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The Invention of Sicily
- A Mediterranean History
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 7 hrs and 50 mins
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The Invention of Sicily
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Publisher's summary
Sicily has always acted as a gateway between Europe and the rest of the world. Fought over by the Phoenicians and Greeks, the Romans, Goths and Byzantines, Arabs and Normans, Germans, and the Spanish and the French for thousands of years, Sicily became a unique melting pot where diverse traditions merged, producing a unique heritage and singular culture.
In this fascinating account of the island from the earliest times to the present day, author and journalist Jamie Mackay leads us through this most elusive of places. From its pivotal position in the development of Greek and Roman mythology, and the beautiful remnants of both the Arab and Norman invasions, through to the rise of the bandits and the Cosa Nostra, The Invention of Sicily is the perfect companion to the culture and history of Sicily.
Mackay weaves the political and social development of the island in with its fascinating cultural heritage - in doing so discussing how great works including Lampedusa's masterpiece The Leopard and its film adaptation by Visconti, and the novels of Leonardo Sciascia, among many others, have both been shaped by Sicily's past, and continue to shape it into the present.
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- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
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- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 113
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 89
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 89
Korea was one of the last countries in Asia to be visited by Westerners, and its borders have remained largely unchanged since it was unified in the seventh century. Though it is one of the world's oldest and most ethnically homogeneous states, Korea was not born in a vacuum. Geographically isolated, the country was heavily influenced by powerful China and was often used as a bridge to the mainland by Japan. Calling themselves as "a shrimp among whales", Koreans borrowed elements of government, culture, and religion, all the while fiercely fighting to maintain independence.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Loved the historical context but ..
- By Kathy on 01-06-20
By: Michael J. Seth
-
The Greeks
- A Global History
- By: Roderick Beaton
- Narrated by: Anna Crowe
- Length: 16 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 99
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 81
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 79
More than 2,000 years ago, the Greek city-states, led by Athens and Sparta, laid the foundation for much of modern science, the arts, politics, and law. But the influence of the Greeks did not end with the rise and fall of this classical civilization. As historian Roderick Beaton illustrates, over three millennia Greek speakers produced a series of civilizations that were rooted in southeastern Europe but again and again ranged widely across the globe.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
An Ethnography of the Greeks
- By gmurphy92 on 03-27-22
By: Roderick Beaton
-
A Short History of Ireland, 1500-2000
- By: John Gibney
- Narrated by: Gerard Doyle
- Length: 9 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 163
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 147
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 146
Five centuries of Irish history are explored in this informative and accessible volume. John Gibney proceeds from the beginning of Ireland’s modern period and continues through to virtually the present day, offering an integrated overview of the island nation’s cultural, political, and socioeconomic history. This succinct, scholarly study covers important historical events, including the Cromwellian conquest and settlement, the Great Famine, and the struggle for Irish independence.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
A great introduction to modern Irish history
- By Clint on 05-23-22
By: John Gibney
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Lost Islamic History
- Reclaiming Muslim Civilisation from the Past
- By: Firas Alkhateeb
- Narrated by: Neil Shah
- Length: 9 hrs and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 112
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 99
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 99
Islam has been one of the most powerful religious, social, and political forces in history. Over the last 1,400 years, from origins in Arabia, a succession of Muslim polities, and later empires expanded to control territories and peoples that ultimately stretched from southern France to East Africa and South East Asia. Yet many of the contributions of Muslim thinkers, scientists, and theologians, not to mention rulers, statesmen, and soldiers, have been occluded. This book rescues from oblivion and neglect some of these personalities and institutions.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent narration
- By Jamal on 06-19-22
By: Firas Alkhateeb
-
Germany
- A Nation in Its Time: Before, During, and After Nationalism, 1500-2000
- By: Helmut Walser Smith
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 20 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 46
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 38
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 37
For nearly a century, historians have depicted Germany as a rabidly nationalist land, born in a sea of aggression. Not so, says Helmut Walser Smith, who, in this groundbreaking 500-year history, challenges traditional perceptions of Germany's conflicted past, revealing a nation far more thematically complicated than 20th-century historians have imagined.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
review response
- By Matthew and Tracy Johnson on 10-30-21
-
A Short History of Russia
- How the World's Largest Country Invented Itself, from the Pagans to Putin
- By: Mark Galeotti
- Narrated by: Mark Galeotti
- Length: 4 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 176
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 150
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 147
Russia is a country with no natural borders, no single ethnic group, no true central identity. At the crossroads of Europe and Asia, it has been subject to invasion by outsiders, from Vikings to Mongols, from Napoleon’s French to Hitler’s Germans. In order to forge an identity, it has mythologized its past to unite its people and to signal strength to outsiders. In A Short History of Russia, Mark Galeotti explores the history of this fascinating, glorious, desperate, and exasperating country.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Wonderful short history
- By Tad Davis on 01-19-21
By: Mark Galeotti
-
The Invention of China
- By: Bill Hayton
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 10 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 44
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 37
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 39
A provocative account showing that "China" - and its 5,000 years of unified history - is a national myth, created only a century ago with a political agenda that persists to this day. China's current leadership lays claim to a 5,000-year-old civilization, but "China" as a unified country and people, Bill Hayton argues, was created far more recently by a small group of intellectuals.
