# An Ovidian reading list

If you have read my _[Publius Ovidius mysteries](https://www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B0CP9Y7C5B?binding=kindle_edition)_, you may want to find out more about the real Ovid. If you start with the poetry, I’d say your best bet is _The Metamorphoses_ and I was particularly impressed with [Stephanie McCarter’s recent translation](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Metamorphoses-Ovid-ebook/dp/B09NLPRTQ2/ref=sr_1_1?crid=DGI9NUVS1SNR&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.1cWeIt6njd7dC1VUjK6102FSYnu-Pa3a85SRHKUrCdlsQTvWqEAZihV-0JLRdtBY.mYpW4PUjLFn8gFECf7N_nNqHOFMBR1fuRAJesYe2njg&dib_tag=se&keywords=stephanie+mccarter+ovid&qid=1739653712&sprefix=Stephanie+MC%2Caps%2C89&sr=8-1) published by Penguin.

I also like the love poetry and Penguin have the _Amores_ and the naughty _Ars Amatoria_ in one volume, called _[Ovid: The Erotic Poems](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Erotic-Poems-Classics-Ovid-ebook/dp/B002XHNMUS/ref=sr_1_9)_. Translated by the great Peter Green, these poems are not politically correct: but I’ve always believed that you can see all the problems with something and still want to study it. Every time I get too comfortable in the world of Rome I create in my books, I read these poems to remind myself that the Romans were slave-owners who often saw violence as a solution to a problem.

If I’m honest, I found the poems of exile, the _Tristia_ and the _Epistulae ex Ponto_ hard going. They are a campaign. Ovid is lobbying hard to get recalled and he has a plethora of poetic devices in his armoury. He will pester and wail and is unrelenting. Don’t feel you have to, read them but if you do I recommend [Peter Green’s excellent translation and commentary.](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Poems-Exile-Tristia-Black-Letters-ebook/dp/B00RL8ISTE/ref=sr_1_2)

If you are curious about the real Ovid but don’t necessarily want to read a dissertation on him, I recommend _[Ovid: a very short introduction](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ovid-Very-Short-Introduction-Introductions-ebook/dp/B08GCFD8L4/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2EA7M9I4LXDD1&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.rjS8bRkc3j4y_24gPdHq7qc88JWoNlEHeTe-HlIOYPDMERovBlVBa5wqxPdszlI5FLirhE8LIfyfYdoSyYBhluG8LZsBuPqpsTVjwrhHU5hqoMNx1ZnKTM6Tv8PIojPIs2noWqVT7Xtoxc6WIO94EQ_UHhrTR3z_x9gDaqFMAVe-3xFx6HwIIgQvDwDZVsdSieXvtgo8-021CFoTTIAgcw.emNmiCcb_HW1IaZi08vufiJ6C5be6H5fvO2s4SpWQog&dib_tag=se&keywords=ovid+a+very+short+introduction&qid=1739654018&sprefix=Ovid+a+%2Caps%2C92&sr=8-1)_ [by Llewelyn Morgan](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ovid-Very-Short-Introduction-Introductions-ebook/dp/B08GCFD8L4/ref=sr_1_1?crid=2EA7M9I4LXDD1&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.rjS8bRkc3j4y_24gPdHq7qc88JWoNlEHeTe-HlIOYPDMERovBlVBa5wqxPdszlI5FLirhE8LIfyfYdoSyYBhluG8LZsBuPqpsTVjwrhHU5hqoMNx1ZnKTM6Tv8PIojPIs2noWqVT7Xtoxc6WIO94EQ_UHhrTR3z_x9gDaqFMAVe-3xFx6HwIIgQvDwDZVsdSieXvtgo8-021CFoTTIAgcw.emNmiCcb_HW1IaZi08vufiJ6C5be6H5fvO2s4SpWQog&dib_tag=se&keywords=ovid+a+very+short+introduction&qid=1739654018&sprefix=Ovid+a+%2Caps%2C92&sr=8-1). A professor at Oxford, Morgan wears his learning lightly, but conveys a great deal in this book which is accessible and short - as one would guess from the title! The Oxford Very Short Introduction series is my go-to when I need to know something about a subject quickly.

And for some fictional adventures surrounding the great man, you can do no better than David Wishart’s [Ovid.](https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ovid-Marcus-Corvinus-mystery-Book-ebook/dp/B005QOJ8A8/ref=sr_1_1?crid=ZZQ0SGGTOGWW&dib=eyJ2IjoiMSJ9.shhc-AhuMOxA8WcKyHW0mxr93GCoc9iJO33gpkn8J1_U5sUiB3lND04EIrSljx0Eajw5_Fz9KK44qgWpPwgbXQ.HAqEiguJUZZAUKNjxXpez_49-i55qxK-PeWMwuPTnsU&dib_tag=se&keywords=ovid+by+david+wishart&qid=1739654127&sprefix=ovid+David+%2Caps%2C82&sr=8-1) David Wishart was the first author to cheer me on and I am always grateful for his support. And I love his Marcus Corvinus series!

Note on the pictures: recently my family did a huge sort-out of our photos and I now have access to hundreds of old images. I’m going to scatter them like confetti through my Substack posts, just for fun.