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Civilization
- The West and the Rest
- Narrated by: Niall Ferguson
- Length: 13 hrs and 5 mins
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Publisher's summary
The rise to global predominance of Western civilization is the single most important historical phenomenon of the past five hundred years. All over the world, an astonishing proportion of people now work for Western-style companies, study at Western-style universities, vote for Western-style governments, take Western medicines, wear Western clothes, and even work Western hours. Yet six hundred years ago the petty kingdoms of Western Europe seemed unlikely to achieve much more than perpetual internecine warfare. It was Ming China or Ottoman Turkey that had the look of world civilizations. How did the West overtake its Eastern rivals? And has the zenith of Western power now passed?
In Civilization: The West and the Rest, bestselling author Niall Ferguson argues that, beginning in the fifteenth century, the West developed six powerful new concepts that the Rest lacked: competition, science, the rule of law, consumerism, modern medicine, and the work ethic.
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- Unabridged
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Penguin presents the audiobook edition of Kissinger: The Idealist by Niall Ferguson, read by Roy McMillan. No American statesman has been as revered and as reviled as Henry Kissinger. Hailed by some as the 'indispensable man' whose advice has been sought by every president from John F. Kennedy to George W. Bush, Kissinger has also attracted immense hostility from critics who have cast him as an amoral Machiavellian - the ultimate cold-blooded 'realist'.
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Excellent narrative & narrator
- By William Tutt on 10-10-17
By: Niall Ferguson
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The House of Rothschild, Volume 1
- Money's Prophets: 1798-1848
- By: Niall Ferguson
- Narrated by: Alexander Adams
- Length: 28 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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In his rich and nuanced portrait of the remarkable, elusive Rothschild family, Niall Ferguson uncovers the secrets behind the family's phenomenal economic success. He reveals for the first time the details of the family's vast political network, which gave it access to and influence over many of the greatest statesmen of the age. And he tells a family saga, tracing the importance of unity and the profound role of Judaism in the lives of a dynasty that rose from the confines of the Frankfurt ghetto and later used its influence to assist oppressed Jews throughout Europe.
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Great research, poor narrative
- By Amaze on 04-30-19
By: Niall Ferguson
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Colonialism
- A Moral Reckoning
- By: Nigel Biggar
- Narrated by: Matt Bates
- Length: 12 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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In the wake of the dissolution of the Soviet empire in 1989, many believed that we had arrived at the ‘End of History’—that the global dominance of liberal democracy had been secured forever. Now, however, with Russia rattling its sabre on the borders of Europe and China rising to challenge the post-1945 world order, the liberal West faces major threats. These threats are not only external. Especially in the Anglosphere, the ‘decolonisation’ movement corrodes the West’s self-confidence by retelling the history of European and American colonial dominance.
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Outstanding Report on one of the greatest empires ever.
- By mcasteli on 02-22-23
By: Nigel Biggar
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Kissinger: Volume I
- 1923-1968: The Idealist
- By: Niall Ferguson
- Narrated by: Malcolm Hillgartner
- Length: 34 hrs and 11 mins
- Unabridged
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No American statesman has been as revered and as reviled as Henry Kissinger. Once hailed as "Super-K" - the "indispensable man" whose advice has been sought by every president from Kennedy to Obama - he has also been hounded by conspiracy theorists, scouring his every "telcon" for evidence of Machiavellian malfeasance. Yet as Niall Ferguson shows in this magisterial biography, the idea of Kissinger as the ruthless arch-realist is based on a profound misunderstanding.
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Riveting
- By Jean on 11-10-15
By: Niall Ferguson
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Why the West Rules - for Now
- The Patterns of History, and What They Reveal About the Future
- By: Ian Morris
- Narrated by: Antony Ferguson
- Length: 24 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
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Sometime around 1750, English entrepreneurs unleashed the astounding energies of steam and coal, and the world was forever changed. The emergence of factories, railroads, and gunboats propelled the West’s rise to power in the nineteenth century, and the development of computers and nuclear weapons in the 20th century secured its global supremacy.
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Compelling and infuriating take at World History
- By Skeptical on 09-11-11
By: Ian Morris
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Hadrian and the Triumph of Rome
- By: Anthony Everitt
- Narrated by: John Curless
- Length: 14 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
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Acclaimed British historian Anthony Everitt delivers a compelling account of the former orphan who became Roman emperor in A.D. 117 after the death of his guardian Trajan. Hadrian strengthened Rome by ending territorial expansion and fortifying existing borders. And - except for the uprising he triggered in Judea - his strength-based diplomacy brought peace to the realm after a century of warfare.
