★ 12/21/2015
Upending the traditional narrative of Western enlightenment and world domination as the inevitable descendants of Greek and Roman intellectual ferment, Oxford historian Frankopan (The First Crusade) places the silk roads—the long, remote Central Asian trading routes linking Europe and China—at the center of human history. The silk roads served as conduits for goods and ideas as well as plagues and marauding armies, and their location at the nexus of Europe and Asia continues to drive world events today. Frankopan casts his net widely in this work of dizzying breadth and ambition. Casual readers may struggle to follow all the threads; those opening to any page will find fascinating insights that illuminate elusive connections across time and place. Frankopan’s thoughts on Islam, for instance, begin with newly discovered “wisps of text” that are reshaping understanding of Muhammad’s life and stretch across centuries to the modern luxuries of the “oil-soaked” Middle East. The Black Plague—carried west by the Mongols—devastated Europe and the Middle East, but “the plague turned out to be the catalyst for social and economic change that was so profound that far from marking the death of Europe, it served as its making.” Frankopan approaches his craft with an acerbic wit, and his epochal perspective throws the foibles of the modern age into sharp relief. (Feb.)
The Silk Roads: A New History of the World
Narrated by Laurence Kennedy
Peter FrankopanUnabridged — 24 hours, 4 minutes
The Silk Roads: A New History of the World
Narrated by Laurence Kennedy
Peter FrankopanUnabridged — 24 hours, 4 minutes
Overview
The epic history of the crossroads of the world-the meeting place of East and West and the birthplace of civilization
It was on the Silk Roads that East and West first encountered each other through trade and conquest, leading to the spread of ideas, cultures and religions. From the rise and fall of empires to the spread of Buddhism and the advent of Christianity and Islam, right up to the great wars of the twentieth century-this book shows how the fate of the West has always been inextricably linked to the East.
Peter Frankopan realigns our understanding of the world, pointing us eastward. He vividly re-creates the emergence of the first cities in Mesopotamia and the birth of empires in Persia, Rome and Constantinople, as well as the depredations by the Mongols, the transmission of the Black Death and the violent struggles over Western imperialism. Throughout the millennia, it was the appetite for foreign goods that brought East and West together, driving economies and the growth of nations.
From the Middle East and its political instability to China and its economic rise, the vast region stretching eastward from the Balkans across the steppe and South Asia has been thrust into the global spotlight in recent years. Frankopan teaches us that to understand what is at stake for the cities and nations built on these intricate trade routes, we must first understand their astounding pasts. Far more than a history of the Silk Roads, this book is truly a revelatory new history of the world, promising to destabilize notions of where we come from and where we are headed next.
Editorial Reviews
One of Mr. Frankopan’s gifts as a storyteller is his ability to draw unusual connections across his vast canvas . . . . Frankopan has written a rare book that makes you question your assumptions about the world.” —The Wall Street Journal
“This provocative history challenges the view of the West as heir to a pure Greco-Roman culture. . . . Frankopan marshals diverse examples to demonstrate the interconnectedness of cultures, showing in vivid detail the economic and social impact of the silk and the slave trades, the Black Death, and the Buddhist influence on Christianity.” —The New Yorker
“In his new book, The Silk Roads, Frankopan has created something that forces us to sit up and reconsider the world and the way we've always thought about it. . . . The book takes us by surprise right from the start.” —NPR
“This is deeply researched popular history at its most invigorating, primed to dislodge routine preconceptions and to pour in other light. The freshness of . . . Frankopan’s sources is stimulating, and their sheer range can provoke surprising connections. He likes to administer passing electric shocks.” —Colin Thubron, New York Review of Books
“This is history on a grand scale, with a sweep and ambition that is rare. . . . A remarkable book on many levels, a proper historical epic of dazzling range and achievement.” —William Dalrymple, The Guardian
“A glorious read. . . . Frankopan is an exhilarating companion for the journey along the routes which conveyed silk, slaves, ideas, religion, and disease, and around which today may hang the destiny of the world.” —Vanity Fair
“Dazzlingly rich and accessible. . . . By reorienting the history of the last few millennia to the east, and by resolutely keeping the camera rolling there, Frankopan unhooks us from the usual story of ‘Western Civ’ and gives us a startling and brilliant perspective on events that may once have been familiar—and plenty that aren’t.” —The Philadelphia Inquirer
“Beautifully constructed, a terrific and exhilarating read and a new perspective on world history.” —History Today
This provocative history challenges the view of the West as heir to a pure Greco-Roman culture…Frankopan marshals diverse examples to demonstrate the interconnectedness of cultures, showing in vivid detail the economic and social impact of the silk and the slave trades, the Black Death, and the Buddhist influence on Christianity.”
Laurence Kennedy is a solid narrator. His pacing is slow but always clear, and his voice is deep and pleasant to listen to…His cultured British accent suits Frankopan’s Oxford vocabulary and English outlook.”
A glorious read…Frankopan is an exhilarating companion for the journey along the routes which conveyed silk, slaves, ideas, religion, and disease and around which today may hang the destiny of the world.”
