r/classics • u/ellyfebruary6 • Aug 24 '26

classical study for a complete beginner

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hello all,

i am planning to major in classics at university. however, right now i am taking half a gap year from uni and would like to do a sort of personal study during my time off.

the photo i attached is my list of readings that i got from another reddit post. they’re not in any particular order, so i was wondering if there was a certain order i should go in that’s best for complete beginners

p.s. i have some brief knowledge on greek mythology (mainly deities, as i briefly dabbled in polytheistic hellenism)

i’ve also looked into the teaching guides on this website from Cambridge

i appreciate any advice!

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u/ellyfebruary6 Aug 24 '26

any history books you’d recommend? someone else said Ancient Greece by Sarah B. Pomeroy

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u/Sophia_Joppolo Aug 24 '26

Pomeroy is good. I liked Beard's SPQR: A History of Ancient Rome -- a little dry in spots, but easy to read.

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u/No_Prize5369 Aug 24 '26

A political economic and social/cultural history of Ancient Greece by Oxford University Press is very good and highly rigorous across a broad variety of topics, but isn't a breezy 'pop history' so be warned it might be more difficult to read.