Hannibal: Rome’s Greatest Enemy by Philip FreemanMy rating: 3 of 5 stars
This is a brisk, entertaining read of Hannibal's long struggle against Rome. Of course, bringing the elephants over the Alps is an exciting chapter here. I was looking forward to reading that. I was also impressed with the multi-day march along the swollen Arno. This area was mostly marshland and happened to be overflowing more than usual that spring. Hannibal knew that this route was full of difficulties, but it remained the surest and quickest way to central Italy. Polybius claims that Hannibal's men marched for four days and three nights "through a land that was under water", suffering terribly from fatigue and enforced want of sleep. He crossed without opposition over both the Apennines (during which he lost his right eye because of conjunctivitis) and the seemingly impassable Arno to lure the main Roman army under Flaminius into a pitched Battle of Lake Trasimene.
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