Europe Audiobooks | History

Paul Johnson's book is a refreshing return to a concept whose time has come once again: the Great Man theory of biography. It serves as "the greatest possible refutation of those who hold that events are governed by forces, classes, economics, and geography rather than the powerful wills of men and women". Napoleon truly was the Great Man of his age, a towering and terrible genius who managed to conquer the Continent. In Napoleon's insatiable hunger for power, Johnson sees a pragmatist constrained neither by patriotism nor by ideology, a brilliant opportunist who fulfilled his ambition in the aftermath of the French Revolution. Johnson puts Napoleon in the context of his times, but his effort seems to underline even more profoundly how Napoleon stood out above them.

Paul Johnson (Author), John Lee (Narrator)

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The Fracture Zone: A Return to the Balkans

Award-winning journalist and author Simon Winchester takes readers on a personal tour of the Balkans. Combining history and interviews with the people who live there, Winchester offers a fascinating glimpse into the complex issues at work in this chaotic region. Unrest in the Balkans has gone on for centuries. A seasoned reporter, Winchester visited the region twenty years ago. When Kosovo reached crisis level in 1997, Winchester thought a return visit to the beleaguered area would help to make sense out of the awful violence. He decided to use Vienna and Istanbul, two great cities whose rivalries helped create the dynamics at work today, as the beginning and end points of his trip. Not specifically a book about war, it is more a portrait of a place and its people in turmoil. Simon Winchester offers an insightful look at a little understood conflict. Steven Crossley's masterful narration will make listeners feel as if they have entered the combat zone.

Simon Winchester (Author), Steven Crossley (Narrator)

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Teller of Tales: The Life of Arthur Conan Doyle

This compelling biography examines the extraordinary life and strange contrasts of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, the struggling provincial doctor who became the most popular storyteller of his age when he created Sherlock Holmes. From his youthful exploits aboard a whaling ship to his often stormy friendships with such figures as Harry Houdini and George Bernard Shaw, Conan Doyle lived a life as gripping as any of his adventures. Exhaustively researched and elegantly written, Teller of Tales sets aside many myths and misconceptions to present a vivid portrait of the man behind the legend of Baker Street, with a particular emphasis on the Psychic Crusade that dominated his final years, the work that Conan Doyle himself felt to be "the most important thing in the world".

Daniel Stashower (Author), Richard Matthews (Narrator)

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Dante

In Dante, Lewis traces the life and complex development (emotional, artistic, philosophical) of this supreme poet-historian, from his wanderings through Tuscan hills and splendid churches to his days as a young soldier fighting for democracy, to his civic leadership and years of embittered exile from the city that would fiercely reclaim him a century later. Lewis reveals the boy who first encounters the mythic Beatrice, the lyric poet obsessed with life and death, the grand master of dramatic narrative and allegory, and his monumental search for ultimate truth in The Divine Comedy. It is in this masterpiece of self-discovery and redemption that Lewis finds Dante's own autobiography and the sum of all his shifting passions and epiphanies.

R.W.B. Lewis (Author), Grover Gardner (Narrator)

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The Great Shame : And the Triumph of the Irish in the English-Speaking World

Thomas Keneally, the Booker Prize-winning author of Schindler's List, is universally praised for crafting smooth narratives from authentic historical events. With The Great Shame, he turns his insightful eye toward the Irish struggle through the nineteenth century. In sharp contrast to much of Europe, Ireland was a terrible place to be during the 1800s. Many of the nation's finest people set sail for America and Canada. Others were forcibly exiled to Australia for committing crimes as minor as shoplifting. And approximately one million perished when a widespread potato fungus fueled a devastating famine. But the Irish survived-on their homeland and spanning the globe-making profound contributions to the world. Epic in scope, this account captures the humanity of these events and ultimately emerges as a message of hope and glory. Keneally, an Australian with Irish bloodties, powerfully examines many shattered lives-including those of his own relatives. Narrator John McDonough brings a spirit to this extraordinary book that will not soon be forgotten.

Thomas Keneally (Author), John McDonough (Narrator)

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How the Irish Saved Civilization

