Pompeii cover art

Pompeii

The Life of a Roman Town

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Pompeii

By: Mary Beard
Narrated by: Phyllida Nash
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £15.99

Buy Now for £15.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

Winner of the Wolfson History Prize 2008.

The ruins of Pompeii, buried by an explosion of Vesuvius in 79 CE, offer the best evidence we have of everyday life in the Roman empire. This remarkable book rises to the challenge of making sense of those remains, as well as exploding many myths: the very date of the eruption, probably a few months later than usually thought, or the hygiene of the baths that must have been hotbeds of germs, or the legendary number of brothels, most likely only one, or the massive death count, maybe less than 10 per cent of the population.

An extraordinary and involving portrait of an ancient town, its life and its continuing rediscovery, by Britain's favourite classicist.

©2010 Mary Beard (P)2010 Hachette Audio UK Ancient Archaeology Europe Mythology

Listeners also enjoyed...

 Natalie Haynes Stands Up for the Classics: Series 1-4 cover art
The Dawn of Language cover art
Twelve Caesars cover art
Egypt, Greece and Rome cover art
I'm Sorry I Haven't a Clue: A Second Treasury cover art
A Complete Guide to British Birds cover art
The Ancient Agora of Classical Athens cover art
Life in Ancient Rome cover art
A Brief History of Life in the Middle Ages cover art
The Feud That Sparked the Renaissance cover art
Londonwalks cover art
Three Stones Make a Wall cover art
Shakespeare's Local: Six Centuries of History, One Pub cover art
Under Another Sky cover art
The Story of Greece and Rome cover art
Fire and Movement cover art

Critic reviews

"The world's most controversial classicist debunks our movie-style myths about the Roman town with meticulous scholarship and propulsive energy." (Laura Silverman, Daily Mail)
All stars
Most relevant
Mary Beard is by far my favourite historian. Knowledgeable, accessible and inciteful in equal measure. A great read

Great read

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Professor Mary Beard's text, well read by Phyllida Nash, gives an excellent account of the history, life and times of Pompeii before and at the time of its destruction in AD79. Professor Beard is not afraid to contradict the opinions of other learned writers on Pompeii, using her own very extensive knowledge of Roman and Greek customs and writings. I would advise the listener to this audio edition to take the trouble of obtaining a map of the city to be able to follow the narration and locate the various buildings being discussed.

A Expertly Guided Tour of Pompeii

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Interesting and addictive. The author can impart information in such an entertaining way that you learn lots of facts without realising.. Time flew past when i listened.

Fantastic

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
Mary Beard is fabulous. I’ve read and watched many different topics of books and tv shows with her. This has been my favourite so far. So much detail, she really paints a picture of daily life in Pompeii. Highly recommended.

Fantastic!

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
I have this book by Mary Beard and am so pleased it is even more enjoyable on audio.
Having been there it's made me wish to return with Mary as the guide..... She makes it real even though there are still many puzzles re roman life.
I wish Mary had read her own book, I always find Ms Nash's overemphasis and preciceness, rather jarring.

In put down able....

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews