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Land
- How the Hunger for Ownership Shaped the Modern World
- Narrated by: Simon Winchester
- Length: 13 hrs and 46 mins
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Publisher's Summary
From the best-selling author Simon Winchester, a human history of land around the world: who mapped it, owned it, stole it, cared for it, fought for it and gave it back.
In 1889, thousands of hopeful people raced southward from the Kansas state line and westward from the Arkansas boundary to stake claims on the thousands of acres of unclaimed pastures and meadows. Across the 20th century, water was dammed and drained in Holland so that a new province, Flevoland, rose up, unchartered and requiring new thinking. In 1850, California legislated the theft of land from Native Americans. An apology came in 2019 from the governor, but what of the call for reparations or return? What of government confiscation of land in India, or questions of fairness when it comes to New Zealand’s Maori population and the legacy of settlers?
The ownership of land has always been complicated, opaque and more than a little anarchic when viewed from the outside. In this book, Simon Winchester explores the the stewardship of land, the ways it is delineated and changes hands, the great disputes and the questions of restoration—particularly in the light of climate change and colonialist reparation.
A global study, this is an exquisite exploration of what the ownership of land might really mean—not in dry-as-dust legal terms, but for the people who live on it.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying PDF will be available in your Audible Library along with the audio.
Critic Reviews
‘Winchester makes a convincing case.... Succeeds resoundingly in making us think more deeply about the everyday objects we take for granted. It challenges us to reflect on our progress as humans and what has made it possible. It is interesting, informative, exciting and emotional, and for anyone with even some curiosity about what makes the machines of our world work as well as they do, it’s a real treat." (New York Times)
"Simon Winchester’s new book is a tale of many triumphs.... His delight in words cannot be bridled, so that even 'Exactly,' which is, after all, a nonfiction treatment of technology, brims with amusing and rare nouns such as bagatelle, bijoux, cynosure, seraglio and susurrus. These whir smoothly alongside the argot of the machine shop. Mr. Winchester covers more than 200 years of fine-tuning in this work, and corrals a large cast of eccentric individuals." (Wall Street Journal)
"An ingenious argument that the dazzling advances that produced the scientific revolution, the industrial revolution, and the revolutions that followed owe their success to a single engineering element: precision. An enthusiastic popular-science tour of technological marvels...readers will love the ride." (Kirkus)
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What listeners say about Land
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Alistair Kelman
- 02-07-21
The two types of hunger
Sometimes, just to get by, all you want is a snack, a brief mouthful to quell the hunger before doing other things. Fast food, the grabbed sandwich, the toasted bun fills this need. But other times you want to enjoy conversation, company, breaking bread, sharing a time to enjoy living in a community. This is a time for slow food, lingering over a small plate, tasting every morsel and bite, reflecting on the joy of being alive.
This is an audiobook for the spring. Relax in the warm sunlight and listen to “Land” which is “slow food for the mind” - a long and loving and thought provoking experience which, in its audible format as read by its author, is balm for the soul. Instead of a sixty or ninety minute drama, all too present in Netflix and its ilk, this is thirteen hours and forty six minutes of a reflection on the past and future of our world, crystallized in lyrical prose. It is the perfect antidote to lockdown blues, a way of transporting yourself away from just existing to seeing a bigger picture, a world that changes, a society that evolves, a threat that looms and a hope that that threat can be overcome.
3 people found this helpful
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- Tomas
- 08-27-21
Very nice way to look at things
I think he seems like a lovely man and I agree with most of his points. But I don’t remember the book being free wink
1 person found this helpful
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- Seayeaitch
- 02-07-21
Superb.....
Beautifully written and narrated by Simon Winchester,Land , important to us all but misunderstood by the majority. Winchester weaves an interesting plethora of facts based upon his and a wide variety of others opinions resulting in an excellent read or listen, excellent.
