Ancient Rome and sort of ancient America

Well, this Summer is not as bad as last year's, but it's certainly isn't the greatest. It's grey again, so I spent the day job hunting (I hope it will eventually give results) and watching Rome. Even after the departure of Ciaran Hinds (as he played Caesar, he left when his character got murdered), it's still an addictive series.

I am also reading The Hot Kid by Elmore Leonard, which I borrowed from my brother-in-law. He didn't like it, but so far I find it a wonderful crime novel and a vividly acurate period piece. In this entry, I have to seemingly radically different topics, but in a way, they share similarities: both describe with authenticity a certain time in history, both are about a troubled period in a young but powerful nation that is about to become an empire, both have really great dialogues (Elmore Leonard is the all-time master in that regard), both are very violent, as history and human passions always are.