Spartacus

About “Spartacus”

Spartacus is a fictionalized account of a slave revolt in ancient Rome in 71 B.C. It was originally published in 1951 by Howard Fast, who faced rejection from mainstream publishers due to his Communist Party sympathies. The novel tells the story of Spartacus, a slave who becomes a gladiator and leads a rebellion against Roman rule, which is ultimately crushed by Crassus. The book became highly popular, selling millions of copies and going through nearly a hundred editions. It was later republished as part of the North Castle series, with a new introduction by the author. The story remains widely recognized, partly due to the 1960 film adaptation starring Kirk Douglas and Laurence Olivier.