Book Review Essay Example | Topics and Well Written Essays - 1750 words - 3

Book Review - Essay Example Whats more important, Heckel says, is understanding how the strategies and approaches used in Alexanders time are still the same today, after you make allowances for changes in technology. "Field Marshall Mongomery thought that even in the twentieth century the fundamental principles of war had not changed since ancient times" (ix). Heckels book is designed to argue against the hero worship of Alexander the Great and to move away from the investigations of his personality in order to look more objectively at his actual accomplishments and defeats. Heckel is an appropriate person to have written such a book because he is a professor in the department of Greek and Roman studies at the University of Calgary. He has studied Alexander the Great for a long time and has written several books about him. He is also on the board of dedicated newsletters regarding this time period and he has helped with translations of ancient text about the time of Alexander the Great. This goal of providing a realistic overview of Alexanders accomplishments and their importance to todays leaders is carried through the major chapters of the book. The book is organized into nine major chapters, but they are not necessarily the chronological sequence one might expect for such a book. Heckel starts the book with a preface that explains his primary goal in writing the book and then provides an extensive timeline graph of Alexanders life and some maps that show the growth of his empire. This is finally followed by a generalized introduction to the historical figure he discusses as well as why Alexander is considered so great for todays leaders. In establishing the context leading up to Alexander, Heckel continues to relate events to similar events today. An example of this is when he says, "The extent of Persian intervention is doubtless exaggerated, but there was