The Etruscans is a very nice short history of the Etruscan people and their culture—at least of the bits and pieces we've managed to figure out. Flourishing in what is now Tuscany from the 900s to the 600s BC and lingering on until the beginning of the 1st century AD, they were in many ways a people unto themselves, strange and mysterious and speaking a language unlike any of their neighbors—or were they? Smith goes on to show that rather than being aloof, they were major traders with connections across the the Mediterranean. He covers their language, their religion, and their history, as well as a brief history of Etruscology. If you've ever wondered at their ceramics or just have an interest in Ancient Italy or Tarquin the Proud (who was of Etruscan descent), this book is for you. Highly recommended. ( )

I found this one pretty unreadable. Lots of vagueness and speculation...which would be all right, one sometimes has to do some speculating when dealing with ancient history, but the speculations come off more as the author's wishful thinking than anything else. Basically "we don't know anything about the Etruscans, but here's what I like to think about them." Not up to the usual standards of this series. ( )