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A Biography "too tall for the height of the cella"
- By Darwin8u on 08-23-12
By: Anthony Everitt
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A Splendid Exchange
- How Trade Shaped the World
- By: William J. Bernstein
- Narrated by: Mel Foster
- Length: 17 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
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In A Splendid Exchange, William J. Bernstein tells the extraordinary story of global commerce from its prehistoric origins to the myriad controversies surrounding it today. He transports listeners from ancient sailing ships that brought the silk trade from China to Rome in the second century to the rise and fall of the Portuguese monopoly in spices in the 16th.
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Very interesting and Germane to Today's World
- By Mark on 07-18-08
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Inside the House of Money, Revised and Updated
- Top Hedge Fund Traders on Profiting in the Global Markets
- By: Steven Drobny, Niall Ferguson
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 13 hrs and 44 mins
- Unabridged
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This revised and updated edition of Inside the House of Money lifts the veil on the typically opaque world of hedge funds, offering a rare glimpse at how today's highest-paid money managers approach their craft. Now with new commentary, author Steve Drobny takes you even further into the hedge fund industry. He demystifies how these star traders make billions for their well-heeled investors, revealing their theories, strategies, and approaches to markets.
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A must read.
- By Amazon Customer on 08-16-22
By: Steven Drobny, and others
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The End of Empire
- Attila the Hun & the Fall of Rome
- By: Christopher Kelly
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 9 hrs and 18 mins
- Unabridged
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History remembers Attila, the leader of the Huns, as the Romans perceived him: a savage barbarian brutally inflicting terror on whoever crossed his path. Following Attila and the Huns from the steppes of Kazakhstan to the court of Constantinople, Christopher Kelly portrays Attila in a compelling new light, uncovering an unlikely marriage proposal, a long-standing relationship with a treacherous Roman general, and a thwarted assassination plot.
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LISTEN TO THE SAMPLE
- By Chelsea on 03-23-21
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High-Speed Empire
- Chinese Expansion and the Future of Southeast Asia
- By: Will Doig
- Narrated by: Will Doig
- Length: 2 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Less than a decade ago, China did not have a single high-speed train in service. Today, it owns a network of 14,000 miles of high-speed rail, far more than the rest of the world combined. Now, China is pushing its tracks into Southeast Asia, reviving a century-old colonial fantasy of an imperial railroad stretching to Singapore, and kicking off a key piece of the One Belt One Road initiative, which has a price tag of $1 trillion, and reaches inside the borders of more than 60 countries.
By: Will Doig
What listeners say about Civilization
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- F. Ribeiro
- 01-08-12
Niall Ferguson's Most Enjoyable Book
If you could sum up Civilization in three words, what would they be?
Revised my thinking
What does Niall Ferguson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
Having heard him live, that same charisma he projects comes through the audio.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
Not necessarily. But I did listen to the book more than once.
Any additional comments?
I have always found Niall Ferguson, in his books and lectures, to be insightful and thought-provoking. 'Civilization' may be the best example of this to date. Here is one example of a perspective that I found very instructive, Ferguson includes in his list of explanatory variables for the acceleration of civilization in the West the role of Protestant churches. But he goes beyond the obvious, the Protestant work ethic, to explain how church communities and the mutual trustworthiness they engendered enabled smaller merchants early access to credit and so develop early forms of supply chains in the fledgling free-markets of the colonial US (and Northern Europe). He also differentiates between monopolistic and ‘free market’ religions. The former refers to the state religions common in Europe, the latter to the open market for religion in the US. And clearly, churches and church-going have flourished in the US where free-market competition compelled churches to adapt to the changing needs of their congregations. Without that competitive motive, churches in Europe have stagnated or declined.Agree with Ferguson or not, this is a highly informative and enjoyable listen. And I must add, the voices used for quotes that several reviewers complained about I found neither distracting nor offensive. Niall’s reading of the text was articulated very clearly and sufficiently animated, enhanced all the more by that Scottish accent that I have come to enjoy.
