-
A Short History of Drunkenness
- How, Why, Where, and When Humankind Has Gotten Merry from the Stone Age to the Present
- Narrated by: Simon Vance
- Length: 5 hrs and 34 mins
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Publisher's summary
From the internationally best-selling author of The Etymologicon, a lively and fascinating exploration of how, throughout history, each civilization has found a way to celebrate, or to control, the eternal human drive to get sloshed
Almost every culture on Earth has drink, and where there's drink there's drunkenness. But in every age and in every place drunkenness is a little bit different. It can be religious, it can be sexual, it can be the duty of kings or the relief of peasants. It can be an offering to the ancestors, or a way of marking the end of a day's work. It can send you to sleep, or send you into battle.
Making stops all over the world, A Short History of Drunkenness traces humankind's love affair with booze from our primate ancestors through to the 20th century, answering every possible question along the way: What did people drink? How much? Who did the drinking? Of the many possible reasons, why? On the way, learn about the Neolithic Shamans, who drank to communicate with the spirit world (no pun intended), marvel at how Greeks got giddy and Sumerians got sauced, and find out how bars in the Wild West were never quite like in the movies.
This is a history of the world at its inebriated best.
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Spain is an immemorial land like no other, one that James A. Michener, the Pulitzer Prize–winning author and celebrated citizen of the world, came to love as his own. Iberia is Michener’s enduring nonfiction tribute to his cherished second home. In the fresh and vivid prose that is his trademark, he not only reveals the celebrated history of bullfighters and warrior kings, painters and processions, cathedrals and olive orchards, he also shares the intimate, often hidden country he came to know, where the congeniality of living souls is thrust against the dark weight of history.
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Michener's Masterpiece
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A Million Years in a Day
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Performance
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Story
Who invented beds? When did we start cleaning our teeth? How old are wine and beer? Which came first: the toilet seat or toilet paper? What was the first clock? Every day, from the moment our alarm clock wakes us in the morning until our head hits our pillow at night, we all take part in rituals that are millennia old. Structured around one ordinary day, A Million Years in a Day reveals the astonishing origins and development of the daily practices we take for granted.
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Super interesting!
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Castles, Customs, and Kings
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- Narrated by: Ruth Golding
- Length: 25 hrs and 39 mins
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A compilation of essays from the English Historical Fiction Authors blog, this book provides a wealth of historical information from Roman Britain to early 20th-century England. Over 50 different authors share hundreds of real life stories and tantalizing tidbits discovered while doing research for their own historical novels.
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Historical Tidbits
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24 Hours in Ancient Rome: A Day in the Life of the People Who Lived There
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In this entertaining and enlightening guide, best-selling historian Philip Matyszak introduces us to the people who lived and worked there. In each hour of the day we meet a new character - from emperor to slave girl, gladiator to astrologer, medicine woman to water-clock maker - and discover the fascinating details of their daily lives.
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Took me back to Latin class and the origin of word
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Life in Ancient Rome
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Help me fill in the gaps!
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Drink
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Drink investigates the history of this Jekyll and Hyde of fluids, tracing mankind's love/hate relationship with alcohol from ancient Egypt to present day. Drink further documents the contribution of alcohol to the birth and growth of the United States, taking in the War of Independence, Pennsylvania Whiskey revolt, slave trade, and failed experiment of national Prohibition. Finally, it provides a history of the world's most famous drinks - and drinkers. Packed with trivia and colorful characters, Drink amounts to an intoxicating history of the world.
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Amazing!
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Whiskey Women
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Without women, whiskey may not exist. In Whiskey Women, Wall Street Journal-best-selling author Fred Minnick tells the tales of women who have created this industry, from Mesopotamia's first beer brewers and distillers to America's rough-and-tough bootleggers during Prohibition. Women have long distilled, marketed, and owned spirits companies. These strong women built many iconic brands, including Bushmills, Laphroaig, and Maker's Mark.
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Women should be proud of this.
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A History of the World in 10 1/2 Chapters
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This is one of the defining novels of English writer Julian Barnes. An entertaining melange of stories starting with a contemporary account of the launch of Noah's Ark takes us into unexpected areas of human foibles, activities, and tendencies.
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Not what I Expected
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A History of the World in 6 Glasses
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Throughout human history, certain drinks have done much more than just quench thirst. As Tom Standage relates with authority and charm, six of them have had a surprisingly pervasive influence on the course of history, becoming the defining drink during a pivotal historical period. A History of the World in 6 Glasses tells the story of humanity from the Stone Age to the 21st century through the lens of beer, wine, spirits, coffee, tea, and cola.