This is history on a grand scale, with a sweep and ambition that is rare…A remarkable book on many levels, a proper historical epic of dazzling range and achievement.”
05/01/2016
Frankopan (director, Centre for Byzantine Research, Oxford Univ.; The First Crusade) is one of the world's foremost experts on the silk roads, the crossroads of the world that brought together Eastern and Western civilizations. His lifetime of research on the rise and fall of multiple empires, the spread of and interaction among Buddhism, Christianity, and Islam, and his understanding of the markets, economies, landscapes, and politics around the world have much to teach the reader about the ways in which East and West have become globalized. He offers a true vision of the world as a melting pot. Laurence Kennedy's reading is vivid and engaging. VERDICT This audiobook is recommended for listeners who love history and are interested in economics and politics. ["Will engage and inform readers looking for historical underpinnings of long-festering conflicts among nations, cultures, and religions": LJ 1/16 review of the Knopf hc.]—Pam Kingsbury, Univ. of North Alabama, Florence
01/01/2016
In this sweeping and thought-provoking world history, Frankopan (history, Oxford Univ.; The First Crusade) shows that although the intertwined nature of the global economy seems unique to today, nations and markets have been connected since antiquity. The East, especially the Fertile Crescent area stretching from the Nile to the Persian Gulf, is time and again pivotal in making and breaking empires, civilizations, religions, and cultures. Networks of trade routes called Silk Roads have carried not only valuables such as spices, silk, gems, porcelain, and oil, but also slavery, terror, disease, and other misery through the ages. Frankopan relates stories of kings, emperors, marauders, and explorers, and also describes the effect of technological advances on warfare, use of natural resources, trade and daily life over millennia. Meticulous documentation ranges from first-person accounts to high-tech analysis of archaeological finds. The routes discussed in various chapters are illustrated by helpful maps. VERDICT Even though Frankopan's interpretation of history may raise some eyebrows, his vivid imagery will engage and inform readers looking for historical underpinnings of long-festering conflicts among nations, cultures, and religions. [See Prepub Alert, 8/31/15.]—Laurie Unger Skinner, Coll. of Lake Cty., Waukegan, IL
Frankopan’s sweeping and idiosyncratic history of “the heart of the world” expands the European view of history to show how that continent is connected culturally to the Middle East and to China. Laurence Kennedy is a solid narrator. His pacing is slow but always clear, and his voice is deep and pleasant to listen to. He works hard to master the names of the people and places of central Asia, although his Russian pronunciation is a little weak. His cultured British accent suits Frankopan’s Oxford vocabulary and English outlook. The book is not a history from an East Asian or even Middle Eastern point of view. Instead, the author makes an effort to connect broader causes to traditional formulations of Eurocentric history over the last 2,000 years. F.C. © AudioFile 2016, Portland, Maine
★ 2015-11-01
Throughout history, Central Asia has been a nexus of burgeoning trade in goods, people, and ideas. Drawing on prodigious sources, Frankopan (The First Crusade: The Call from the East, 2012, etc.), director of the Oxford Centre for Byzantine Research, creates a sweeping, fascinating chronicle of world history focused on trade—in silk, spices, furs, gold, silver, slaves, and religion—in a vast region from the Mediterranean's eastern shores to the Himalayas. What is now the Caucasus, Iran, Iraq, Syria, and Afghanistan once served as the bridge between Europe and Asia, an area, the author writes, "on which the globe spun," where thriving cities housed diverse populations speaking a "cauldron" of languages, where "the world's great religions burst into life" and "great empires rose and fell." Trade in silk is exemplary of the confluence of cultures: the shimmering fabric was "a cipher for exoticism and eroticism" but also suspicion and conflict. Some thought the diaphanous material was "disgraceful" and sought to outlaw it; others damned the high cost of such luxuries. Controversies arose over religions, as well. The Silk Roads "were crowded, as deities and cults, priests and local rulers jostled with each other," with political implications: "a society protected and favored by the right god, or gods, thrived; those promising false idols....suffered." Among the many colorful figures the author vividly portrays, Genghis Khan emerges as a strategic genius who became "the undisputed master of the Mongolian steppes by 1206." Although the author acknowledges the Mongols' brutality, he also argues that their investment in infrastructure benefited the region. Likewise, he sees an upside to the Black Plague, which was a "catalyst for [the] social and economic change" that led to Europe's rise. Until the 16th century, though, Europe was "little more than a sideshow" compared with "titanic struggles" in Central Asia. Frankopan weaves together his many narrative strands with verve and impressive scholarship. A vastly rich historical tapestry that puts ongoing struggles in a new perspective.
Product Details
| BN ID: | 2940172993633 |
|---|---|
| Publisher: | Penguin Random House |
| Publication date: | 04/20/2021 |
| Edition description: | Unabridged |
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Preface
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Excerpted from "The Silk Roads"
by .
Copyright © 2017 Peter Frankopan.
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