Exposed

'A gloriously intimate tour of the body in antiquity, filled with unexpected digressions and surprising new perspectives. From Ovid to the Olympics, Sophocles to spiritual Viagra, Caroline Vout is a wonderful guide, wearing her erudition lightly and with a great sense of fun.' - Gavin Francis, bestselling author of Recovery and Adventures in Human Being 'An extraordinary book that stopped me in my tracks again and again. Filled with insights, surprises and asides that draw on a breath-taking array of sources from the distant past to the present day. A triumph from start to finish' - Peter Frankopan, bestselling author of The Silk Roads 'Vout sustains a fast-moving conversation with her readers. She uses an admirably wide range of texts, art and objects and shows that bodies came in many shapes, sizes and roles in antiquity too. Exposed helps us widen our minds when we turn to envisaging the ancient world' - Robin Lane Fox 'Caroline Vout takes the Greek and Roman body apart with impressive scholarship and a sublime sense of humour. In Exposed she goes well beyond our clich view of the classical human form and reveals in unflinching detail what it was really like for the Greeks and Romans to inhabit their mortal coils and by extension the world about them. Of course in doing so she unavoidably directs us to contemplate the same. So if you have a body you should definitely read this. Oh and did I mention it made me laugh out loud too?' - Jimmy Mulville