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Fun and Informative
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Ask a Historian
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Responding to fifty genuine questions from the public, Greg Jenner takes you on an entertaining tour through history from the Stone Age to the Swinging Sixties, revealing the best and most surprising stories, facts and historical characters from the past. From ancient joke books, African empires and the invention of meringues, to mummies, mirrors and menstrual pads—Ask A Historian is a deliciously amusing and informative smorgasbord of historical curiosities.
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best bonus content ever!
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A Child's History of the World
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One of the finest history books for children, this well-loved Hillyer classic features stories of world history from prehistoric man through the 20th century, inspiring an appreciation of how events relate to one another.
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Why has this book been changed?
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At Home
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Bill Bryson and his family live in a Victorian parsonage in a part of England where nothing of any great significance has happened since the Romans decamped. Yet one day, he began to consider how very little he knew about the ordinary things of life as he found it in that comfortable home. To remedy this, he formed the idea of journeying about his house from room to room to “write a history of the world without leaving home.”
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Bryson does it again
- By Robert on 10-15-10
By: Bill Bryson
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What listeners say about A Short History of Drunkenness
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- alionkinkead
- 12-30-21
Fun, informative & interesting
This book was a lot of fun! Fascinatingly educational with lots of humor sprinkled in. Perfect for a history buff with a taste for a good cocktail.
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- Anonymous User
- 04-24-21
in the 'spirt' of this novel It made me want to dr
I read this novel over a period of 2 day, so for my college I currently had to take a general educations credit so I chose to take the course regarding the archeology of beer. as someone who now has an extensive knowledge of the antient pasts of beer I found that I had a lot of respect for this authors attempt to write such an extensive history in such a short form novel. however I also found that a bit more information on actual methods used to brew some of the first beer or alcohols would have supplied the reader with some genuinely interesting information and would have been a much welcomed addition.... Now for the bad, there are so many joke in this novel, I was hoping to have a semi serious novel on the topic of alchols history, but after the 20th joke regarding "ohh drunk people forget because their drunk" it really wears you down. I think it definitely can leave the reader exhausted if it is read over a short period of time, and is definitely a book which should be read over a month not over a few days. Second bad part. Honestly I think this novel may win the award for worst ISIS name drop. Why did the author feel the need to drop an ISIS joke that completely draws the reader out, while also being in horrible taste. Watch out for that' joke' in the Egypt section, even the narrator lowers his voice and barley speaks the joke its so bad. Besides my gripe with the absolute magnitude of jokes and 1 horrible joke it was a good read and I may recommend it to someone who finds drunk and debauchery hilarious
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- Alec Hankins
- 01-23-20
Absolutely hilarious. Smart and funny.
Thoroughly amusing and well researched book. Loved it. Recommend it widely. The narrator does an excellent job delivering the humor, too.
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- Ambariffic
- 12-17-18
Humorous and interesting!
I'm a fan of Forsyth's other books, and A Short History of Drunkenness does not disappoint!
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- MaryClare
- 07-25-20
Great history, brilliant narrator!
I loved this book! The history is not in depth, but that’s not the point. The writing is lively and hilarious, and Simon Vance absolutely nails the narration.
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- Jeffrey
- 01-05-21
Another triumph by Mark Forsyth!
Following the amazingly wonderful "Entymologicon", Forsyth's "A Short History of Drunkeness" is a witty and deliciously entertaining and informative romp through the history of Drinking and the role of drinking throughout history! Simon Vance's velvety narration is spot-on for the material. While perfect in it's length, the reader cannot but lament coming to the end of the fun. The good news is that this audiobook holds up remarkably well for repeated listenings. A must for any audiobook library.
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- Farmers daughter
- 09-24-21
Informative and fun
It was informative and fun.
I love culture difference and similarities, and this highlights some of those.
the narrative was also very expressive
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- Sarah Tomsick
- 10-30-24
Amazing
What a book! Def recommend. Loved the quick hit of different civilizations and time. It was awesome. Great listen.
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- Americana
- 04-13-21
Double Whammy!
Awesome author, Awesome narrator, Awesome content...
Win, win!
Listen to this audiobook. Highly recommend this to anyone looking for a humorous, honest and lighthearted listen.
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- MW
- 11-13-19
Forsyth never disappoints
I have all of his books and will buy anything he writes! worth a listen
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