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1 out of 5 stars
-
trash
- By Maciel on 11-21-22
By: Bill Hayton
-
Superpower Interrupted
- The Chinese History of the World
- By: Michael Schuman
- Narrated by: Shawn Compton
- Length: 13 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 98
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 88
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 88
This global history as the Chinese would write it gives brilliant and unconventional insights for understanding China's role in the world, especially the drive to "Make China Great Again." In this colorful, informative story filled with fascinating characters, epic battles, influential thinkers, and decisive moments, we come to understand how the Chinese view their own history and how its narrative is distinctly different from that of Western civilization.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
Nice overview
- By Matthew G. Towner on 08-12-20
By: Michael Schuman
-
Iran
- A Modern History
- By: Abbas Amanat
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 41 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 266
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 228
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 228
This history of modern Iran is not a survey in the conventional sense but an ambitious exploration of the story of a nation. It offers a revealing look at how events, people, and institutions are shaped by currents that sometimes reach back hundreds of years. The book covers the complex history of the diverse societies and economies of Iran against the background of dynastic changes, revolutions, civil wars, foreign occupation, and the rise of the Islamic Republic.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Extremely Opinionated.
- By Glaudrung on 02-13-19
By: Abbas Amanat
-
The Birth of Classical Europe
- A History from Troy to Augustine
- By: Simon Price, Peter Thonemann
- Narrated by: Don Hagen
- Length: 14 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 141
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 115
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 114
To an extraordinary extent we continue to live in the shadow of the classical world. At every level, from languages to calendars to political systems, we are the descendants of a “classical Europe,” using frames of reference created by ancient Mediterranean cultures. As this consistently fresh and surprising new audio book makes clear, however, this was no less true for the inhabitants of those classical civilizations themselves, whose myths, history, and buildings were an elaborate engagement with an already old and revered past - one filled with great leaders and writers....
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Excellent overview of the Classical World
- By David I. Williams on 01-12-14
By: Simon Price, and others
-
The Fall of Rome
- And the End of Civilization
- By: Bryan Ward-Perkins
- Narrated by: Roger Clark
- Length: 7 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 84
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 66
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 66
In The Fall of Rome, eminent historian Bryan Ward-Perkins argues that the "peaceful" theory of Rome's "transformation" is badly in error. Indeed, he sees the fall of Rome as a time of horror and dislocation that destroyed a great civilization, throwing the inhabitants of the West back to a standard of living typical of prehistoric times. Attacking contemporary theories with relish and making use of modern archaeological evidence, he looks at both the wider explanations for the disintegration of the Roman world and also the consequences for the lives of everyday Romans.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
best book ever on Fall of Rome
- By james m. on 01-30-22
![The Balkans [Modern Library Chronicles] Audiobook By Mark Mazower cover art](https://m.media-amazon.com/images/I/31c9Aj2iVhL._SL320_.jpg)
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The Balkans [Modern Library Chronicles]
- By: Mark Mazower
- Narrated by: Robert O'Keefe
- Length: 6 hrs and 24 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 183
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 121
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 120
In this fascinating work, winner of the Wolfson Prize for History Mark Mazower uncovers the history of the Balkans with detail and clarity. He explores the reasons for current conflicts and examines the Balkans as a religious, cultural, and economic melting pot for Europe and Asia. Through Robert O'Keefe's articulate narration, listeners will be absorbed by this rich world.
