Shadow of the Silk Road

By: Colin Thubron

Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble

Out of the heart of China into the mountains of Central Asia, across Northern Afghanistan and the plains of Iran into Kurdish Turkey, Colin Thubron undertakes a journey along the greatest land route on earth: the Silk Road. Travelling 7,000 miles in eight months, he traces the passage not only of trade and armies, but of ideas, religions and inventions. With a gift for talking to others, and of getting them to talk to him, Thubron meets some fascinating people and encounters some of the world's discontented margins, where the true boundaries are not political borders but the frontiers of tribe, ethnicity, language and religion.©2006 Colin Thubron (P)2007 Isis Publishing Ltd.

Critic reviews

"He stands awestruck before the oldest piece of paper in the world in a Chinese museum and is quarantined for Sars in the Taklamakan desert as he bears witness to a world that is remote from our own yet unbreakably connected to it."( The Times)
"Thubron doesn't cut corners, he talks to people, he takes risks, he's honest-and so is Jonathan Keeble's reading. He's got a great on-the-road voice."( The Guardian)

Incredible book

Both poetic and informative this book takes you on a journey you will never forget. Both an ancient and modern history . and gives you an understanding of central Asia like no one has before. I did not want this book to end

Travels through past and present

I found this book to be deep in the history of the regions as well as informative of currents of thinking of now. Highly engaging.

A lyrical trip through Central Asia

Beautifully written and narrated, this description of one man's journey in the footsteps of the ancient traders along the Silk Road is full of unforgettable sights, experiences, and characters. I listen to it whenever I want to be transported to another world where familiar human dramas are played against the backdrop of very unfamiliar times and places. It is one of the best expressions of I have found of the meaning that travel can have in the human experience. I wish the author would write another hundred or so books like it.

Want a travelog from a post 9/11 Central Asia?

Then this is the book for you. Thubron tries his best to drown his inner British Imperialist and successfully does so despite dimly heard sputterings from the postcolonial well of thought. He is still an old white man, and sometimes focuses too much on the varieties of pretty girls at least forty years his junior a bit much for even my tastes. Once you get used to that, though, it's like a fascinating narrative told by your favorite, slightly ribald but really rather tame uncle. I recommend this highly to all interested in travel writing, though the parts on Afghanistan (and the Uyghurs) are painful in light of the intervening years of bloodshed and horror.

prose meets poetry

I never listen to a book twice. As soon as I finished this book, I listened again and enjoyed it as much the second time. His words are like poetry and his descriptions of the places he visits and people he meets are unbelievably beautiful. I wish Audible would have more of his books.

Central Asia travelogue

This travel journal is an amazing trip in an amazing part of the world. You get a real flavor of the many regions and their inhabitants but the style is somewhat dry. The author makes a point of contrasting what the histories say of various locations and what the reality is now. It can be a bit discouraging and easy to walk away with a hopeless feeling. I read his other book "heart of central asia" and enjoyed it as well. A good book if you are planning to visit the area or just want a better understanding of what we are up against in that region.

Spectacular and delicious prose

Colin Thubron is a magnificent writer and historian. His prose is lyrical, his perceptions astute. I have recommended this book to several people, some of whom are writers themselves, and they have all loved it. It is a fascinating journey through history told with a deep understanding of the cultures and their history. I wish that Audible would record his other works, particularly "Behind the Wall" specifically about China.

Great Book, Great Narrator

According to Colin Thubron, ancient Romans, even while wearing silk garments from the East, imagined silk was harvested from a plant, and Easterners lived in an unreachable paradise. Meanwhile, the Chinese suspected Rome was a land without wars. Trade along the Silk Road had the aspect of a relay race. No one merchant traveled from one end to the other. Author Thubron decides to make the entire journey (east to west) and take us along for the ride. The Silk Road, we discover, wasn't just an extensive trade route but an elaborate conduit allowing for an interchange of cultures and religions along with material goods. I intend to read this a second time. Magnificent book!

bought it by mistake, but liked it anyway

What made the experience of listening to Shadow of the Silk Road the most enjoyable?

The author wrote very well, using many adjectives and describing sceneries as meticulously and as faithfully as possible. The narrator is excellent too. I was expecting a book about Silk Road history, but instead I got a travel book elaborating on the author's trip along the Silk Road. However I like it anyway. It is well written.

What other book might you compare Shadow of the Silk Road to and why?

I usually don't read travel books and I have no idea which book this can be compared to. I read Edith Wharton's travel short stories and don't like them as much as I enjoy reading her novels. So probably this is the source of my general dislike of this genre.

What about Jonathan Keeble’s performance did you like?

Yes. I like his voice.

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

I only listen to audiobooks when driving to work or when doing home exercise, each half an hour. So I don't have big chunk of time to do it. Although I think it may be enjoyable to do it in one sitting.

Any additional comments?

I was really laughing loud when the book dwelled on poor peasants on the steppe who have blue eyes, a possible indication of Roman soldier ancestry. I think the author felt a little too sorry for them, probably because he is blue eyed himself. How about those black and brown eyed peasants? Don't you think the black and brown eyed peasants also deserve a chance to be transported in a limousine to somewhere grand to enjoy what their Roman ancestors have enjoyed, for example, binge eating and endless drinking? Probably it is uncharitable to say this. We all put too much emphasis on looks. It's an inalienable human weakness. I am not trying to pick on this author and especially I wish people will not pick on me when my book is published.

Qualified endorsement

Solid writing, but Thubron doesn't seem to have much of a sense of humor (I wasn't expecting Bill Bryson) - that, along with lots of historical background information, made the story a bit dense for me. Definitely glad I paused halfway (he exits China at the end of the first part) to listen to something different.
I'm torn about the narration: Keeble did what he could with inflection to keep the story interesting, but his pronunciation was a bit ... odd.