by Niccolo Machavelli
ages: adult
First sentence: “All states, all dominions that have had and continue to have power over men were and still are either republics or principalities.”

My husband, bless his heart, has been trying to get me to read this book (and the Communist Manifesto) for years, since he discovered that I managed to get out of college without reading it (either one, really).

I had begged him to join my online book group, mostly because there was only one lone man and all us women, and I thought Russell would help balance out the testosterone. Unfortunately, that meant when it was his turn to host a book, he picked ones that he was interested in… which meant I would actually have to crack open the cover of a work of political theory. (I could have skipped, I know, but I live with the guy: do you think I’d live it down if I did?)

So… I got through it.

It wasn’t easy; the language was dense and I found that my usual reading situation (during the kids TV time) didn’t work: I had to actually focus on the words. Which meant reading later at night, which meant that I tended to doze off while reading the book. Not exactly ideal.

That said, I can see why this is one of Hubby’s favorite books to teach: there’s a lot to discuss in it. Machiavelli was a brilliant mind, and his ideas, although ruthless by modern standards, are quite, well, practical for the time period. I’m sure, though, that I didn’t get everything I could have out of it (though, when talking to Hubby, I realized I absorbed more than I thought I did!). Which means that maybe someday, I’ll actually have to sit in a class of Hubby’s and listen to him lecture on it.

That would be fascinating.