Start gifting
Libro.fm for Business
Start a membership, get two free audiobooks
Almost ready!
In order to save audiobooks to your Wish List you must be signed in to your account.
Log in Create account
Limited-time offer
Get two free audiobooks when you make the switch!
Now’s a great time to shop indie. When you start a new membership supporting local bookstores with promo code SWITCH, we’ll give you two bonus audiobook credits at sign-up.
Make the switch
Gift audiobook credit bundles
You pick the number of credits, your recipient picks the audiobooks, and your local bookstore is supported by your purchase.
Start giftingNaked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants
This audiobook uses AI narration.
We’re taking steps to make sure AI narration is transparent.
Learn moreWhy didn't the ancient Greeks or Romans wear pants? How did they shave? How likely were they to drink fine wine, use birth control, or survive surgery?
In a series of short and humorous essays, Naked Statues, Fat Gladiators, and War Elephants explores some of the questions about the Greeks and Romans that ancient historian Garrett Ryan has answered in the classroom and online. Unlike most books on the classical world, the focus is not on famous figures or events, but on the fascinating details of daily life.
Learn the answers to questions such as: how tall were the ancient Greeks and Romans?; how long did they live?; what kind of pets did they have?; how dangerous were their cities?; did they believe their myths?; did they believe in ghosts, monsters, and/or aliens?; did they jog or lift weights?; how did they capture animals for the Colosseum?; were there secret police, spies, or assassins?; what happened to the city of Rome after the Empire collapsed?; and can any families trace their ancestry back to the Greeks or Romans?
Garrett Ryan earned his PhD in Greek and Roman history from the University of Michigan. Besides teaching at several universities and authoring a series of academic works, he has brought ancient history to life for hundreds of thousands of readers through his contributions to online forums and his website, toldinstone.com. He lives in Chicago.
Stephen Graybill was recently in HBO's Big Little Lies, opposite Shailene Woodley, Reese Witherspoon, and Nicole Kidman; in Framed, opposite Jordi Vilasuso; in the second season of Game Shakers; and opposite Denise Richards in the feature film Altitude. He has been seen in HBO's The Wire, Law & Order: SVU, Law & Order, Six Degrees, All My Children, As The World Turns, and The Girl's Guide to Depravity. On stage he's appeared with Primary Stages, Drama Dept, NY Theater Workshop, F*It Club (world premieres by Kate Gersten, Mark Schultz, Lucy Boyle, and Nick Jones), Studio 42, Shakespeare Theatre DC, and Woodshed Collective in their acclaimed immersive theater production of The Tenant. He has worked on over fifty audiobooks, was awarded the Readers Choice Award of "Narrator of the Year," and his narrations have fans saying he's "even better than reading the story." He won a Gold Clio Award and a Silver Effie for his work in the award-winning commercial in Vaseline lotion's "Sea of Skin" Campaign (BBH), and his work in promos has included Brian Williams's NBC Nightly News with Edward Snowden. Stephen has produced and written a number of films independently: LA Awake directed by Spencer Grammer and starring Natalie Dreyfuss, On The Hook, Spring Training, and Easter Island. He's written a number of biopics, on topics ranging from Edgar Allan Poe to World War II. He has founded, developed, and financed the producer of a number of other projects as well.