Barry Strauss - Spartacus war

BC In 73, an unprecedented series of events began in the Roman Empire. A small group of gladiators managed to escape from their accommodation not far from Mount Vesuvius; their armament at that time consisted of nothing more than a few locally looted kitchen utensils. Their leader, however, was an extraordinary personality: Spartacus. It is so extraordinary that legends have been woven around its figure, which continue to this day; later revolutionaries went to war under his name, and a Hollywood blockbuster was also made about him.
With this ever-growing army of runaway gladiators, slaves and other rebels, Spartacus managed to keep the Roman Empire in check for two years, one after another defeating the Roman armies sent against him. He demonstrated extraordinary tactical and leadership skills, thanks to which he repeatedly managed to turn seemingly hopeless situations around. The Roman political-military elite was initially paralyzed and bewildered by the events. Finally, Spartacus found a worthy opponent in the person of Crassus, who was one of the most ambitious and also the most cynical Roman leaders.
Everything you need to know about Spartacus is in this book. The author, who is a renowned researcher of antiquity, tells the story of the dramatic two years of the slave uprising in an enjoyable and detailed way, based on the completeness of the surviving sources. In fact, even more than that, because in the meantime, following Spartacus' army, we travel almost all over Italy, and we learn a lot about the functioning of the Roman state and society, the Gauls, the Thracians, the wars of Rome, and the life of the gladiators. The special strength of the book is the plastically drawn figures of Spartacus and Crassus. The War of Spartacus is an enjoyable read for both the general public and specialists in ancient subjects.