
The Silk Roads
A New History of the World
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Narrated by:
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Laurence Kennedy
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By:
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Peter Frankopan
“This is history on a grand scale, with a sweep and ambition that is rare... A proper historical epic of dazzling range and achievement.” (William Dalrymple, The Guardian)
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 20th 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.
©2016 Peter Frankopan (P)2021 Random House AudioListeners also enjoyed...




















Critic reviews
“This provocative history challenges the view of the West as heir to a pure Greco-Roman culture. For Frankopan, the brutish West owes its more enlightened traditions to the lands east of Italy and west of China, which were, for centuries, 'the centre of the world'… 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.” (Nishant Dahiya, 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… The sheer abundance of Frankopan’s information can become an omnivorous pleasure, and its details add color and particularity to his text… He plunders data magnificently... A brave, subtly personal project of inspiring ambition and epic scope.” (Colin Thubron, New York Review of Books)
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Good review of history
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Outstanding work!
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West bad, east good
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Understanding of the area. This is important
Excellent
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I compelling narrative history of the Middle East.
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the story line, and how detailed the book is. perfect read
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Really good
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Narrator is hilarious.
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Surprisingly Good
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The past tells the future
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