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The Beacon at Alexandria
The Beacon at Alexandria
Author: Gillian Bradshaw
In the Fourth Century A.D., independent and determined young Charis is forbidden to become a doctor because she is a woman. Disguising herself as a eunuch she flees Ephesus for Alexandria, then the center of learning. There she apprentices to a Jewish doctor but eventually becomes drawn into Church politics and is forced once again to flee. She ...  more »
ISBN-13: 9780395411599
ISBN-10: 0395411599
Publication Date: 9/1986
Pages: 376
Rating:
  • Currently 3.9/5 Stars.
 5

3.9 stars, based on 5 ratings
Publisher: Ticknor Fields
Book Type: Hardcover
Other Versions: Paperback
Members Wishing: 0
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VickyJo avatar reviewed The Beacon at Alexandria on + 49 more book reviews
This is the story of a young girl named Charis, who comes from a good home in Ephesus. The year is 371 and it's the last days of the Roman dominion over the eastern Mediterranean. Charis is going to be forced into marriage with a brute of a man who happens to have a great deal of power. In order to escape this fate, she runs away to Alexandria to pursue her one passion: medicine. Disguised as a eunuch (women were not allowed to study the mysteries of Galen and Hippocrates) Charis finds a mentor and protector in Philon, a wise, kind-hearted Jewish physician.

Gillian Bradshaw knows ancient Rome. She brings the past to life in this novel of the waning days of a fascinating civilization, and the dawning days of Christianity. I found the various denominations (if you will) of Christianity to be very interesting. This was a time when Christian theology was still being hammered out, and pagan religions were still observed. I also enjoyed the medical theories that were in use at this time; what they believed, what they could do, and what they were helpless to prevent, treat or understand. The author has a scholarly background in Classical studies, and it shows in her writing. If you enjoy immersing yourself in a past culture, you will enjoy "The Beacon at Alexandria."


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