The Anabasis of Alexander : $b or, The history of the wars and conquests of Alexander the Great.

Of all the histories of Alexander that antiquity produced, this is the one later ages have relied upon most. Arrian wrote as a soldier and statesman, and it shows on every page.

What it's about

The Anabasis of Alexander is Arrian's history of the wars and conquests of Alexander the Great, tracing the campaign from the crossing into Asia through the great battles against the Persian empire, the march across Bactria and beyond the Indus, and the long return. Writing in the second century, Arrian based his narrative chiefly on the accounts of Alexander's own officers, above all Ptolemy and Aristobulus, whom he judged the most reliable witnesses.

Themes

The book is a study of leadership, ambition and the machinery of ancient warfare, told with an eye for command decisions, terrain and the temper of an army. It weighs the greatness of Alexander against his excesses, admiring his genius while noting his growing pride and the cost of endless conquest. Fortune, glory and the limits of a mortal's reach shadow the triumphs.

Why it still matters

Arrian's sober reliance on primary sources makes his Anabasis the foundation of nearly everything modern historians know about Alexander's campaigns. It is at once a gripping narrative of one of history's most astonishing careers and the indispensable ancient authority on it.

Who it's for

Readers of classical history and military history, students of Alexander and the Hellenistic world, and anyone who wants the conquest of the known world told by its most dependable ancient historian.