T. James Luce

Luce summarizes the achievements of Herodotus, Thucydides, and Polybius in detail, and briefly discusses the achievements of Xenophon and various fragmentary historians.

This book is intended for use as an undergraduate text, and it fits that task admirably, giving a reliable overview of both the facts of his subjects' lives and compositions, as well as advancing some arguments about them. In addition, though, his writing is persuasive; at each chapter you are convinced that each historian's method is the best one: Herodotus's reporting of different versions and allowing the reader to decide the truth; Thucydides' close observation and multifaceted analysis; Polybius's intense commitment to uncovering the truth.

I'm not necessarily convinced by his argument that the early historians were heavily influenced by the pre-socratic philosophers (taking from them critical and analytical thinking, observation and inquiry, the search for a comprehensive view of the univers, and an interest in change), but he may be right (and the book is simply too short to make that argument in a thorough manner.… (altro)