ALEXANDER THE GREAT, KILLER OF MEN: History's Greatest Conqueror and the Macedonian Way of War

This pedantic and repetitious study of one of history's greatest military leaders by British military historian Lonsdale adds little to our understanding of his success. Examining Alexander the Great's major military campaigns in order to illustrate his strengths as a commander, Lonsdale points out that Alexander inherited a well-disciplined and powerful army from his father, Philip II, which brought out the best in Alexander's command. Alexander's phalanx, or foot soldiers, for example, were so fierce and well trained that their mere presence caused the enemy to flee at the battle of Pelium, securing victory without a fight, says Lonsdale. From his survey of Alexander's tactics and military strategies, Lonsdale concludes that the Greek leader's genius can be attributed to his intellectual ability, moral courage, determination, balanced temperament and understanding of humanity. But Lonsdale's tedious, academic prose ("This study has analyzed") and focus on strategy over narrative make this tough slogging even for the military history enthusiast. Map. (Dec.)

Forecast: Alexander the Great is a popular subject this season (see Paul Cartledge's Alexander the Great, Forecasts, Aug. 16, while John Prevas's Envy of the Gods is forthcoming in January), related to the release of the movie featuring Val Kilmer and Angelina Jolie, among others.