Review of
Sophon of Carthage: Heroine of a Holocaust

Dateline: 02/24/98

Great Cato there, for gravity renown'd,
And conqu'ring Cossus goes with laurels crown'd.
Who can omit the Gracchi? who declare
The Scipios' worth, those thunderbolts of war,
The double bane of Carthage?
--(http://daemon.ilt.columbia.edu/academic/digitexts/vergil/aeneid/book06.html) Vergil's Aeneid VI

Sophon of Carthage: Heroine of a Holocaust
by R. Hardy
© 1997; LHA Books, Seattle.

A lone thinking woman in a society run on emotions diluted by the reasoned opinions of only a few men -- those who listen to her -- Sophon tries to persuade Carthage to adopt policies that could save it from Rome's wrath. Unfortunately, neither she nor those men who consult and admire her, have much weight against superstitious interpretations of events.

Rome isn't without fault in the sequence of events, but Carthage, perhaps innocently, and definitely ignorantly, chooses to misinterpret them. When King Masinissa of Numidia withdraws inland, the senate believes it's a sign of weakness where Sophon recognizes it as a regrouping. The city leaders think they don't need Rome's help, so the Carthaginian senate sends Rome's emissary, the already churlish Cato, packing -- unaware that in so doing, they have made an implacable enemy. They then vote to expel or execute those among their ranks who believe they should unite with the Numidian King against Rome.

Then, when Carthage, badly defeated by the Numidian king, eventually appeals to Rome, they are at a loss to understand Rome's cryptic response that they already know what they've done wrong and how to make amends. Unable to figure out this mystery, the leading men of Carthage do little more than pray for help and butcher their own leaders.

At last, when all hope of saving Carthage is lost, Sophon conspires to save the lives of her son, by sending him into slavery, and her closest women friends, by hiding them from her crazed husband (who still blames all disaster on Sophon's impiety) until they can be saved -- albeit as slaves -- by the Romans.

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Sophon of Carthage is a compelling novel, a romance, with blessedly limited erotic detail. The fast-paced story is told in the third person, directly, making it easy to read -- especially if one consults the list of names. There are a few faults, however, one of which is endemic to historical fiction -- the occasional paragraph that does nothing to further the plotline, but exists to provide historical background. The second fault is that in this direct, straightforward narrative, with few unecessary details, there is one gratuitous, derogatory, not particularly interesting from an historical perspective, sex scene.

The third fault is a shortage of sensory detail -- presumably because we know too little about Ancient Carthage. However, it is the fiction writer's job to make educated guesses and with a knowledge of what spices the Phoenicians traded, some description of the meat course, besides the fact that it consisted of chicken (was it roasted? salted? dried?) would be in order.

In all, Sophon of Carthage makes Carthage come back to life from the ruins -- a tricky thing to do since the entire city was destroyed and all its citizens killed or made into slaves.

Slaves can, however, be freed.