1 person found this helpful
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- John dEsperville
- 11-21-22
A riveting and penetrating analysis
a clear, articulate and sobering account of man's lust and greed for land at the expense of his fellow creature
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- Aucher
- 02-27-22
Simon Winchester never fails to deliver
Another wonderful narrative from Mr Winchester, enhanced because he reads his books himself, so no reflection, nuance or key point is missed. As really the next in the series of Atlantic and Pacific, his almost unique combination geologist, geographer, anthropologist, historian and journalist bring to the reader and informed and thought provoking argument that in these times of seas rising and populist leaders and dictators looking for ‘buffers’ and historical grounds of origin resonates loudly. I’m fortunate to have a Masters in Defence studies, this and his previous books should be on the mandatory reading list. Brilliant as ever.
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- Anonymous User
- 06-07-21
One for the insomniacs out there!
This is literally the worst book I have ever read, the narration by the author is dreadful, clearly too tight to pay for someone with a tolerable voice.
The content is what can be expected from a baby boomer liberal journalist, full of middle class white guilt and and tedious virtue signalling from start to finish. I nearly laughed out loud when he began with a quote from Rousseau. Avoid.
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- Monica
- 07-06-21
Beyond disappointing
I’m a big Simon Winchester fan so when this came along I couldn’t wait to listen . This is basically just one long obnoxious monologue about how white people ( and only white people) are bumbling fools who are nothing but parasites . Indigenous people on the other hand are perfect , and even when Native Americans enslave people they are simply “mimicking” white people ( as if melanin levels absolve someone from personal responsibility) .
There was some gross oversimplification of natural weather events in Australia in the area which I live that make me wonder if the information in his previous books ( which I love ) is as poorly sourced .
I couldn’t even finish this . I should never have listened for as long as I did .
22 people found this helpful
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- Jennifer H Lindsay
- 08-12-21
One sided view
i got very tired of having a lecture about the evil ways of the modern world. More people than ever before are able to feed themselves in no part due to modern farming. We absolutely need to learn from past mistakes and change but there has to be a balance . Didn't make it to the end.
2 people found this helpful
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- Jon
- 07-29-21
If you believe it
This book is beautifully narrated but I tired of the “billions of years” and “millions of years” etc etc of the earth’s age and evolution. Boring.
1 person found this helpful
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- Paul Hellard
- 01-05-23
How much do we need!
Loved the fact Mr Winchester narrated this incredible stream of work. He carries you along with so many encyclopedic insights. I have the paperback as well.
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- Sandra Stone
- 12-19-22
Never disappoints
Regardless of the subject, Simon spins history into storytelling so that the mind never wanders. Highly recommended.
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- Anonymous User
- 08-22-22
Not what I was hoping for
I didn't find that this book taught me how the hunger for land shaped the modern world. I found it to be a string of anecdotes intended to support the authors opinion that land should be communally owned.
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- Anonymous User
- 01-27-22
Wonderfully thought provoking
Exceptionally well written and read with the kind of grand fatherly tone that just makes one feel like they are learning and by gosh will you learn alot. So worth the time!
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- Ian
- 11-13-21
Enthralling
A fascinating story of intrigue, greed, despair and hope across history. I have enjoyed all of Simon Winchester’s books immensely and this one just as much. Highly recommended.
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- Anonymous User
- 08-28-21
Gem
I struggled listening through the first hour or so where he goes on and on about his land but once I was past that, I was hooked. The content was so enlightening on the politics of land. I cannot recommend this book highly enough.
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- Tanveer
- 08-28-21
I found it very informative.
I learned a lot of interesting pieces of history. It's true that what western civilization has sold us as progress for centuries, has been nothing less than catastrophic for rest of humanity and other creatures. The greed and continuous hunger for economic growth has accelerated climate change and natural destruction. And we are still in this process, destroying the Amazon and the forests in Borneo. This book has made my convictions stronger about the tragical effect of human greed and ambition of prosperity that will one day bring our downfall.