Justinian's Flea Audiobook By William Rosen cover art

Justinian's Flea

Plague, Empire, and the Birth of Europe

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Justinian's Flea

By: William Rosen
Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
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The emperor Justinian reunified Rome's fractured empire by defeating the Goths and Vandals who had separated Italy, Spain, and North Africa from imperial rule. At his capital in Constantinople, he built the world's most beautiful building, married the most powerful empress, and wrote the empire's most enduring legal code, seemingly restoring Rome's fortunes for the next five hundred years. Then, in the summer of 542, he encountered a flea. The ensuing outbreak of bubonic plague killed 5,000 people a day in Constantinople and nearly killed Justinian himself.

In Justinian's Flea, William Rosen tells the story of history's first pandemic - a plague seven centuries before the Black Death that killed tens of millions, devastated the empires of Persia and Rome, left a path of victims from Ireland to Iraq, and opened the way for the armies of Islam. Weaving together evolutionary microbiology, economics, military strategy, ecology, and ancient and modern medicine, Rosen offers a sweeping narrative of one of the great hinge moments in history, one that will appeal to readers of John Kelly's The Great Mortality, John Barry's The Great Influenza, and Jared Diamond's Collapse.

©2007 William Rosen (P)2007 Tantor Media Inc. Ancient Europe Greece History & Commentary Medicine & Health Care Industry Medieval Physical Illness & Disease Rome World Africa Middle Ages Imperialism Middle East Latin America Thought-Provoking Italy Medicine
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Popular history should combine scholarly detail and diverting anecdote while making it clear which is which. The book accomplishes this very well. My only quibble is that, while the author deals with the plague in historical and biological depth, it is not the major focus of the book - which is really an overview of Justinian's reign and accomplishments.

Solid and Interesting History

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The writing was very good. However the narration leaves a lot to be desired. Very flat and monotone.

Great writing. Mediocre narration.

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I was expecting this book to be 60/40 information on the plague/history of world. However, it was the opposite. More history of the world than the history of plague. Often times I got confused since there were so many names and the topics seemed to change on a dime. Narration was dull and put me to sleep. Nice voice though. Overall disappointed but glad I was able to listen all the way through.

Good, not great

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The book covers more topics than just Roman history and the detail in the rat, flea and the bacteria was great. Learned more about the bubonic plague from this book than from the great mortality and other books that cover the 14th century Black Death

meandering but a joy

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And I hate myself for saying this, but this story and history is so riveting I wish the narrator had more tone to invoke the pivotal crossroads this history provokes.

Great content

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What made the experience of listening to Justinian's Flea the most enjoyable?

First, I buy anything read by Garrett Whitener. Just listening to him read regardless of the text is a joy. As far as this particular book goes, it's all in the inifinite details. There is a theory about the large sweep of history but you have to see it yourself (although it is revealed at the end in case you didn't see it). If you don't like details this isn't the book for you. I've gone back many times to listen in particular to the chapter on the flea itself and the life cycle of the Black Plague vector. I can certainly understand that reviews of the book are binary - you like it a lot or you don't a lot. I like it a lot - a whole lot.

Who was your favorite character and why?

The flea!

Which character ??? as performed by Barrett Whitener ??? was your favorite?

I suppose Justinian's wife although Whitener does Roman generals beautifully too.

Any additional comments?

If you don't like this book I recommend you look for others read by Whitener that you may like. He is the all time best reader in my opinion and he does read books of many different genre.

Beautifuly Read, Lots of Details

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This was an interesting book, but the narration was extremely dry. I would give the text a 4 out of five, but the narration drops it down to a 3.

Good, but dry

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Reader was monotone, made listening to the minutiae difficult. Great premise, I learned a lot, but not for the novice.

you will need a cast of characters

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This is an insightful and entertaining history of the plague mixed with an insightful telling of the history of Justinian. I think of it as the unexpected intersection of biology and politics. Both are covered in fascinating and always entertaining detail. The author has clearly mastered his subject and he relates his insights with ease and wit.

This is one of those books that I mark as a must to re-listen.

Brilliant

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This is not a book about the plague, but more, a book about how the plague impacted Roman history until the empire's final end. The author gives incredible detail to the stories behind the actions which brought Y.Pestus to Roman shores. Even if the reader has only a slight knowledge of late Roman history, they will be well supported in their understanding. A good read for the history and plague buff.

In Depth

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