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A Short History of the Twentieth Century
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 7 hrs and 37 mins
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Publisher's summary
The historian John Lukacs offers a concise history of the twentieth century-its two world wars and cold war, its nations and leaders. The great themes woven through this spirited narrative are inseparable from the author's own intellectual preoccupations: the fading of liberalism, the rise of populism and nationalism, the achievements and dangers of technology, and the continuing democratization of the globe.
The historical twentieth century began with the First World War in 1914 and ended seventy-five years later with the collapse of the Soviet Empire in 1989. The short century saw the end of European dominance and the rise of American power and influence throughout the world. The twentieth century was an American century-perhaps the American century.
Lukacs explores in detail the phenomenon of national socialism (national socialist parties, he reminds us, have outlived the century), Hitler's sole responsibility for the Second World War, and the crucial roles played by his determined opponents Churchill and Roosevelt. Between 1939 and 1942 Germany came closer to winning than many people suppose.
Lukacs casts a hard eye at the consequences of the Second World War-the often misunderstood Soviet-American cold war-and at the shifting social and political developments in the Far and Middle East and elsewhere. In an eloquent closing meditation on the passing of the twentieth century, he reflects on the advance of democracy throughout the world and the limitations of human knowledge.
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- By Cordell eddings on 10-13-07
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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
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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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Excellent overview of the Classical World
- By David I. Williams on 01-12-14
By: Simon Price, and others
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The Long Shadow
- The Legacies of the Great War in the Twentieth Century
- By: David Reynolds
- Narrated by: John FitzGibbon
- Length: 19 hrs and 55 mins
- Unabridged
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One of the most violent conflicts in the history of civilization, World War I has been strangely forgotten in American culture. It has become a ghostly war fought in a haze of memory, often seen merely as a distant preamble to World War II. In The Long Shadow critically-acclaimed historian David Reynolds seeks to broaden our vision by assessing the impact of the Great War across the twentieth century. He shows how events in that turbulent century—particularly World War II, the Cold War, and the collapse of Communism—shaped and reshaped attitudes to 1914–18.
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The World According to David Reynolds (feat. WWI)
- By Steve on 02-26-15
By: David Reynolds
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The English and Their History
- By: Robert Tombs
- Narrated by: James Langton
- Length: 43 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
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Robert Tombs' momentous The English and Their History is both a startlingly fresh and a uniquely inclusive account of the people who have a claim to be the oldest nation in the world. The English first came into existence as an idea, before they had a common ruler and before the country they lived in even had a name. They have lasted as a recognizable entity ever since, and their defining national institutions can be traced back to the earliest years of their history.
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Should be called, The English and their politics
- By Mary Elizabeth Reynolds on 08-24-16
By: Robert Tombs
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The Gates of Europe
- A History of Ukraine
- By: Serhii Plokhy
- Narrated by: Ralph Lister
- Length: 15 hrs and 21 mins
- Unabridged
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Ukraine is currently embroiled in a tense fight with Russia to preserve its territorial integrity and political independence. But today's conflict is only the latest in a long history of battles over Ukraine's territory and its existence as a sovereign nation. As the award-winning historian Serhii Plokhy argues in The Gates of Europe, we must examine Ukraine's past in order to understand its present and future.
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An extraordinarily good book
- By Specs2789 on 03-01-23
By: Serhii Plokhy
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Communism [Modern Library Chronicles]
- By: Richard Pipes
- Narrated by: George Wilson
- Length: 5 hrs and 46 mins
- Unabridged
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From the acclaimed Modern Library Chronicles comes an exploration of a promising theory that when put to practice wreaked havoc on the world. An expert on communism, Richard Pipes follows the history of the Soviet Union from the 1917 revolution to the Cold War, and finally, to its deterioration and collapse.
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Interesting but lacks objectivity
- By Mazen on 07-06-06
By: Richard Pipes
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Fire in the Lake
- By: Frances FitzGerald
- Narrated by: Jeff Bottoms
- Length: 22 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
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This magisterial work, based on Frances FitzGerald's many years of research and travels, takes us inside the history of Vietnam - the traditional, ancestor-worshiping villages, the conflicts between Communists and anti-Communists, Catholics and Buddhists, generals and monks, the disruption created by French colonialism, and America's ill-fated intervention - and reveals the country as seen through Vietnamese eyes. Originally published in 1972, Fire in the Lake was the first history of Vietnam written by an American, and subsequently won the Pulitzer Prize.
