Living with a Dead Language
My Romance with Latin
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3.9 • 7 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
“A delightful mix of grammar and growth, words and wonder.” – The Washington Post
An entertaining exploration of the richness and relevance of the Latin language and literature, and an inspiring account of finding renewed purpose through learning something new and challenging
After thirty-five years as a book editor in New York City, Ann Patty stopped working and moved to the country. Bored, aimless, and lost in the woods, she hoped to challenge her restless, word-loving brain by beginning a serious study of Latin at local colleges.
As she begins to make sense of Latin grammar and syntax, her studies open unexpected windows into her own life. The louche poetry of Catullus calls up her early days in 1970s New York, Lucretius elucidates her intractable drivenness and her attraction to Buddhism, while Ovid’s verse conjures a delightful dimension to the flora and fauna that surround her. Women in Roman history, and an ancient tomb inscription give her new understanding and empathy for her tragic, long deceased mother. Finally, Virgil reconciles her to her new life—no longer an urban exile, but a rustic scholar, writer and teacher. Along the way, she meets an impassioned cast of characters: professors, students and classicists outside of academia who keep Latin very much alive.
Written with humor, heart, and an infectious enthusiasm for words, Patty’s book is an object lesson in how learning and literature can transform the past and lead to an unexpected future.
PUBLISHERS WEEKLY
Patty, a former Crown executive editor and the founder of Poseidon Press, vivaciously recounts her embrace of Latin and the manifold ways it reshaped her life. The story begins with her retiring from publishing and moving to a country house in upstate New York. However, Patty found it hard to relax and felt anxious about how she was going to fill her time. She decided to take a college course in Latin a subject she last studied in the seventh grade and ended up taking 12 courses. After some research, Patty found a beginning class at Vassar College and threw herself into her studies with passion. Hers is not a story of easy success she becomes anxious and angry with herself when she fails to grasp a concept or translate a sentence correctly but Patty's love of language and desire to stave off ennui bolster her through six years. She eventually translates the poetry of, among other writers, Catullus and Ovid, discovering how the latter "makes Latin dance." This captivating and charming memoir shows how the study of Latin can be "another form of meditation... another way of slowing down."
