traditional church beliefs, giving the church a sophisticated philosophical belief system.

This book is not an easy read as a lot of St Augustine's Theology is complex, yet it is a satisfying read. Recommended for those who want to understand more about a seminal figure in the rise of the Catholic Church.

Not the most thrilling biography I've ever read. Perhaps because I had to read it for class. While it's not thrilling, it's very thorough. Brown doesn't deal with the theology of Augustine very much (and he admits in the epilogue that discussing Augustine's theology wasn't his intention). He doesn't deal with Augustine's life in the traditional biographical sense. It's more of a development of Augustine's thought and the situations in his life that developed this thought.

This book contains some of the loveliest and best written prose I’ve read. Brown weaves together social and theological history in a way that is a joy to read.
I learned so much about the importance of the Donatist and Pelagian controversies, and how Augustine had to navigate between the theological entanglements of his day, his own past as a Manichee, constant political demands on him, and no little social upheaval. Brown does paint the picture of an Augustine that became tired, old, and prone to straw-manning his opponents. However, there are two sizable epilogues where the author said that we would write the book differently on those points. I was left wondering why he didn’t significantly edit those portions of his biography if he came to disagree with them. A fantastic book nevertheless.

Amazing! Amazing! I am blown away by the detail and depth and humanness that Brown brings to a world-shaping character I do not even like. Well worth reading every page. You will live in Augustine's world.

Very good, but a little technical towards the end, and I wish the chapter titles weren't in latin. Overall, however, fantastic read. Highly recommended.