A History of Britain I: At the Edge of the World 3000BC-AD 1603 (Vol 1) [Audiobook] [Audio CD]

Simon Schama (Author), Stephen Thorne (Narrator)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0754087808 | ISBN-13: 978-0754087809 | Publication Date: September 2003

Change is at the heart of this first volume of Schama's unapologetically personal and grippingly written history. He poses questions of compelling importance, such as: Is Britain one country or many, one culture or several? Has British history unfolded "at the edge of the world" or right at the heart of it? These themes are expounded in the stories that Schama loves to tell, and in a form that is at once traditional and excitingly fresh. The great and the wicked are here, but so are countless ordinary lives, all caught on the rich and teeming canvas on which Schama paints his brilliant portrait of the British people.

Editorial Reviews

From AudioFile

"Delightful" is not an adjective applied to serious history; nonetheless, it well applies to this account of events in Britain from prehistory to the fifteenth century. The author writes with such wit, informality, and personal investment that the listener attends with considerable pleasure and interest. Reader Stephen Thorne enters cheerfully into the conspiracy to beguile the listener. His English baritone is always amiable, always wedded expressively to the text, always sounding as if he woke up that morning eager to get back to the sound studio. One may miss the illustrations and notes of the printed page, but the narrative flow gains power without digressive notes, and the vividness of the writing and quality of reading more than compensate for pictures. In a bygone era, scholars were expected to uphold a high standard of writing, as well as scholarship. This volume more than meets that expectation while Thorne shows us what history should sound like. Y.R. Winner of AudioFile Earphones Award © AudioFile 2004, Portland, Maine-- Copyright © AudioFile, Portland, Maine

Product Details

• Audio CD
• Publisher: Chivers Audio Books (September 2003)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0754087808
• ISBN-13: 978-0754087809
• Product Dimensions: 7.2 x 7.1 x 1.6 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.2 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #5,759,258 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)