Beginning Latin Poetry Reader: 70 Parages from Classical Roman Verse and Drama – Gavin Betts

Gavin Betts, M.A., is an educator, author, and world-renowned Latin scholar. Daniel Franklin holds a degree in Latin and has done graduate work in linguistics at Harvard University. Betts and Franklin are the authors of The Big Gold Book of Latin Verbs.

Embrace your Roman muse!

As a learner of Latin, you want to experience the Roman world by reading its writers in their original language. But you may be unsure where to begin in the classical canon or you may worry that your Latin skills are insufficient to tackle authentic texts.

Requiring only a grounding in the basics, Beginning Latin Poetry Reader lets you explore the rich and diverse range of Latin verse, including epics, comedies, satires, lyric poetry, and even graffiti! Inside you’ll find seventy selections from authors of the early Republic such as Plautus and Terrance as well as those of the Golden and Silver Ages such as Vergil, Horace, Ovid, and Juvenal–all supported by helpful footnotes and English translations. This book also includes a clear overview of Latin syntax and the metrics of its verse, a glossary of all Latin words found in the readings, and a time line showing the historical and literary context of each author.

Lose yourself in:

• the sparkling comedies of Plautus
• the intimate love poetry of Catullus
• the majestic hexameters of Vergil
• the elegant lyricism of Horace
• the refined sensuality of Ovid
• the compelling satires of Juvenal
• the bristly epigrams of Martial