How to Be a Stoic (Penguin Great Ideas Series)

Epictetus; Seneca; Marcus Aurelius

'Don't hope that events will turn out the way you want, welcome events in whichever way they happen' How can we cope when life's events seem beyond our control? These words of consolation and inspiration from the three great Stoic philosophers - Epictetus, Seneca and Marcus Aurelius - offer ancient wisd...

The Narrative of Trajan's Column

Italo Calvino

'When the last fire goes out, time too will be finished' Italo Calvino was one of the most joyful and imaginative writers of the twentieth century. Here he muses on what the things we leave behind ­- whether waxworks or ancient graffiti, enigmatic maps or a crumbling Roman column - tell us about the gr...