More about the book hunters of the Renaissance.

Hmm. Maybe.

I guess so.

Possibly as a documentary about Lucretius and the discovery of his poem. I'd avoid Greenblatt's over-wrought hypothesis that this one book changed the course of humanity, though.

I wouldn't buy this as an audiobook. Possibly it's better in hardcopy.

This book was very good, in parts excellent, but it wasn't as captivating as I had thought it would be based on the description. Somehow I was convinced it was going to be the greatest book ever! There were definitely sections that dragged and I wasn't always able to keep track of where we were in time. But the book did introduce me to Lucretius, which counts for a lot. I found the narrator's pace a bit slow at first, but I got used to it and he certainly has a beautiful voice.

One of my favorite non-fiction books.

Destiny Disrupted. Both presented historic facts like a dramatic story (in a good way).

Improve breathing, eliminate heavy breaths.

No.

The tale narrated by Edoardo Bellerini is based on the somewhat audacious premise that an ancient poem, "The Nature of Things", rediscovered in the fourteen hundreds, tipped the waiting world into the Renaissance, ending the so-called Dark Ages. That hypothesis is, at the very least, a bit overblown. However, the author's account of the search for lost literary works of ancient Greece and Rome gives us a fascinating look into the flower - and ultimate downfall - of these great civilizations. I marveled at the perseverance of the Medieval scholar, Poggio Bracciolini, who found himself out of work after the dethroning and eventual execution of his employer, Pope John the 23rd. (No relation to the modern Pope of the same name...) Bracciolini set out on a journey that took him to England and across much of Europe, lead by tantalizing hints of the Great Poem's existence somewhere in an unknown archive - perhaps a monastery...

Edoardo Bellerini reads "The Swerve" with passion and style - perfect for this work. I'm already looking for another read by him.

I highly recommend, "The Swerve". Maybe "The Nature of Things" didn't actually bring us into the Modern Era. On the other hand, the great scholars who were motivated to retrieve it certainly kept the spirit of inquiry and the love of reading alive during an aptly described time of great cultural and societal darkness.

Okay - I'm a little biased. I dance to an Epicurean drum. But this story has it all. If you've in the slightest bit interested in how a Roman poem, referencing Epicurus, written 100 years before Christ can sum up our 'modern scientific' view of life, the universe and everything, then this is your book.

I'm still buzzing about the wealth of ideas in this book. I'm getting "On The Nature Of Things' straight away.

Simply put this book is a gem. Plant a shovel and dig up the precious stuff inside.

I'm a huge fan of Greenblatt's "Will in the World," so I was happy to try this one. I was not disappointed. This is a absorbing account of the re-discovery of Lucretius' De Rerum Natura in the Middle Ages and how it affected thinking in the Renaissance and beyond. The story is fascinating, the reader excellent, and listeners will not be disappointed. I'm now reading Lucretius' poem itself, and only wish that I could read it in the original Latin, though A.E. Stallings has a good recent (2007) translation.

I wanted to like this book. I really, really wanted to like it. It came highly recommended from a very respected person, so I began it with great excitement.

And then it just didn't measure up.

I found the story hard to follow. When were things just "a person" and when were they someone with a name, and what was that name? How did we go from one place and suddenly be in another place?

There were some interesting points that I drew out of the book, but in general, it just fell short for me. Off to something I'll enjoy better...

Despite reading this in spurts over a long period of time, I enjoyed it immensely. For me it was a wonderful great multifaceted intellectual adventure. I not only enjoyed a great story, I learned a great deal about books, facets of history and how art and knowledge have been lost and found over the ages- resulting in major impacts on thought, politics etc. I found the whole thing utterly fascinating and surely deserving of a very attentive second read. There is so much to love and go on and on about in this rare gem. On reflection I think that this may be one of the most profound books Ive ever read- but strangely it actualy manages to be profound in so many differing areas and that is rare indeed!!

it was well spent in light of the content & history that i learned. unfortunately it was also very painful due to the overly dramatic and affected narration.

my high school classmate who was dyslexic and a terrible stutterer.

I would buy a book (by Greenblatt) where the tasty quotes from Lucretius were pulled out and given more explanation/examination.

There are two stories here. The first is an interesting story about a book hunter tracking down a lost tome. The other is an anti-religious diatribe. The former is compelling, the latter is heavy handed and inaccurate. The way the author frames Christianity in the first 1500 years would lead a read to believe they were all pleasure hating masochists. It is in this obvious disdain for religion that his credibility as intellectual guide through the ages is compromised.

What could have make The Swerve better? Focus on the first story.