Ancient Rome: A History
This is far better than any other Roman history textbook I have seen (in more than one language).... The three strongest features are the problem-centered approach; the emphasis on contextualization and analysis; its chronological scope (up to the 8th century)....  [The problem-centered] approach is the principal distinguishing characteristic of the book and makes it stand out among existing titles. This means that for the first time it gives instructors real choice between conventional narrative and problem-centered account and analysis. --Walter Scheidel, Stanford UniversityNagle has a very clear and comprehensible writing style. I don't get the impression that he is dumbing down his text, nor do I find words that might baffle my students.... He pays attention to details.... Transition from one topic to the next is good, so that the narrative flows well.  In my view, this section (Chapters 15 & 16) is perhaps the strongest part of the textbook. Nagle effectively conveys an excellent sense of the process of Romanization, both in terms of the government and army (Chapter 15) and the social and cultural factors (Chapter 16). I have never seen a better description of the actual operation of Roman government after the Augustan settlement. His examples and primary sources are very effectively used. --Jane Laurent, University of North Carolina, Charlotte