The Swerve

How the World Became Modern

By: Stephen Greenblatt

Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini

Length: 9 hrs and 41 mins

Publisher's summary

Pulitzer Prize, General Nonfiction, 2012

National Book Award, Nonfiction, 2012

Renowned historian Stephen Greenblatt’s works shoot to the top of the New York Times best-seller list. With The Swerve, Greenblatt transports listeners to the dawn of the Renaissance and chronicles the life of an intrepid book lover who rescued the Roman philosophical text On the Nature of Things from certain oblivion.

Nearly six hundred years ago, a short, genial, cannily alert man in his late 30s took a very old manuscript off a library shelf, saw with excitement what he had discovered, and ordered that it be copied. That book was the last surviving manuscript of an ancient Roman philosophical epic by Lucretius—a beautiful poem containing the most dangerous ideas: that the universe functioned without the aid of gods, that religious fear was damaging to human life, and that matter was made up of very small particles in eternal motion, colliding and swerving in new directions.

The copying and translation of this ancient book—the greatest discovery of the greatest book-hunter of his age—fueled the Renaissance, inspiring artists such as Botticelli and thinkers such as Giordano Bruno; shaped the thought of Galileo and Freud, Darwin and Einstein; and had a revolutionary influence on writers such as Montaigne and Shakespeare, and even Thomas Jefferson.

©2011 Stephen Greenblatt (P)2011 Recorded Books, LLC

Critic reviews

"More wonderfully illuminating Renaissance history from a master scholar and historian." ( Kirkus Reviews)

"In this gloriously learned page-turner, both biography and intellectual history, Harvard Shakespearean scholar Greenblatt turns his attention to the front end of the Renaissance as the origin of Western culture's foundation: the free questioning of truth." ( Publishers Weekly)

“Pleasure may or may not be the true end of life, but for book lovers, few experiences can match the intellectual-aesthetic enjoyment delivered by a well-wrought book. In the world of serious nonfiction, Stephen Greenblatt is a pleasure maker without peer.” ( Newsday)

compulsively "readable"

What made the experience of listening to The Swerve the most enjoyable?

hard to stop listening to this one.

What other book might you compare The Swerve to and why?

actually, faintly reminiscent of "The Hare with the Amber Eyes" as it was a wonderful narration by same talented individual and a story of broad implications made personal by telling an individual's story.

I was happy to have it on Audible as I might have been frozen in time reading a book I found hard to "put down".

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

This narrator is magically adept at bringing the author's personal touches to life in this book as well as in "The Hare with the Amber Eyes" . Both of these books as well as Hillary Mantel's transcendental novels literally left a void in my life at the end of each book.

Brilliant, talented writers and narrators bringing these works of art to life.

If you were to make a film of this book, what would be the tag line be?

The road to modernity

Remarkable book

Far exceeded my expectations. The author takes a now obscure event and weaves a tale which brings together 2,000 years of history and philosophical thought.
Bravo!

good book to hear

If you could sum up The Swerve in three words, what would they be?

somewhat disconnected in spots, but overall an excellent book

Who was your favorite character and why?

there's only one character in the book

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

his voice carries a good sense of suspense where this is useful

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

no, I found it to be easy to read in small bits.

Any additional comments?

one of my friends , raised a catholic and Jesuit educated, found it compelling but depressing by making him seriously question his previously strong faith in a life after death.

Fascinating History of Manuscripts and Thought

I'm not sure what I enjoyed more about this book, the history of manuscripts and the lengths of adventure one had to go through in order to discover them in the middle ages, the insights into the philosophy and worldview of a certain class in Roman society, or the fresh view on the birth of the Renaissance. But one thing that is certain is that I enjoyed all these aspects in this performance. In some ways this book is a hodgepodge of diverse subjects from the history of free thinking to the history of ancient manuscripts, but it never feels disjointed. It was one of those works that, when it ended after nearly 10 yours, left you yearning for more. After finishing this audio book, I went on to read Lucretius' 'On the Nature of Things', the rediscovery of which was the topic of this work, which was also a fascinating work in its own right, but not nearly as fun or as riveting of this superb performance.

erudite and captivating

Would you recommend this audiobook to a friend? If so, why?

It reveals the life of ancient books and the people that keep them alive through eons and avatars.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The main character of the book is Lucretius' manuscript itself. Though much guessed and revealed indirectly through the lives and actions of people that came in contact with it, The Nature of Things has a colossal spiritual force that changed the world once, then survived centuries of systematic attempts to eliminate it completely from history and from the world, then came to life again and changed the history of humankind forever.

What about Edoardo Ballerini’s performance did you like?

It's very clear, well paced, and only rarely lets transpire the limited understanding of what he is reading.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The part about the villa in Herculaneum.

A great complement to my 50s/60s Catholic education.

The author presents many missing links in my own personal narrative of the history of everything. Wouldn’t my high school religion classes have been a rip with a few lines of Lucretius! It had me recall Zen and the Art of Motorcycle Maintenance, which I read in 1976.

Masterfully told

The story jumps, but pleasurably. We are in rome in ancient times, then in renaissance Italy - or with newton, and then gradually the picture becomes clear. This is not only a story about a missing poem, but also a tale of how knowledge triumphed over ignorance to bring about modernity.

Swerve is straight on

Not a dull moment
Should be audited more than once
A lot to absorb.even twice isnt enough

A wonderful book, except that...

Honestly, I wanted to give this book 5 stars, but the author made one fatal mistake: he forgot the point of his book.

It's true as some reviewers have said that the author spends too much time explaining too many things that aren't related to On Nature of Things, but that's what makes it such a wonderful book. If you're a history buff like me, you will love this book. You will learn about the history of books, papirus and paper, Epicurus, Lucretius, and the Western Schism.

But the last two chapters, the one where the author talks about what was inside On Nature of Things and how it impacted on later humanists and scientists, it lacks the impact you'd have thought. I don't mind learning so many things from the context of the poem, but if you can't explain specifically how it changed the world and how, as the name says, "the world became modern," then you missed the point of the book.

A shame because the first two/thirds were amazing and highly enjoyable as an audiobook.

Nobody writes likes Greenblatt!

Would you listen to The Swerve again? Why?

Yes, and I will. His thoughts are complex but one can follow.

What other book might you compare The Swerve to and why?

I really don't think there is a comparable book....perhaps Haidt.

Which scene was your favorite?

There are not scenes in this book, really.

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

No. It's a little dense for one sitting, but I would gladly listen to it repeatedly.

Any additional comments?

More from Greenblatt. Students and scholars benefit greatly from his writings!