The Letters of Cicero, Volume 1

Letters written amid public disputes also reveal Cicero's concerns as a brother and friend. Evelyn S. Shuckburgh's English translation arranges the correspondence chronologically and supplies notes on people and events. The preface explains why these exchanges can be difficult to interpret: some answer letters that no longer survive, while others mention matters their recipients already understood. This gives readers both a view of life in ancient Rome and a sense of the gaps that remain in its surviving records.

Courtroom work and political loyalties run through the correspondence. Cicero describes defending Bestia against a bribery charge, assisting Sestius and observing the forces gathering around Pompey and Clodius. In the same letter, he discusses housing arrangements and asks after his brother's health in Sardinia. For readers interested in ancient history, the appeal lies in this close connection between public responsibilities and everyday relationships, expressed by someone directly involved in the affairs he describes.