In Her Own Words: The Life and Poetry of Aelia Eudocia. By Brian P. Sowers. Cambridge, Mass.: Center for Hellenic Studies, 2020. vi + 224 pp. $24.95 paper

In Her Own Words is a book about the poetry and influence of Aelia Eudocia, the fifth-century Byzantine empress, wife of Theodosius II. [...]her death in 460, the empress was centrally important in Constantinople, the Greek East, and especially Jerusalem. [...]the poems also show her engagement in the ancient practice of using her money to contribute to civic projects from buildings to charity. [...]we see that Eudocia is rightly proud of these activities, as would be appropriate for a Theodosian empress.