Before I embark on my laudation (from "laudo,-are,-avi,-atum" - the principal parts of the verb "to praise") for Harry Mount's book, I must confess to a vested interest; as a Latin teacher at a London prep school I spend a good deal of my time justifying my subject. My pupils, once introduced to the joys of Latin, eventually submit to its charms.
But for every lover of the classics there is a crowd of dreary Philistines crying "What's the point of Latin?" - or, drearier still - "Latin is a dead language". So to those of you who hated Latin, those who have never read a word of it, and those who wish to brush up on your grammar, I urge you all to read "Amo, Amas, Amat... and all that".
Harry Mount's witty and unstuffy tour of the Latin language and its history is a charming and refreshing guide for Latin lovers old and new. He touches on every aspect of the influence of Latin - from David Beckhams' tattoos to Botanists' Latin, via architecture, poetry and more than a smattering of schoolboy humour. The book was a somewhat surprising best-seller last year. Perhaps there is hope for the Philistines after all. Georgia Coke
Those endless afternoons where you struggled to remember the third person singular present indicative of volo (vult) may be a long time ago. But, if you have the vaguest memory of the ablative absolute, the locative and the gerund, your mastery of Latin will spring back to life with this refreshing and improving primer. In his trip through the world’s most influential language, Harry Mount uncorks its magic, using Latin lovers from Kingsley Amis to John Cleese, from Evelyn Waugh to Donna Tartt.
| Primary Genre | Non-Fiction Books of the Month |
Those endless afternoons where you struggled to remember the third person singular present indicative of volo (vult) may be a long time ago. But, if you have the vaguest memory of the ablative absolute, the locative and the gerund, your mastery of Latin will spring back to life with this refreshing and improving primer.
Amo, Amas, Amat... and All That : How to Become a Latin Lover features in the following genres: Non-Fiction Books of the Month, Recommendations
Paperback, Hardback (slipcased). Not Available.
Amo, Amas, Amat... and All That : How to Become a Latin Lover was written by Harry Mount and published by Short Books Ltd
Amo, Amas, Amat... and All That : How to Become a Latin Lover has 260 pages