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American Hubris; Vietnamese Misery
- By gunnerThrax on 01-24-21
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Churchill
- The Prophetic Statesman
- By: James C. Humes
- Narrated by: Matthew Brenher
- Length: 6 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
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James C. Humes reveals the astonishingly accurate predictions of Britain's most famous prime minister and how his critics' perceptions of them shaped his political career. Who could have foreseen the start of World War I twenty-five years before the assassination of a Serbian archduke plunged Europe into war? Who could have predicted the rise of al-Qaeda nearly eight decades before anyone had heard of Osama bin Laden? Winston Churchill did.
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The voice in the wilderness--Are we listening yet?
- By Jean on 12-16-12
By: James C. Humes
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Pandora’s Box
- A History of the First World War
- By: Jorn Leonhard, Patrick Camiller - translator
- Narrated by: David de Vries
- Length: 39 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
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In this monumental history of the First World War, Germany's leading historian of the 20th century's first great catastrophe explains the war's origins, course, and consequences. With an unrivaled combination of depth and global reach, Pandora's Box reveals how profoundly the war shaped the world to come. Jörn Leonhard treats the clash of arms with a sure feel for grand strategy, the everyday tactics of dynamic movement and slow attrition, the race for ever more destructive technologies, and the grim experiences of frontline soldiers.
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Excellent reading of a complex book
- By chris on 02-26-19
By: Jorn Leonhard, and others
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Lost Kingdom
- The Quest for Empire and the Making of the Russian Nation
- By: Serhii Plokhy
- Narrated by: Peter Ganim
- Length: 16 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
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From a preeminent scholar of Eastern Europe and the prizewinning author of Chernobyl, the essential history of Russian imperialism. In 2014, Russia annexed the Crimea and attempted to seize a portion of Ukraine - only the latest iteration of a centuries-long effort to expand Russian boundaries and create a pan-Russian nation. In Lost Kingdom, award-winning historian Serhii Plokhy argues that we can only understand the confluence of Russian imperialism and nationalism today by delving into the nation's history.
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More like a history of Languages spoke in Russia.
- By kucherv on 10-24-17
By: Serhii Plokhy
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Everything Under the Heavens
- How the Past Helps Shape China's Push for Global Power
- By: Howard W. French
- Narrated by: Nicholas Hormann
- Length: 11 hrs and 56 mins
- Unabridged
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For many years after its reform and opening in 1978, China maintained an attitude of false modesty about its ambitions. That role, reports Howard French, has been set aside. China has asserted its place among the global heavyweights, revealing its plans for pan-Asian dominance by building its navy, increasing territorial claims to areas like the South China Sea, and diplomatically bullying smaller players.
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Unique Concept
- By John on 02-24-20
By: Howard W. French
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The Third Reich in History and Memory
- By: Richard J. Evans
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 14 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
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In the 70 years since the demise of the Third Reich, there has been a significant transformation in the ways in which the modern world understands Nazism. In this brilliant and eye-opening collection, Richard J. Evans offers a critical commentary on that transformation, exploring how major changes in perspective have informed research and writing on the Third Reich in recent years. Drawing on his most notable writings, Evans reveals the shifting perspectives on Nazism's rise to political power, its economic intricacies, and its subterranean extension into postwar Germany.
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each book is better than the first. your writing is genius
- By Anonymous User on 05-10-24
By: Richard J. Evans
What listeners say about A Short History of the Twentieth Century
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Anne M. Eustace
- 11-23-21
A good read, I would recommend the book.👍🏻
Good historian,I have read his other books, and would not hesitate in recommending those either. I certainly don’t agree with everything he writes, but even when I disagree with what he writes I can’t help but agreeing with the way he writes it. The speaker, I listen to this on audiobook as opposed to reading it, sounds British, and by that I mean pleasant to listen to.
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- Richard K. Munro
- 05-24-23
Very well done interesting
A balanced outline of 20 th century history. I did not notice any errors of fact
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- Cristie Busby
- 05-29-15
Dissapointingly General
What would have made A Short History of the Twentieth Century better?
I know it's a short history but brief doesn't have to be synonomous with general. It could have easily given some detail about a few major events.
What was most disappointing about John Lukacs’s story?
It didn't mention anything about the King/Queen of England, the space race, major disasters, scientific/medical/tech advances or heros of the 1 & 2 world wars or details of major battles of the wars. I wish he would spend a little more time on these and less time defining certain words/terms.
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