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)

No money in atheism

Where does The Swerve rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?

I came away from this book with the same question I always ask. Why hasn't mankind cast off the belief in a creator "god"? The answer I am coming to is that there is no financial profit to be made in atheism. The jet setting popes, rabbis, mullahs, and evangelical preacher all attest to the financial success of any religion. Getting a group of atheists together is meaningless. What would we discuss? Talking about the absence of belief is a very short conversation.

Not Earth Shaking, but interesting

Before I read this book I read "On The Nature Of Things" first. I hate reading books about a book before reading the actual subject-book first. That way I can have better appreciation of what the subject the author is talking about. This book 'The Swerve" is more about the era of rediscovery in the early 15th century, than about Lucretius. If you are intent to know about Epicureanism or Lucretius this could be one book, but the study is a broad one and you will need to find other authors that specifically focus on that material. To be sure the rediscovery of books like the work of Lucretius, did not help the theocracy of that time. The author does a good job humanising the long dead book hunters of the late middle ages. That is the best aspect of this book. Its the story of book hunters and the beginning of the end of Christian theocracy in Europe, not the story of Lucretius.

A Poem that was a Touchstone to Modenity

This an interesting historical eye-opener for all those who thought the early Christians and especially the catholic church had an exclusive lease on the moral high ground. Using "The Nature of Things" a poem by Lucretius, an early century follower of the philosopher Epicurus as a historical touchstone, Stephen Greenblatt leads his reader/listener from the gods of early Rome, through the superstition of the dark ages and fanatical tyranny of the Roman Catholic church to age of enlightenment and even evolution. This is not a read/listen for those that hide among their sacred cows.

An excellent find

This was not at all what I expected from the subtitle but it was an intriguing story nonetheless. Mystery, history, philosophy, the Vatican, rare book hunters, colourful characters and much more. All of this revolving around the rather accidental rediscovery of a lost text. Who knew something so seemingly small would have such an incredible influence on western culture. Very interesting! really enjoyed it.

Vivid story, beautifully narrated

Would you consider the audio edition of The Swerve to be better than the print version?

Although I have only the audio version, the content is so compelling, I would recommend both.

The narration of the audio version is among the best I have ever heard.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The key figure is Poggio Bracciolini and his life, adventures, talents and passion for books are as compellingly depicted as a character in a novel.

Have you listened to any of Edoardo Ballerini’s other performances before? How does this one compare?

I had never come across Mr. Ballerini's work before, but his intelligent narration brought the words to life.

By chance, I had also just bought "Saving Italy" by Robert Edsel and was delighted to discover that it has the same narrator. In both cases, Mr.B's excellent Italian pronunciation enhances the listening pleasure. In "Saving Italy," he also pronounces the German names with reasonable accuracy. Bravo!

Did you have an extreme reaction to this book? Did it make you laugh or cry?

I was absorbed throughout.

Any additional comments?

Please see Ethan M's review. He expresses my views regarding this book just about perfectly.

Fantastic

An excellent book I'd eagerly recommend to anyone who loves history, science, art, the humanities, humanity, literature, or book hunting/bookbinding, as well as anyone who is interested in the principles of harm reduction, atheism, deism, agnosticism, skepticism, & love.

Story about great humanists

I learnt who Poggio Bracciolini whose love of books gave momentum to humanism and saved some of the most precious Latin works of thoughts. Recommended for those who do not have comprehensive knowledge on how the humanism got kickstarted and at what cost.

Amazing book masterful narration

This could have been deadly dull. Instead it’s a gorgeous tapestry of time and space.

Interesting, but...

There is some useful information and a couple of good stories in the work. The story becomes dull and monotonous at times and lacks the continuity to be a really good book. If I need to conduct research to figure it out then the story isn't being told well.

Thought provoking

Amazing, story. Interesting and intriguing. Made me wonder why us humans are so violently appalled by the idea of avoidance of pain and persuasion of happiness..