Memoirs of Hadrian

I tried to read this book in my 20's; the book fell from my hands. I tried again at 40. The book didn't exactly fall from my hands, but my eyelids kept closing. Now I am 70. The book is so close to my heart that I can barely put it down. I am healthy and not (I hope) near death, but in this reflection on life from a man nearing death, life and its joys and sadnesses stand out more vividly than in any other book I have ever read. From page 13: "...the flesh itself, that amazing instrument of muscles, blood, and skin, that red-tinged cloud whose lightning is the soul." Has there ever been a better description of the loved one's body?

Seldom do we find a historical novel written with both so much scholarship and passion. Marguerite Yourcenar not only incarnates the soul and spirit of Emperor Hadrian but of his time as well (second century A.D.). Narrated in the first person, it is the written meditations of a sick man who holds audience with his memories. Suffering from gout, knowing that his remaining days are few, Hadrian leaves a testimony of his life, his accomplishments, his philosophical outlook on life, and some pieces of good advise for his successor Marcus Aurelius. Hadrian was an architect of peace as well as buildings, he felt responsible for sustaining and increasing the beauty of his world, and his duties forced him "to serve as the incarnation of Providence," to the point that he felt he was indeed divine. A lover of the arts, of Greek culture, of the occult, he was above all a pragmatic man whose motto was "Strength, Justice and the Muses." For him life was "like a horse to whose motions one yields, but only after having trained the animal to the utmost." His positive attitude in every life experience allows him to look back as a man fully satisfied... except in matters of love! His passion and tragic death of young Antinous reminds him that "love's play is the only one which threatens to unsettle the soul."It is history and story written with superb craftsmanship, the end result of painful and laborious 15 years of work and research. It is a psychlogically penetrating portrait of an outstanding figure in history; a man who was able to capture the spirit of his time, which in turn has been recaptured by the genious of Marguerite Yourcenar.

This book contains wonderous and perceptive insights. Yourcenar narrates as though she were Hadrian recalling his passing life. Throughout her narration, Yourcenar (as Hadrian) assigns meaning and significance to the events and people of a time long past- a significance that's aptly valid for our thoughts and our daily situations. Thought provoking quotes permeate the novel like, "He had reached that moment in life, different for each one of us, when a man abandons himself to his demon or to his genius, following a mysterious law which bids him either to destroy or outdo himself." "I knew that good like bad becomes a routine, that the temporary tends to endure, that what is external permeates to the inside, and that the mask, given time, comes to be the face itself" "For my part I have sought liberty more than power, and power only because it can lead to freedom."With quotes like these, the novel finds strength in creating an introspective thought provoking story, rather simply innumerating the historical events of Hadrian's reign. It's best read during reflective quiet moments when one needs insights rather than entertainment.

The best female writer for a book that describes the difference between love, passion and power. Marguerite Yourcenar deserves a nobel price for this book.