Book Review – You Wouldn’t Want to Be an Assyrian Soldier by Rupert Matthews

An Assyrian Soldier

You Wouldn’t Want to Be an Assyrian Soldier by Rupert Matthews

Synopsis:

Humorous text and illustrations describe what life was like for Assyrians, including their daily chores, how soldiers were chosen, and the jobs soldiers had to do during conflicts and in times of peace. (Taken from Amazon page)

Review

I was reading this to my daughters for supplemental reading for their Classical Conversations (Cycle 1). This whole series looks quite interesting. It provides a snapshot of life in the various places/times and has a POV aspect to the story. There isn’t a complete narrative as there are mostly facts listed but it helps to put those facts into a semi-story for the kids to grab onto more.

With this entry, the story starts out with the character before life in the military to contrast it with what life in the military looks like. From there, the discussion of military training, jobs within the military, weapons, and attack tactics are discussed. It’s nice to get into some of the details of military service other than just the standard infantry soldier, although that is also covered. The character moves up the ranks but again, there’s no real story of it happening just using the character as the foil for the information.

Plundering, looting, and warfare are discussed but there is not violence or bloodshed. On one hand, it’s not needed to discuss the amount of violence but the purpose of the book is why you wouldn’t want to be an Assyrian soldier and by the time of retirement it seems the only thing that makes it something you wouldn’t want to be is because of the hard work and tiring conditions. On the other hand, not discussing the lifespan of a trooper or what happens if you were wounded could have been discussed without depictions of graphic violence.

Overall, providing a snapshot of the military life and way of life during the Assyrian Empire was important for the girls to learn about and provided for further discussion on Assyrian paganism and the times during which they reigned.

Final Grade