-
4 out of 5 stars
-
Thorough History...
- By David on 09-30-05
By: Mark Mazower
-
A Concise History of Italy
- By: Christopher Duggan
- Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
- Length: 11 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 41
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 41
Since its formation in 1861, Italy has struggled to develop an effective political system and a secure sense of national identity. Christopher Duggan's acclaimed introduction charts the country's history from the fall of the Roman Empire in the West to the present day, and surveys the difficulties Italy has faced during the last two centuries in creating a unified country. Duggan successfully weaves together political, economic, social and cultural history, and stresses the alternation between materialist and idealist programs for forging a nation-state.
-
5 out of 5 stars
-
Concise indeed
- By nikex on 03-22-21
-
The Story of Russia
- By: Orlando Figes
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 12 hrs and 38 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 172
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 153
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 153
The Story of Russia is about how the Russians defined themselves―and repeatedly reinvented such definitions along the way. Moving from Russia’s agrarian beginnings in the first millennium to subsequent periods of monarchy, totalitarianism, and perestroika, all the way up to Vladimir Putin and his use of myths of Russian history to bolster his regime, celebrated historian Orlando Figes examines the ideas that have guided the country’s actions.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
A Good overview of Russia. History that Provides an Effective Premise for Greater Understanding of Current Events
- By James E Mclaughlin on 12-22-22
By: Orlando Figes
-
History of Romania
- A Captivating Guide to Romanian History, Including Events Such as the First Roman-Dacian War, Raids of Vlad III Dracula Against the Ottoman Empire, the Great War, and World War 2
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Jason Zenobia
- Length: 7 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 34
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 32
Romania lies on Europe’s eastern border, and as such, it is often neglected in history. Although it is a culturally very rich country, the world displayed little interest in its promotion. By listening to this captivating history of Romania, you will learn about the turbulent past of the region, the many wars it fought, and the people who led them. You will also learn the truth behind the character of Vlad the Impaler and decide for yourself if he was a ruthless, bloodthirsty ruler or a politician, tactician, and national hero.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Polished to the edge of propaganda
- By Anonymous User on 08-19-23
-
A Concise History of Spain
- By: William Phillips Jr., Carla Rahn Phillips
- Narrated by: Luis Soto
- Length: 12 hrs and 13 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 60
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 48
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 47
This audiobook traces Spain's development from prehistoric times to the present, focusing particularly on culture, society, politics, and personalities. It introduces listeners to key themes that have shaped Spain's history and culture, including its varied landscapes and climates; the impact of waves of diverse human migrations; the importance of its location as a bridge between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean and Europe and Africa; and religion, particularly militant Catholic Christianity and its centuries of conflict with Islam and Protestantism.
