Readings in Ancient History: Thought and Experience from Gilgamesh to St. Augustine [Paperback]

Nels M. Bailkey (Author), Richard Lim (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 30, 2001 | ISBN-10: 0618133836 | ISBN-13: 978-0618133833 | Edition: 6

This primary source reader covers the entire span of ancient history, providing helpful editorial material and carefully selected sources to promote student learning. The selections in this text encourage critical thinking through an examination of parallel developments across ancient civilizations during the same historical periods.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

Nels Bailkey is a retired professor from Tulane University.

Richard Lim, Professor of History at Smith College, teaches the history of the ancient Mediterranean and Near East. His research focuses on the cultural and religious history of late antiquity, and he is currently finishing a book project on the reception of public spectacles during the Later Roman Empire. --This text refers to an alternate Paperback edition.

Product Details

• Paperback: 576 pages
• Publisher: Wadsworth Publishing; 6 edition (November 30, 2001)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0618133836
• ISBN-13: 978-0618133833
• Product Dimensions: 9.3 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.7 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #43,804 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

27 of 28 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Great for Intro to Ancient Hist, January 21, 2003

By 

armenaut (Los Angeles) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Readings in Ancient History: Thought and Experience from Gilgamesh to St. Augustine (Paperback)

I am only writing this as a response to the above review. I hope no one takes the gender remark seriously. The book is simply a collection of primary source readings from Ancient History (Greek and Roman readings comprising the bulk of this). How a book of primary sources can remain gender neutral is beyond me. The book is intended to serve as an introduction to the vast (and not so vast if you're actually doing research in ancient history) amounts of sources. Hence why it only has excerpts from the various readings. The idea is that if a person enjoys reading an excerpt from say Plutarch's Lives, then they will go out and buy it, rather than buying all the possible readings in ancient history individually. One subtle note about the book is that Bailkey's comments preceding each reading often relate them to readings from different eras. This can be very useful in an introductory history class.

5.0 out of 5 stars Fantastic Book, September 29, 2011

By 

Aidan Ryan "Oh Yeah!" (USA) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Readings in Ancient History: Thought and Experience from Gilgamesh to St. Augustine (Paperback)

Really, it almost isn't necessary to say more than that. Bailkey provides insightful commentary and summaries for hundreds of primary-source documents - a delightful compendium of ancient knowledge and a joy to read.

9 of 14 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Very engaging., December 19, 2003

By A Customer

This review is from: Readings in Ancient History: Thought and Experience from Gilgamesh to St. Augustine (Paperback)

I very much like the way that different civilizations are represented as they developed simultaneously. This is a much more engaging approach to the study of history than the bland, textureless stuff being offered by many standard text books. Oh, and I'm a woman.