The West

A New History in Fourteen Lives

By: Naoíse Mac Sweeney

Narrated by: Shaheen Khan

Length: 14 hrs and 8 mins

Publisher's summary

“A bold, sweeping bird’s eye view of thousands of years of history that provides a truly global perspective of the past. A fantastic achievement.”—Peter Frankopan, internationally bestselling author of The Silk Roads

Prize-winning historian Naoíse Mac Sweeney delivers a captivating exploration of how “Western Civilization”—the concept of a single cultural inheritance extending from ancient Greece to modern times—is a powerful figment of our collective imagination. An urgently needed emergent voice in big history, she offers a bold new account of Western history, real and imagined, through the lives of fourteen remarkable individuals.

In this groundbreaking, story-driven retelling of Western history, Naoíse Mac Sweeney debunks the myths and origin stories that underpin the history we thought we knew. Told through fourteen figures who each played a role in the creation of the Western idea—from Herodotus, a mixed-race migrant, to Phylis Wheatley, an enslaved African American who became a literary sensation; and from Gladstone, with a private passion for epic poetry, to the medieval Arab scholar Al-Kindi—the subjects are a mind-expanding blend of unsung heroes and familiar faces viewed afresh. These characters span the millennia and the continents, representing different religions, varying levels of wealth and education, diverse traditions and nationalities. Each life tells us something unexpected about the age in which it was lived and offers us a piece of the puzzle of how the modern idea of the West developed—and why we've misunderstood it for too long.

The concept of “the West” is present in every daily interaction you have, from entertainment and politics to world markets and world history. This engagingly intimate history will reshape the way you see the world around you. At this moment of civilizational redefinition, if we are to chart a future for the West, we must properly understand its past.

©2023 Naoíse Mac Sweeney (P)2023 Penguin Audio

Critic reviews

"A highly readable, vigorous repudiation of the Western-centric school of history...[Mac Sweeney] argues convincingly that it was a departure from Greek and Roman senses of who they were and how they fit into the world."—Kirkus (starred review)

"One by one [Mac Sweeney] takes on hoary old myths–about the character of the ancient world, the nature of the Crusades, or the superiority of European powers in imperial contests–explodes them with panache, and leaves us instead with a richer, fuller understanding of epochs, worldviews and fascinating individuals from the past.... Mac Sweeney’s gift for sparkling synthesis and gripping personal vignettes never flags.... I imagine that lots of people will enjoy this clever and thought-provoking account."—The Guardian

The West is an awe-inspiring book. The established narrative of Western Civilization has cast its shadow across our collective histories for centuries, without challenge, yet here Mac Sweeney probes at the very core of the issue, revealing its shaky foundations. Deeply researched, wonderfully well written and immensely thought-provoking, this is an important book which reshapes our understanding of the past.”—Dr Janina Ramirez, author of Femina: A New History of the Middle Ages Through the Women Written Out of It

A Most Enjoyable West

After reading the story of so many characters, I am confident to conclude with (the exceptional company of) Kurt Gödel that “There is no reason to trust blindly in the spirit of the time”…

Extraordinary!!

A must read to understand the myths underlying the turbulent times we live in. Thank you!!!!