The Golden Mean by Annabel Lyon (Atlantic, £7.99) (From York Press)

The Golden Mean by Annabel Lyon (Atlantic, £7.99)

8:40am Wednesday 2nd November 2011 in Books By Bill Spence

Aristotle is in Macedonia where King Philip is waging war on Persia and his son Alexander ready to go with him.

The young man is brilliant, arrogant and sadistic with traits of instability, a dangerous combination for a prince destined to become one of the greatest warriors that the world will ever see.

Aristotle must teach Alexander the balance between extremes, known as the golden mean, in order to keep his sense of reality and overcome the characteristics that threaten to horrify himself and others.

We are familiar with Alexander the Great and his achievements from the history we learnt at school. However, in this entertaining book the author makes the young warrior come alive. He is a precocious teenager that we do not warm to, yet we can sympathise and admire him.

Aristotle, however, is someone we like; an observant and learned man who is worried about his pupil and cares for the prince and his family. We see the philosopher teaching in the palace and in his own home with his wife, and we learn of his upbringing and education. He becomes a living being rather than someone we know from our history books.

It did take a chapter or two for me to become involved with the novel, but staying with it was well worth it and left me with a satisfying read.