Commentarii de Bello Gallico

“Commentaries on the Gallic War” by Gaius Julius Caesar may be the greatest war book in world literature. It was written right after the events—by the main figure of that war himself—and in it, Caesar the writer is equally as great as Caesar the commander and historical figure. It is a tragic epic of conquering a vast country and a direct clash of civilizations.

The book is written extremely simply and sensibly, as if it were describing a struggle of Romans against a formidable epidemic. Therefore Caesar’s “Commentarii de Bello Gallico” can be read as a report on legendary events from two thousand years ago, but it can also serve as a kind of commentary on later twists in world history.