-
2 out of 5 stars
-
Underwhelmed
- By Anonymous User on 02-20-20
By: William Phillips Jr., and others
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DISAPPOINTING
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Sicilian Splendors
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 14
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From Palermo to Castiglione di Sicilia to Alimena, Sicily holds great secrets from the past and unspoken promises. Now, slowly shaking itself free of the Mafia, Sicily is opening itself up to visitors in ways it never has before. Sicilian Splendors explores the history, politics, food, Mafia, and people which John Keahey encounters throughout his travels during his return to Sicily. Through conversing with natives and immersing himself in culture, Keahey illustrates a brand new Sicily no one has ever talked about before.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Small towns are a joy
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By: John Keahey
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The Florios of Sicily
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 45
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The Florios arrive in Sicily, with nothing but the clothes on their back after an earthquake destroys their hometown. Against all odds, the family begins anew despite the looming Napoleonic wars and devastating plagues. But when Vincenzo is spurned by his aristocratic lover, he vows to avenge his honor by becoming the wealthiest man in Italy. Sacrificing love and family, he strives to buy what cannot be his by birth. Not to be outdone by the men, the Florio women unapologetically demand their place outside the restraints of caring mothers, alluring lovers, or wounded wives.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Gripping, Beautiful, Historical
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By: Stefania Auci
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The Florentines
- From Dante to Galileo: The Transformation of Western Civilization
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- Narrated by: Roger Clark
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 79
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 72
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 72
Between the birth of Dante in 1265 and the death of Galileo in 1642, something happened that transformed the entire culture of Western civilization. Painting, sculpture, and architecture would all visibly change in such a striking fashion that there could be no going back on what had taken place. Likewise, the thought and self-conception of humanity would take on a completely new aspect. Sciences would be born - or emerge in an entirely new guise.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Narrator ruins the narrative
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A Short History of Ireland, 1500-2000
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 163
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Five centuries of Irish history are explored in this informative and accessible volume. John Gibney proceeds from the beginning of Ireland’s modern period and continues through to virtually the present day, offering an integrated overview of the island nation’s cultural, political, and socioeconomic history. This succinct, scholarly study covers important historical events, including the Cromwellian conquest and settlement, the Great Famine, and the struggle for Irish independence.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A great introduction to modern Irish history
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Sicily
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 182
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 163
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 161
"Sicily," said Goethe, "is the key to everything." It is the largest island in the Mediterranean, the stepping-stone between Europe and Africa, the link between the Latin West and the Greek East. Sicily's strategic location has tempted Roman emperors, French princes, and Spanish kings. The subsequent struggles to conquer and keep it have played crucial roles in the rise and fall of the world's most powerful dynasties.
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3 out of 5 stars
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DISAPPOINTING
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Emigration of people from Sicily often overshadows the importance of the people who immigrated to the island through the centuries. These have included several who became Sicily's rulers, along with Jews, Ligurians, and Albanians. Greeks, Romans, Vandals, Goths, Byzantines, Muslims, Normans, Hohenstaufens, Spaniards, Bourbons, the Savoy Kingdom of Italy and the modern era have all held sway, and left lasting influences on the island's culture and architecture.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 14
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 12
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4 out of 5 stars
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Small towns are a joy
- By michael on 11-14-18
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The Florios of Sicily
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 45
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
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Gripping, Beautiful, Historical
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 72
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Between the birth of Dante in 1265 and the death of Galileo in 1642, something happened that transformed the entire culture of Western civilization. Painting, sculpture, and architecture would all visibly change in such a striking fashion that there could be no going back on what had taken place. Likewise, the thought and self-conception of humanity would take on a completely new aspect. Sciences would be born - or emerge in an entirely new guise.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Narrator ruins the narrative
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 163
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 147
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Five centuries of Irish history are explored in this informative and accessible volume. John Gibney proceeds from the beginning of Ireland’s modern period and continues through to virtually the present day, offering an integrated overview of the island nation’s cultural, political, and socioeconomic history. This succinct, scholarly study covers important historical events, including the Cromwellian conquest and settlement, the Great Famine, and the struggle for Irish independence.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A great introduction to modern Irish history
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The Venetians
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 107
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 88
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Story4 out of 5 stars 89
The Republic of Venice was the first great economic, cultural, and naval power of the modern Western world. After winning the struggle for ascendency in the late 13th century, the Republic enjoyed centuries of unprecedented glory and built a trading empire which at its apogee reached as far afield as China, Syria, and West Africa. This golden period only drew to an end with the Republic's eventual surrender to Napoleon. The Venetians illuminates the character of the Republic during these illustrious years by shining a light on some of the most celebrated personalities of European history.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Mesmerizing
- By Gary R. Frank on 08-24-15
By: Paul Strathern
-
The Pursuit of Italy
- A History of a Land, Its Regions, and Their Peoples
- By: David Gilmour
- Narrated by: Napoleon Ryan
- Length: 19 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 115
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 103
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 102
Did Garibaldi do Italy a disservice when he helped its disparate parts achieve unity? Was the goal of political unification a mistake? These questions are asked and answered in a number of ways in this engaging, original consideration of the many histories that contribute to the brilliance - and weakness - of Italy today. David Gilmour's exploration of Italian life over the centuries is filled with provocative anecdotes as well as personal observations.
