I, Claudius

This is the story of an intelligent, quick-witted, resourceful man surviving in a brutal and capricious age. Regarded as an idiot by many on account of his stammer and his limp, he was despised by many and the butt of  cruel jokes. But partly because of this he survived to become ruler of the Roman world, at a time when many in his imperial family met untimely deaths, with foul play strongly suspected.
The action takes place during the reigns of Augustus, Tiberius and Caligula. Augustus ruled very ably, but as far Claudius was concerned his wife (and Claudius grandmother) was the evil power behind the throne. Tiberius ruled fairly ably, except in Rome, where he did not have the qualities to be an inspiring leader. Claudius' brother Germanicus would have made a better Emperor,  and Tiberius knew it, making him more insecure and malicious. Caligula was completely of the page.  As Claudius said, all the members of his family were either very good, or very bad. There are not many shades of gray.
It is written in the first person, as if Claudius' autobiography had been lost for 1,900 years and suddenly discovered in the 1930s. Most of the major events are a matter of public record, and if the gaps are filled in with speculation, Robert Graves was given a head start from all the speculation that was around in Roman times.  There is an amusing incident where the young Claudius engaged in a conversation in a library between two eminent historians, one writes attested truth, the other writes readable speculation.  We get all the speculation, with unlikely explanations of how Claudius got to know real truth.
It is an enjoyable read. There were several amusing incidents or well written paragraphs you want to share, but there was a problem. After a while I stopped being as offended by Caligula's outrages, and caught some of the black humour of it. It is fun to read in its context but difficult to share.
At the end of the day you forget the injustice and outrage, and remember the inspiring stories. Many people despised Claudius and treated him shamefully, but he had a few, very few, friends and family who appreciated him and were very loyal. An old professor, a soldier, the daughter of a prostitute, a servant, a cousin, a brother (and great general); these are the noble characters.
The final page opens a new chapter, with Claudius as Emperor. Whether Graves does as good a job of persuading us of Claudius' virtues in that book remains to be seen, but I Claudius was certainly a good read.