Germania

Tacitus: Germania
$31.00
In the Germania, one of Tacitus' most valuable works, the author gives a First and Second Century look at the various Germanic tribes that hovered outside the eastern border of Roman Gaul. Beginning with a general geographic introduction, he reviews the culture all the various tribes shared, their religion, their war cries, their marriage and funeral rites, and the German way of war. In the remaining chapters, Tacitus describes the various tribes of the Germans and their location to one another and to major rivers and mountains; this is invaluable to the modern historian and is the most complete study of the Germany of late Rome.

Tacitus' writing is clear and thorough, giving us a consistent and accurate picture of the Germany of his day, a swirling cauldron of tribes filled with young men who fight bravely, though often just for the fun of it. We get a clear glimpse of the German character, his rites and his habits, his strengths and his weaknesses. There is no other book quite like it, and in its four dozen short chapters we come to know not only who waited outside Rome's borders, but why Tacitus thought they were a reason for concern.

While there's not much to not like about Germania, I do think Tacitus overplays the innocent virtue of the Germans, drawing too many parallels between their character that of the old Roman Republic. While his political purpose was important to him, it is less important to us, if only because we can see in hindsight that the Germans were not so different from the Romans in the end. That they didn't have wealth and splendor does not mean they didn't desire it; it only means that they had not yet acquired it. It will turn out, however, that they are as willing to take it from the Romans as the Romans were from everyone else.

Germania: A Novel
$26.00
Let me start out by saying that I did enjoy this novel. It's written in a style that's easy to read. The author never gets caught up in details and the story really flows. However it just wasn't my kind of story.

The reason I chose to give it 4 stars is due to the fact I couldn't see the humor in the time period. I love WW2 (time period) stories and found it hard to get past that. I was expecting something a little more heart wrenching and didn't find it here.

The Triumph of Painting: Germania
$65.00
To mark the opening of the Saatchi Gallery's new and largest exhibition space in London, this definitive volume?presents the work of a generation of German artists who have grown up in a post-war and divided nation. Beginning with the work of such dominant figures as?Martin Kippenberger and Jorg Immendorff, it?extends into the new generations, including radical work from the Leipzig school. Designed to coincide?with future exhibitions at the Saatchi, this?is?the most authoritative and comprehensive survey of new painting from Eastern Europe.

Germania the Bear McDonald's Ty Teenie Beanie SuperStar 2000
$3.84
Teenie beanie from McDonald's Super Star 2000 Ty beanie promotion. Mint In unopened Package (MIP).