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3 out of 5 stars
-
Good history: Tough Narration
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Sicily: The History and Legacy of the Mediterranean's Most Famous Island
- By: Charles River Editors
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Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 2
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Performance2 out of 5 stars 1
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Story2 out of 5 stars 1
It is hard to find an island on the map more central than Sicily. Located at the crossroads between Europe and Africa, and between the eastern and western Mediterranean, Sicily has rarely been governed as an independent, unified state. Nonetheless, the island has been the seat of some of the most important events in history, and nowhere is this more obvious than during antiquity.
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Sailing from Byzantium
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- By: Colin Wells
- Narrated by: Lloyd James
- Length: 9 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 156
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 83
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 81
A gripping intellectual adventure story, Sailing from Byzantium sweeps you from the deserts of Arabia to the dark forests of northern Russia, from the colorful towns of Renaissance Italy to the final moments of a millennial city under siege.
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5 out of 5 stars
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The Missing Years
- By Nikoli Gogol on 12-29-07
By: Colin Wells
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The Silk Road
- A New History
- By: Valerie Hansen
- Narrated by: Jo Anna Perrin
- Length: 9 hrs and 54 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4 out of 5 stars 37
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 32
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 32
In The Silk Road, Valerie Hansen describes the remarkable archaeological finds that revolutionize our understanding of these trade routes. The Silk Road is a fascinating story of archaeological discovery, cultural transmission, and the intricate chains across Central Asia and China.
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2 out of 5 stars
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terribly nerrated no intonation and pronounce
- By binyamin zeev foux on 09-09-18
By: Valerie Hansen
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The Artist, the Philosopher, and the Warrior
- Da Vinci, Machiavelli, and Borgia and the World They Shaped
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Nigel Patterson
- Length: 15 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 81
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 75
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 75
Leonardo da Vinci, Niccolò Machiavelli, and Cesare Borgia - three iconic figures whose intersecting lives provide the basis for this astonishing work of narrative history. They could not have been more different, and they would meet only for a short time in 1502, but the events that transpired when they did would significantly alter each man's perceptions - and the course of Western history.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
A Very Good Book (Just Not As Good As Others)
- By George Monnat Jr on 02-18-19
By: Paul Strathern
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Saving Italy
- By: Robert Edsel
- Narrated by: Edoardo Ballerini
- Length: 11 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 272
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 242
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 243
When Hitler’s armies occupied Italy in 1943, they also seized control of mankind’s greatest cultural treasures. As they had done throughout Europe, the Nazis could now plunder the masterpieces of the Renaissance, the treasures of the Vatican, and the antiquities of the Roman Empire. On the eve of the Allied invasion, General Dwight Eisenhower empowered a new kind of soldier to protect these historic riches. In May 1944 two unlikely American heroes—artist Deane Keller and scholar Fred Hartt—embarked from Naples on the treasure hunt of a lifetime, tracking billions of dollars of missing art, including works by Michelangelo, Donatello, Titian, Caravaggio, and Botticelli.
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4 out of 5 stars
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More Personalities than Art Chasing
- By Craig on 01-17-15
By: Robert Edsel
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The Borgias
- Power and Depravity in Renaissance Italy
- By: Paul Strathern
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 11 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 125
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 109
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 109
The Borgia family have become a byword for evil. Corruption, incest, ruthless megalomania, avarice, and vicious cruelty - all have been associated with their name. And yet, paradoxically, this family lived when the Renaissance was coming into its full flowering in Italy. Examples of infamy flourished alongside some of the finest art produced in western history.
