Cleopatra by Stacy Schiff

Schiff's biography of Cleopatra is a remarkable work of history that well deserves the Pulitzer Prize it won. The detailed bibliography and references to classic sources indicate a serious depth to the underlying research. Schiff pictures Cleopatra as more a charismatic and intelligent leader than a great beauty; Mark Antony's wife was said to be more beautiful. There is a great deal of material on military and political activities of the age and the splendors of Egyptian wealth. This is probably because very little is really known of Cleopatra as an individual.