{"id":552,"date":"2024-02-29T16:00:43","date_gmt":"2024-02-29T16:00:43","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/?page_id=552"},"modified":"2026-08-20T16:09:10","modified_gmt":"2026-08-20T16:09:10","slug":"books-and-essays","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/books-and-essays\/","title":{"rendered":"Books"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
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July 16, 2024 (hardback), January 13, 2026 (paperback)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A biography of Alexander the Great\u2019s final years, when the leader\u2019s insatiable desire to conquer the world set him off on an exhilarating, harrowing journey that would define his legacy. Meticulously researched and grippingly written, Alexander at the End of the World<\/em> is an unforgettable tale of daring and adventure, an inspiring portrait of grit and ambition, and a powerful meditation on the ability to learn from failure.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Buy now on Amazon,<\/a> Barnes & Noble<\/a>, Bookshop.org<\/a>, Apple Books<\/a>, Books-a-Million,<\/a> Target,<\/a> HarperCollins<\/a>, or your favorite independent bookstore.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Dutch edition, Athenaeum<\/em>, Nov. 2024; Spanish edition, Arpa<\/em>, October 2025; Chinese edition, February 2026.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Praise for Alexander at the End of the World<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cGet ready for a heart-pounding, mind-bending adventure with Alexander the Great, as you have never seen him before, in Rachel Kousser\u2019s stunning achievement of a book. Sensitively rendered, beautifully narrated, and packed with revelatory insights from a world-class Classics scholar, ALEXANDER AT THE END OF THE WORLD mirrors the storied greatness of its hero: bold, adventurous, seemingly unstoppable, and fascinatingly complex. Kousser powerfully turns the camera to reveal not just the legendary conquerer, but those he sought to conquer, brutal warfare but also love\u2014all unfolding against a panoramic view of a vast, ancient world that is awesome in its diversity. Here is a modern epic, set in distant times but astonishingly of-the-moment. Journey to the end of Alexander\u2019s world to better grasp ours.\u201d  Ilyon Woo, author of<\/strong> Pulitzer Prize winner Master Slave Husband Wife:  An Epic Journey from Slavery to Freedom<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn Rachel Kousser’s vivid tale of the last decade of Alexander the Great’s life, he comes off the page in all his complexity \u2013 his ferocious ambition, lust for conquest, charisma — and his ruthless, often gratuitous violence.  Kousser’s true achievement, however, is capturing Alexander’s genius at welding it all together \u2013 fractious Macedonians, Greeks, Persians, and Egyptians — into the world’s greatest empire in classical times.\u201d \u2013William Carlson, New York Times bestselling author of Jungle of Stone<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

“A wonderful and insightful account about one of the most famous figures in all history \u2013 told with real style and panache. Kousser\u2019s Alexander almost springs to life off the page.” Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads:  A New History of the World<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cIn her latest book, Rachel Kousser explains why Alexander the Great is one of the first figures in human history to achieve enduring fame on a truly global scale. Tracking the last seven years of his short life, she reminds us that the ancient world was a big Eurasian stage spanning powerful states in modern-day Greece, Iran, central Asia, and Pakistan. Without glossing over the horrific violence Alexander wreaked, Kousser delves into his bold attempt to meld Macedonians, Greeks, Persians, and other groups into a transcultural governing elite that would help hold his conquests together. An expert scholar and dramatic story-teller, she has woven ancient literary and archaeological sources into an exciting narrative that invites us into Alexander\u2019s world and shows the significance of understanding that world today.\u201d Joy Connolly, President, American Council of Learned Societies<\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cWriting with the eye of an archeologist, the mind of a tactician, and the pen of a novelist, Kousser gives us a very human Alexander, struggling towards greatness. Her fascinating, truly empire-wide portrait reveals how much of our uneasily interconnected world sprang from Alexander\u2019s ambitions \u2013 and how little of his dream of cross-cultural harmony we have yet to achieve.\u201d Erin Thompson, author of Smashing Statues:  The Rise and Fall of America\u2019s Public Monuments<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

\u201cA thought-provoking portrait of audacious ambition, triumph, and tragedy in the short, glorious life of Alexander the Great, Rachel Kousser\u2019s compelling account of the tumultuous last years of the young, and wildly successful world conqueror is at once exhilarating and melancholy.\u201d Adrienne Mayor, author of National Book Award Finalist The Poison King:  The Life and Legend of Mithradates, Rome\u2019s Deadliest Enemy.<\/em><\/strong><\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Cambridge University Press, 2017, Winner:  <\/strong>Archaeological Institute of America Publication Subvention Award, 2015; Shortlisted:  <\/strong>Runciman Book Award for a work on Greek history or culture, Anglo-Hellenic League, 2018.<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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Cambridge University Press, 2008<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n\n\n\n
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July 16, 2024 (hardback), January 13, 2026 (paperback) A biography of Alexander the Great\u2019s final years, when the leader\u2019s insatiable desire to conquer the world set him off on an exhilarating, harrowing journey that would define his legacy. Meticulously researched and grippingly written, Alexander at the End of the World is an unforgettable tale of… Continue reading Books<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-552","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry","entry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/552","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=552"}],"version-history":[{"count":15,"href":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/552\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":1879,"href":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/552\/revisions\/1879"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/rachelkousser.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=552"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}