'History is what we bring to it'

 

“History is what we bring to it, not just the events themselves, but how we interpret those events.” – Robert Harris

Born in March of 1957 in Nottingham, England (made famous by The Legend of Robin Hood), Harris’s writing career began as a print journalist and morphed into television reporting (for the BBC) before he switched to historical writing in the late 1980s.  

 

Harris’s first big hit was the bestseller Fatherland and he built a loyal following with books focused on World War II, including the wildly successful Enigma – both a bestseller and an award-winning movie.   Since then he has had successful forays into ancient Rome and contemporary history, including another massive award-winning bestseller and movie Conclave.

 

Now the author of 5 nonfiction books and 17 novels his next one, set in ancient Rome, is due out in August.  Called Agrippa, it is based on the Roman general and statesman Marcus Agrippa as he looks back on his lifelong friendship with Octavian – the Roman emperor Augustus Caesar.

   

“I write as well as I can,” Harris said.  “I'm a journalist at heart, so (to me) it's the story that matters.”