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57 people found this helpful
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- Paul
- 07-26-12
Fabulous explanation of why the West won
First, I must say that I love the way Niall Ferguson reads this book. On top of that, he makes an excellent argument for why the Western Civilization predominates. Just as scary is his contention that our "king of the hill" status is sliding away. I learned more about world history in the 11 hours than listening to almost any other book I heard. When he describes Western Europe in the 14th century, it is mind boggling that they took over the world. His contention that turning inward and restricting the rest of the world influence is the key to the fall of a great civilization. It is particularly relevant to our times in the US. Our xenophobia is literally setting us up for a fall. My suggestion for interested readers is to listening to the book, "Debt:a history". After these two books, any intelligent person will have a firm understanding of where we've come from and where we're heading as a people. It's hard to not buy into the belief that homo sapiens are essentially war mongers. When watching the movie, "Chronicles of Riddick," it is hard not to think the US is not turning into Necromongers.
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3 people found this helpful
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- Mr
- 08-22-12
Compelling - with obvious Bias
Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?
Yes. Good Material ... but don't take it too seriously. Ferguson ignores Indian civilization altogether and thus makes some obvious mistakes (e.g. Atheism is a western construct). There's also a bias here towards Christianity and the repreated "The West and the Rest" tagline can be offensive. And he really didn't need to try to appear 'tech-savvy' with terms like Killer Apps. That said, its a good book and I'd recommend it to all with the caveat that it shouldn't be taken as gospel.
Would you be willing to try another book from Niall Ferguson? Why or why not?
I already have! He is a good writer - some biases not withstanding.
Which character – as performed by Niall Ferguson – was your favorite?
NA
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3 people found this helpful
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- Angela
- 12-10-12
interesting if a bit disjointed
If you could sum up Civilization in three words, what would they be?
Overal interesting content, learned quite a bit, and good narration thought some of the accents Niall tries are pretty hilarious.
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- gc
- 02-08-14
Hail Britannia - If You're a Brit
This is my first read of a book by Niall. He certainty has a wide knowledge of history and other social sciences as evidenced by the countless anecdotes and references to historical events from all over the world. His research and analysis is truly insightful and most of it could be seen as supporting his thesis of why the West has dominated the world, although he strays quite a bit from his 6 principles of the west's success and flow of arguments could be better assembled.
I am far from knowledgeable on the history of the world, but find the subject fascinating. Hence my reservations about the thesis is the viewpoint from Niall's apparent British background. Niall portrays an overt dedication, infatuation and awe for the success of the British society (i.e civlization) and liberal criticism of others. He seems almost like a cheerleader for the Empire and raises my doubts on his objectiveness of his presentation (British slavery was bad but others did it too). It would interesting to read a counter point to his interpretation how the western world evolved to its predominance.
As noted by others, he erred in bringing in the annoying the 'other' voices who try to speak english with various accents. This occurs frequently and actually detracts from the narrative rather than helping it.
Being a native of a country with a British tradition, I find myself lucky to have benefited from the British influence of the country and I did enjoy reading Niall's arguments and trip through history. Despite my criticism, it is a well researched book.
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- Leo House
- 11-13-12
Wish they taught this in my Western Civ class...
Where does Civilization rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
One of the best !
What did you like best about this story?
A very entertaining and informative presentation on the evolution of Western Civilization, contrasted with what were the previous leading Asian (Chinese) and middle-eastern civilizations. A good compliment to "Guns, germs, and steel".
Which character – as performed by Niall Ferguson – was your favorite?
N/A
If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?
Not suitable for film...
Any additional comments?
Well worth listening to!
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- Luis A. gonzalez-colon
- 06-12-18
Insightful book
Very interesting to read the author’s appraisal of the “killer apps” that help the West be above the rest. For those who read “Guns, Germs, and Steel,” the author’s appraisal provides an informed counter argument of how the West became what is today. Strongly recommend.
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- Domnick Lofano
- 07-06-20
Incredible Read
Incredible book that provides and in depth analysis on the ascendancy of western civilization through the use of 6 "Killer Apps".
This book is more relevant today now more than ever, where traditional understanding and education of western civilization is at an all time low among the general public.
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- Donna Partow
- 06-25-23
Important Message
This audio delivers a powerful message. The portions narrated by the author were enjoyable
, although it would have been even better with a professional narration But It is greatly hindered by the frequent use of horrible narrators with preposterous accents. At points, it was quite literally unlistenable
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- Sox Fan
- 12-30-23
Grand sweep; strong themes
I found Ferguson‘s synoptic view of Western civilization in comparison with others to be powerful and bracing.  the addition of other weirdly accented voices to read quotes from people of different nationalities did not work at all for me, but the content was still excellent.
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