Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae (1998) by Steven Pressfield

Read and listen to "Gates of Fire" on Amazon!

We’re very excited to announce our books “Sexual Magnetism,” “The WASM Dating Handbook” and “Secrets of Sensual Massage” are now available!

Follow these links to get your copies of "Sexual Magnetism," "The WASM Dating Handbook" and "Secrets of Sensual Massage" on Amazon.com.

Want more great books? Check out our MUST READ LIST!

Overview of “Gates of Fire: An Epic Novel of the Battle of Thermopylae”

A very brief description of “Gates of Fire” At Thermopylae, a rocky mountain pass in northern Greece, 300 Spartan soldiers engaged in a suicide mission - to save their country they must hold the pass against the invading millions of the mighty Persian army. Day after bloody day they withstood the terrible onslaught, buying time for the Greeks to rally their forces and eventually overcome the world’s most powerful empire. This is the story of the Spartan’s legendary feat - the greatest military stand in history.What Pressfield sets out to do / Purpose of the bookPressfield’s goal in the book isn’t just to tell the spectacular legend of the 300 Spartan warriors, but to to explain how their children - born into a cult of spiritual courage, physical endurance, and unmatched battle skill - were raised to become men and women capable of accomplishing the impossible.The intended audience of the book / Who will benefit mostPeople who love action and adventure storiesPeople who historical novelsPeople who love philosophy - and especially philosophy in actionPeople who want to learn how to die wellPeople who want to understand war - in all its glory and horrorPeople who are obsessed with super buff men in tiny outfits beating each other to a bloody pulpWho probably WON’T like this book?People who can’t handle extreme, graphic violencePeople who think war is always stupid and unnecessaryPeople who like easy-reading books (and don’t want to look up words - especially in other languages)People who hated reading The Iliad or The Odyssey in High SchoolHow does Gates of Fire specifically benefit Men? This book has MANY things to teach men. It’s required reading at West Point, the United States Naval Academy, and at the Marine Corps Basic School. It’s about honor, skill, courage in the face of insurmountable odds, sacrifice, brotherhood, death, romance, love and so much more.Is this book Easy, Average or Difficult to read? / How long is it? The book is brilliant and very enjoyable but is also very dense with warfare terminology and historical and archaic terminology (plus dozens of Greek words). It’s not easy reading but it’s worth the work.531 pages, (Audiobook is 14 hours and 55 minutes)What are the overall book reviews? Is the book well-known? Popular? Significant?Kindle: 5,070 ratings, 4.7 stars#130 in Education & Reference #135 in Military Historical Fiction#248 in U.S. Historical FictionAudible: 5,764 ratings, 4.8 stars#17 in Military Thrillers#42 in Military Historical Fiction#63 in War & Military FictionBook-To-Movie Translation No movie has been made based directly on this book (although George Clooney does own the movie rights) but it could easily be argued that the movie ‘300’ starring Gerard Butler is exactly that. Gates of Fire was published in 1998 and Frank Miller’s graphic novel ‘300’ (which is for all intents and purposes identical to the movie) came out in 1999. Coincidence? Not likely.

Bio of Steven Pressfield

Steven Pressfield (born September 1, 1943 - he’s 79) is an American author of historical fiction, non-fiction, and screenplays.Pressfield was born in Port of Spain, Trinidad, in 1943, while his father was stationed there, in the Navy.Pressfield graduated from Duke University in 1965. In 1966, he joined the Marine Corps.Pressfield was an advertising copywriter, schoolteacher, tractor-trailer driver, bartender, oilfield roustabout, attendan