The Bucket List Book Adventure: Histories by Herodotus — Tales, Truths, and Ancient Wonders

The Bucket List Book Adventure: Histories by Herodotus — Tales, Truths, and Ancient Wonders

Dear Henry,

It’s been a while, but I’ve finally returned to the Bucket List Book Adventure and finished Histories by Herodotus.

(And for the record, it’s Hair-odd-uh-tus — though I still say it wrong half the time.)

Let me tell you all about Histories, one of the most fascinating and occasionally bewildering works on my list so far.

Herodotus, often called “The Father of History,” remains something of a mystery himself. He was born around 484 BC in Halicarnassus, near what is now Bodrum, Turkey. He traveled extensively through the Mediterranean, the Middle East, and North Africa, and is believed to have been in Athens at the start of the Peloponnesian War.

He likely died between 430 and 420 BC, possibly in Thurii, Italy. Even his life’s timeline is filled with question marks, and his Histories follow suit, detailed, fascinating, and sometimes wonderfully improbable.

“Force will always be beside the point when subtlety will serve.”
— Darius, Histories by Herodotus

Written around 430 BC, Histories is an ambitious study of Greek, Egyptian, Ethiopian, and Persian cultures, weaving together myth, legend, and history to explain the causes of the Greco-Persian Wars.

It’s filled with extraordinary stories, some that stretch belief, and others that illuminate the heart of human nature.

For instance, Herodotus offers a curious explanation for Helen of Troy’s fate. According to him, Paris and Helen stopped in Egypt before ever reaching Troy. The Egyptian warden Thonis, disapproving of the theft, confiscated Helen and sent for Menelaus — but the Greeks, already sailing for Troy, refused to believe it. Perhaps they simply needed the war to justify the voyage.

Herodotus is as much a collector of tales as a historian. He reports that phoenixes nest in Heliopolis, that Arabia is home to flying, venomous snakes, and that Ethiopian royalty are buried in quartz crystal coffins.

Some stories, like King Astyages unknowingly eating his son or the Scythians serving human flesh at a banquet, are downright gruesome. Others, like the tale of Arion and the dolphins who saved him after a robbery at sea, are surprisingly tender.

“Great wealth can make a man no happier than moderate means, unless he has the luck to continue in prosperity to the end.”

— Solon, Histories by Herodotus

What I found most interesting was the ancient Greek definition of happiness: health, freedom from troubles, good children, beauty, and a comfortable life, ideally ending in a heroic death.

“Men lie when they think to profit by deception, and tell the truth for the same reason — to get something they want, and to be better trusted for their honesty.”

— Darius, Histories by Herodotus

It’s sobering how little that definition has changed over time. We still seek meaning in the same way, through love, purpose, and the hope that our lives add up to something worthwhile.

Still, Histories was a long and occasionally difficult read. Herodotus spent what felt like half the book on the Nile and its peculiarities — though, I suppose, at the time, it was the world’s wonder.

Next up is Clouds by Aristophanes — and after Herodotus’ endless pages, I’m ready for something funny.

xoxo,

a.d. elliott

🎥 Watch the companion video here: The Bucket List Book Adventure: Histories by Herodotus

*Note* The Bucket List Book Adventure continues on Rite of Fancy — my literary corner of the Take the Back Roads journey.  Come read more reflections on philosophy, faith, and the books that shape the road.

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a.d. elliott is a wanderer, photographer, and storyteller living in Salem, Virginia. 

In addition to her travel writings at www.takethebackroads.com, you can also read her book reviews at www.riteoffancy.com and US military biographies at www.everydaypatriot.com

Her online photography gallery can be found at shop.takethebackroads.com

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