The story of Masada can be told in many voices. I’ve already reviewed a book which tells the tale in the words of the Roman captain, Silva. In Kossoff’s book, it is the voices of the five survivors that we hear, principally that of Ruth, whose fictional journal challenges the accepted record of Josephus. Whose version is correct, we can only guess. Those of us who stood on Masada’s vast plateau trying to envisage a battle that was lost before it was fought, might prefer Ruth’s words of grief and loss. The truth will probably never be known, at least until new evidence is found. With the pot still boiling in the Middle East, this is a timely read.
Reviewed by Joy Duncan
