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Worlds at War

The 2,500-Year Struggle Between East and West

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Worlds at War

By: Anthony Pagden
Narrated by: John Lee
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About this listen

 In the tradition of Jared Diamond and Jacques Barzun, prize-winning historian Anthony Pagden presents a sweeping history of the long struggle between East and West, from the Greeks to the present day.

The relationship between East and West has always been one of turmoil. In this historical tour de force, a renowned historian leads us from the world of classical antiquity, through the Dark Ages, to the Crusades, Europe's resurgence, and the dominance of the Ottoman Empire, which almost shattered Europe entirely. Pagden travels from Napoleon in Egypt to Europe's carving up of the finally moribund Ottomans - creating the modern Middle East along the way - and on to the present struggles in Iraq.

Throughout, we learn a tremendous amount about what "East" and "West" were and are, and how it has always been competing worldviews and psychologies, more than religion or power grabs, that have fed the mistrust and violence between East and West. In Pagden's dark but provocative view, this struggle cannot help but go on.

©2008 Anthony Pagden (P)2008 Tantor Anthropology Botany & Plants Civilisation Earth Sciences Gender Studies Crusade Imperialism Ancient History Ottoman Empire War Refugee Royalty King Self-Determination Ancient Greece

Critic Reviews

"An accessible and lucid exploration of the history of the East-West split....Fans of Jacques Barzun and Jared Diamond will be most impressed by Pagden's big picture perspective." ( Publishers Weekly)

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excellent

Great narration, This book stays on task, and does what it says on the label. A good idea well executed.

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Profile Image for Pierz Newton-John

An excellent overview of world history in general

One of the best history audio books I've listened to in terms of extracting the most important information out of the welter of events and making sense of it. Highly recommended. I dislike John Lee's pretentious performances in general and this was no different, but I've almost learned to ignore that by now...

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Interesting

Well narrated, with many points of interest throughout, there were also times were it felt a little dry. Still overall a decent listen.

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