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Referenced multiple times as a primary source for the Persian Wars narrative. Tom mentions 'we have Herodotus's account' and later discusses Herodotus as 'the classic that's accompanied me through my life most of all.'

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Referenced as a source for the Battle of Salamis: 'we have a play by the tragedian Aeschylus' when discussing the confused sources about what happened at Salamis.

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Referenced as a biographical source: 'we have a biography of him by Plutarch, which is the most detailed account of his life' when discussing Themistocles.

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Tom compares the excitement of the Persian Wars story to reading Tolkien: 'I found it thrilling in the way that I found Lord of the Rings thrilling.'

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Referenced when discussing the Greek ideal of a noble death and Achilles' choice between glory and long life: 'the desire of Achilles, the great hero of the Iliad' and comparison of fighting over Leonidas's body to the fight over Patroclus's body.

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Referenced when discussing how the Persian Wars story is told as goodies vs baddies: 'The 300 Frank Miller comic book and film... I think they do it as goodies and baddies.'