In Sailing the Wine-Dark Sea; his fourth volume to explore “the hinges of history;†Thomas Cahill escorts the reader on another entertaining—and historically unassailable—journey through the landmarks of art and bloodshed that defined Greek culture nearly three millennia ago.In the city-states of Athens and Sparta and throughout the Greek islands; honors could be won in making love and war; and lives were rife with contradictions. By developing the alphabet; the Greeks empowered the reader; demystified experience; and opened the way for civil discussion and experimentation—yet they kept slaves. The glorious verses of the Iliad recount a conflict in which rage and outrage spur men to action and suggest that their “bellicose society of gleaming metals and rattling weapons†is not so very distant from more recent campaigns of “shock and awe.†And; centuries before Zorba; Greece was a land where music; dance; and freely flowing wine were essential to the high life. Granting equal time to the sacred and the profane; Cahill rivets our attention to the legacies of an ancient and enduring worldview.
#590438 in Books Edvard Radzinsky 1993-06-15 1993-06-15Original language:EnglishPDF # 1 9.20 x 1.13 x 5.99l; 1.19 #File Name: 0385469624496 pages5x10 inches 475 pages
Review
0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. Interesting but not a smooth translationBy Micki D.An interesting book if you find the Romonov family interesting or are a history nut. It is not a smooth translation; however; so it is a bit tedious to read.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. A bad dream for a nightmare.By JLEA resounding; yes. The book met all my expectations. Very well written; especially the excepts from the Tsar and his wife's diaries. The book gives you a glimpse into a tragic tale of a man who; more or less; abdicated twice. Firstly; he allowed his wife to run affairs when he was absent; and secondly; of course; in 1917. Russia; by and large; only understands strength; and that is why Ivan the Terrible and Peter the Great were so successful in keeping the country unified. The Tsar overall was a very weak and ineffectual leader. and through such weakness; this facilitated the murder of his family. As you leave the book; one ponders; did life actually improve for the average Russian? They trades a mild; Totalitarian regime for a tyranical menacing one that has no value of human life. And thus; the Tsar's cold-blooded murder; along with his 4 daughters; son; and wife illustrates this perfectly.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. The last Russian Tsar by the today Russian AuthorBy Anna the ReaderI do really enjoy reading this book because it is written by Russian author who is telling us about his last Tsar who was himself Russian. Unlike the Western authors; who did the great job in writing about the last Romanovs coming from the previous books or memories such as by the court people;tutors;relatives; etc. did not have the details or information about the execution of the family. Luckily Mr Radzinsky himself Russian had the opportunity of encountering with real Russian people; and accessing the archives on the Romanovs - thanks to Gorbachev's glasnost. Also he received the letters by the readers because he wrote the articles about the imperial family in the newspaper who helped him to fill in the gaps - those Russians lived under the imperial Russia and the Soviet rule; and their families or friends recalled their stories to the author. He put their comments in the book.I realised what Alix was really like; who was so naive under the influence by Rasputin; she kept smoothing her Nicky on how to run the imperial Russia. Earlier I've read Mr Radzinsky's The Rasputin File; I learnt more about the mess made by Alix mainly due to Rasputin's cleverly control. In this book; I found some parts were too long for example the exchanges of correspondences between Alix and Nicky when he was at the front during the war.This book might be the last history about the last Tsar if you want to know more about the old Russia before the Revolution.
