Antonina, or, The fall of Rome vs Lays of ancient Rome: Which Should You Read?

Both live on shelves: Rome, History

Antonina, or, The fall of Rome Wilkie Collins · 1800 ★★★☆☆ 3.1 224 pages · ≈ 4 h 09 m · Challenging

The author draws on historical accounts of the final days of Rome and adds fictional characters and details to bring the time to life in more of a vignette form rather than a novel. Chapters include an account of the…

Rome in fiction Goths British and irish fiction Fiction

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Lays of ancient Rome Thomas Babington Macaulay · 1800 ★★★★☆ 4.0 95 pages · ≈ 1 h 46 m · Demanding

Noteworthy among Macaulay's works are his poems, of which the 'Lays of Ancient Rome' are chief. Here his purpose is to embody his conception of the heroic historical ballads which must have been current among the early…

Poetry

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Side by side

The verdict

Readers rate Lays of ancient Rome highest: Lays of ancient Rome 4.0 · Antonina, or, The fall of Rome 3.1.
Lays of ancient Rome is the quickest read — about 1 hours vs 4 for Antonina, or, The fall of Rome.
Antonina, or, The fall of Rome has the widest readership — 162 ratings behind its score.

Antonina, or, The fall of Rome: Check price →Lays of ancient Rome: Check price →

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How to choose

Want a one-evening read? Lays of ancient Rome ≈ 1h vs 4h for Antonina, or, The fall of Rome New to the genre? Antonina, or, The fall of Rome Challenging vs Demanding for Lays of ancient Rome

Scores by source

	Antonina, or, The fall of Rome	Lays of ancient Rome
Goodreads	3.0 (162)	4.1 (7)
Hardcover	—	4.0 (1)
Apple Books	—	4.0 (27)
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Reception

	Antonina, or, The fall of Rome	Lays of ancient Rome
Ratings	162	27
Editions	245	176
Film adaptations	—	1
Want to read	251	4
Reading it now	37	—
Written reviews	25	2
Wikipedia attention	—	3188
Pages	224	95
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Questions readers ask

Which is rated higher: Antonina, or, The fall of Rome or Lays of ancient Rome?

Lays of ancient Rome has the higher combined reader rating across sources (Lays of ancient Rome 4.0/5, Antonina, or, The fall of Rome 3.1/5).

Which is shorter to read: Antonina, or, The fall of Rome or Lays of ancient Rome?

Lays of ancient Rome is the quickest read. Estimated at 225 words per minute: Lays of ancient Rome (95 pages, ≈ 1 h 46 m); Antonina, or, The fall of Rome (224 pages, ≈ 4 h 09 m).

Which is harder to read: Antonina, or, The fall of Rome or Lays of ancient Rome?

Estimated difficulty, based on era, reader shelves and length — Antonina, or, The fall of Rome: Challenging; Lays of ancient Rome: Demanding.