1177 B.C.

The Year Civilization Collapsed

By: Eric H. Cline

Narrated by: Andy Caploe

Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins

Publisher's summary

In 1177 B.C., marauding groups known only as the "Sea Peoples" invaded Egypt. The pharaoh’s army and navy managed to defeat them, but the victory so weakened Egypt that it soon slid into decline, as did most of the surrounding civilizations. After centuries of brilliance, the civilized world of the Bronze Age came to an abrupt and cataclysmic end. Kingdoms fell like dominoes over the course of just a few decades. No more Minoans or Mycenaeans. No more Trojans, Hittites, or Babylonians. The thriving economy and cultures of the late second millennium B.C., which had stretched from Greece to Egypt and Mesopotamia, suddenly ceased to exist, along with writing systems, technology, and monumental architecture. But the Sea Peoples alone could not have caused such widespread breakdown. How did it happen?

In this major new account of the causes of this "First Dark Ages", Eric Cline tells the gripping story of how the end was brought about by multiple interconnected failures, ranging from invasion and revolt to earthquakes, drought, and the cutting of international trade routes. Bringing to life the vibrant multicultural world of these great civilizations, he draws a sweeping panorama of the empires and globalized peoples of the Late Bronze Age and shows that it was their very interdependence that hastened their dramatic collapse and ushered in a dark age that lasted centuries.

A compelling combination of narrative and the latest scholarship, 1177 B.C. sheds new light on the complex ties that gave rise to, and ultimately destroyed, the flourishing civilizations of the Late Bronze Age - and that set the stage for the emergence of classical Greece.

©2014 Eric H. Cline. Published by Princeton University Press. (P)2014 Audible, Inc.

reads like a paper published in a journal

reads more like a journal article meant for grad students to cite than a book. audio is definitely not where it shines either.

Makes me want to major in history

Some say wonderful teachers can inspire a student by making the subject matter some how fascinating. Well, Dr. Clines students must be the luckiest students in the world. Dr. Cline writes about what could have been a dry topic, the late Bronze Age, and makes it sing. I was so interested I almost wanted to return to college so that I could major in ancient near east studies.

And the narrator was amazing. Again, we're talking about ancient near east studies; textbook information about long dead cultures. The narrator makes the subject matter live.

Step into a time machine and relive the past with this audiobook! 1177BC is A great book and more than worth a credit.

Great for lovers of history

This book is far better on the end of the bronze age than any ancient history class I've taken. I recommend it to any history lover.

Moderately interesting; terrible narrator

Is there anything you would change about this book?

The material is quite interesting. Although it's admirable that Cline doesn't jump to a lot of unsupported conclusions, his final chapter is completely tied up in wishy-washy caveats ("it might be possible to conclude... on the other hand... nonetheless..."); ultimately it feels like an unsatisfying anticlimax.

How did the narrator detract from the book?

As others have noted, his ridiculous sing-song inflections sound like the forced enthusiasm of a kindergarten teacher. A number of oddball pronunciations are also distracting and grating (megeee...ddo for Megiddo, AY-leet for elite)...

Interesting general history of the LBA

I expected more through a lot of the book, very informative in some ways, but also quite speculative, though I guess when dealing with history from over 3000 years ago there aren't of a lot of certainties. Long story short, I did not take away as much as I had hoped from this book, though it was still very interesting.

Parallels the current collapse of civilizations

This is a deftly written and performed, expertly researched and presented, historical account that goes a long way in explaining the multi-faceted causes of the current collapse of the Syrian, Libyan, Iraqi populations in the current near east.

Una mirada a la edad de bronce

El libro permite visualizar la edad de bronce en el Mediterráneo, a través de las interrelaciones entre los diferentes pueblos y sus entornos. y a partir de ahí explorar las causas de su rápida desaparición. Interesante, ilustrativo

Too Much Detail for an Audiobook

When I first saw the printed volume, I was happy to see that it was also available as an audiobook. The historical subject is one I have not heard of before and so I quickly downloaded it and started listening. I was disappointed fairly quickly.

If you are not intimately familar with the subject, the names for the ancient kingdoms and entities are completely new to you. The author does go to some troubles to help you over this hurdle. However, without a scorecard immediately at hand, it is hard to remember the names of the players.

The narrator is fairly good but sometimes I felt it was a lecture for high school students.

I will not download any of the follow on books in the series - this one was a bit too painful

Excellent history, cringeworthy performance

What did you like best about 1177 B.C.? What did you like least?

I'll have to purchase the text to finish. The performance is overemphasized and over-acted in the manner one reads to a small child.

The Good Old Days

Would you consider the audio edition of 1177 B.C. to be better than the print version?

Didn't read the print version.

Would you recommend 1177 B.C. to your friends? Why or why not?

Yes.The subject is outside the general realm of even some who are fairly well educated in history. These are the stories that lead up to the beginning the direction modern civilization has taken. As such, they enhance our understanding of people and events before the time frame when most of us are in at least somewhat familiar territory.

What does Andy Caploe bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?

A good reader -- and Caploe is a very good one -- is able to be make the words on the page his own and to tell the story rather than reading the script. That's what happens here. Good writing is meant to be heard. One thing we do when we read is to translate vision into "hearing." A good reader can help us skip the intermediate step.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No, Too complex. As a matter of fact, I kind of wished I had some charts, timelines, etc. to look back at.