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2 out of 5 stars
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Gossip
- By Amazon Customer on 10-02-19
By: Paul Strathern
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The Price of Glory
- Verdun 1916
- By: Alistair Horne
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 14 hrs and 26 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 3
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 3
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Story5 out of 5 stars 3
The battle of Verdun lasted ten months. It was a battle in which at least 700,000 men fell, along a front of fifteen miles. Its aim was less to defeat the enemy than bleed him to death and a battleground whose once fertile terrain is even now a haunted wilderness. Alistair Horne's classic work, continuously in print for over fifty years, is a profoundly moving, sympathetic study of the battle and the men who fought there. It shows that Verdun is a key to understanding the First World War.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Riveting, Tragic, Eye-Opening
- By Zhanying Bai on 02-18-24
By: Alistair Horne
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The Loom of Time
- Between Empire and Anarchy, from the Mediterranean to China
- By: Robert D. Kaplan
- Narrated by: Eric Jason Martin
- Length: 14 hrs and 49 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 44
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 37
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Story5 out of 5 stars 37
The Greater Middle East, which Robert D. Kaplan defines as the vast region between the Mediterranean and China, encompassing much of the Arab world, parts of northern Africa, and Asia, existed for millennia as the crossroads of empire: Macedonian, Roman, Persian, Mongol, Ottoman, British, Soviet, American.
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4 out of 5 stars
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detailed primer on the greater 'Middle East'
- By Stevon on 02-01-24
By: Robert D. Kaplan
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Babylon
- Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization
- By: Paul Kriwaczek
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 687
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 586
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 582
Civilization was born 8,000 years ago, between the floodplains of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, when migrants from the surrounding mountains and deserts began to create increasingly sophisticated urban societies. In the cities that they built, half of human history took place. In Babylon, Paul Kriwaczek tells the story of Mesopotamia from the earliest settlements seven thousand years ago to the eclipse of Babylon in the sixth century BCE. Bringing the people of this land to life in vibrant detail, the author chronicles the rise and fall of power during this period.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Solid overview 3000 years of history
- By Alsor2000 on 07-19-20
By: Paul Kriwaczek
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The Leopard
- A Novel
- By: Giuseppe di Lampedusa, Archibald Colquhuon - translator
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
- Length: 9 hrs and 36 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 88
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 73
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Story4 out of 5 stars 72
Set in the 1860s, The Leopard tells the spellbinding story of a decadent, dying Sicilian aristocracy threatened by the approaching forces of democracy and revolution. The dramatic sweep and richness of observation, the seamless intertwining of public and private worlds, and the grasp of human frailty imbue The Leopard with its particular melancholy beauty and power, and place it among the greatest historical novels of our time.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Timeless
- By Robert Massarella on 12-05-23
By: Giuseppe di Lampedusa, and others
What listeners say about The Invention of Sicily
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Anna R.
- 03-03-23
Perfect summary of Sicilian history!
Well written, great narration, exactly the kind of high level, overarching information as an introduction to Sicily. As a student of political history, and a first generation Sicilian, this book addressed all the important aspects of history. I anticipated it would be dry and boring. This book is anything but that! Thank you, Jamie McKay!
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Cheryl A.
- 04-19-23
A must read before visiting Sicily
I learned so much from reading this history prior to visiting Sicily last summer. The span of history of this unique part of Italy, quite different from the mainland, is remarkable. I'm in love with Sicily, where my husband's parents are from. We will return again and again.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Gino M.
- 04-08-22
Great primer to Sicilian history
The book includes just the right amount of detail for the curious beginner, covering major periods of Sicilian history. My only wish is that the voice actor would have done some research on pronunciations of Italian and Sicilian names and words; he consistently butchers even the simplest of pronunciations. It would seem obvious to most people that you should do that if you're in fact narrating a book about Sicily.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- jack michal
- 08-05-21
Sumptuous, tender and delightful surprising
A captivating description of sicily's socio-political 3000year development, freshly written from dozens of nuancesed perspectives.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Kindle Customer
- 07-03-22
Great summary of Sicilian history
Exactly what I was looking for to complement a trip to Sicily. Highly recommend. Great narration.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- jay lazier
- 01-28-24
Wonderful overview of Sicily
Comprehensive and entertaining account of Sicily’s history and culture—excellent narration—a great way for visitors to learn about what they are about to experience
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