The perfect St. Patrick's Day gift, and a book in the best tradition of popular history -- the untold story of Ireland's role in maintaining Western culture while the Dark Ages settled on Europe. Every year millions of Americans celebrate St. Patrick's Day, but they may not be aware of how great an influence St. Patrick was on the subsequent history of civilization. Not only did he bring Christianity to Ireland, he instilled a sense of literacy and learning that would create the conditions that allowed Ireland to become "the isle of saints and scholars" -- and thus preserve Western culture while Europe was being overrun by barbarians. In this entertaining and compelling narrative, Thomas Cahill tells the story of how Europe evolved from the classical age of Rome to the medieval era. Without Ireland, the transition could not have taken place. Not only did Irish monks and scribes maintain the very record of Western civilization -- copying manuscripts of Greek and Latin writers, both pagan and Christian, while libraries and learning on the continent were forever lost -- they brought their uniquely Irish world-view to the task. As Cahill delightfully illustrates, so much of the liveliness we associate with medieval culture has its roots in Ireland. When the seeds of culture were replanted on the European continent, it was from Ireland that they were germinated. In the tradition of Barbara Tuchman's A Distant Mirror, How The Irish Saved Civilization reconstructs an era that few know about but which is central to understanding our past and our cultural heritage. But it conveys its knowledge with a winking wit that aptly captures the sensibility of the unsung Irish who relaunched civilization. From the Hardcover edition.

Thomas Cahill (Author), Donal Donnelly (Narrator)

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James Joyce

One of Ireland's best current novelists provides a thumbnail sketch of Ireland's greatest writer. A passionate and sensuous portrait, James Joyce is a return to the land of politics, history, saints, and scholars that shaped the creator of the 20th century's groundbreaking novel, Ulysses. O'Brien traces Joyce's early days as a rambunctious young Jesuit student; his falling in love with a tall, red-haired Galway girl named Nora Barnacle on Bloomsday; and his exile to Trieste where he found success, love, and finally, despair. Joyce's raucous life as well as thoughtful commentary on his major writings is presented without the academic accoutrements that have made other Joyce biographies so difficult to read. O'Brien captures with simplicity the brilliance and complexity of this great master.

Edna O'Brien (Author), Donada Peters (Narrator)

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Sotheby's-Bidding for Class

In this splendid account of the world's oldest and richest auction house, Lacey brings to life the personalities, ambition and shrewd business dealings behind the glamour and the glitz. From its beginning in 18th century London as a modest book dealer, Sotheby's owes its rise to a succession of clever and colourful entrepreneurs who knew how to read the winds of economic change and sniff out buyers and sellers of the moment.

Robert Lacey (Author), Simon Prebble (Narrator)

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A Woman, a Man, and Two Kingdoms: The Story of Madame D'Épinay and the Abbé Galiani

The 18th century's Age of Enlightenment in pre-Revolutionary France continues to fascinate us today. Steegmuller brings his scholarly talents to this collection of the letters of Mme. Louise d'Epinay, best-known for the treatment she received in Rousseau's Confessions. Eavesdropping on the writings of this intelligent woman, the listener gains not only insights into her friendship with Italian priest-diplomat, Ferdinando Galiani, but also a glance into the life of France's elite.

Francis Steegmuller (Author), Davina Porter (Narrator)

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Citizens: A Chronicle of the French Revolution

From one of the truly preeminent historians of our time, this is a landmark book chronicling the French Revolution. Simon Schama deftly refutes the contemporary notion that the French Revolution represented an uprising of the oppressed poor against a decadent aristocracy and corrupt court. He argues instead that the revolution was born of a rift among the elite over the speed of progress toward modernity and science, social and economic change. Schama's approach, weaving in and out of private and public lives in the fashion of a novel, brings us closer than we have ever been to the harrowing and seductive French Revolution. A New York Times bestseller. One of Time Magazine Best Books of the Decade.

Simon Schama (Author), Frederick Davidson (Narrator)

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Histoire de France : vie du Chevalier Bayard

Bayard naquit vers 1475, au château de la Bussière dans la vallée de Grésivaudan. Envoyé très jeune à Grenoble, il se forma sous la direction de Mgr Alleman, évêque de cette ville. A l'âage de 13 ans, rappelé au château paternel, il ne rêve plus que de faits d'armes et de batailles. C'est alors que son oncle le présenta au Duc de Savoir Charles Ier, qui tenait à ce moment sa cour à Chambéry et qui le prit comme page. Bayard suivit ce prince quand il alla rendre visite à Lyon au roi Charles VIII. Bayard, invité à manoeuvrer son cheval devant le roi, le fit avec une telle maîtrise que celui-ci le demanda au Duc de Savoie. Le 6 juillet 1503, Bayard seul défendit le pont du Garigliano contre les Espagnols, commandés par Conzalve de Cordoue, en attendant le retour de son écuyer Le Basco qu'il avait envoyé chercher des renforts. En 1515, François Ier monta sur le trône. A la bataille de Marignan, Bayard combattit si vaillamment aux côtés du roi que François Ier voulut être armé chevalier par lui. Abandonné à Robecco par Bonnivet, Bayard se défendit avec courage; le 30 avril 1524, il fut frappé d'un coup d'arquebuse qui lui rompit l'épine dorsale. Ses derniers moments, et notamment son apostrophe au connétable de Bourbon à qui il reprocha sa trahison, furent profondément émouvants. La France consternée pleura son brave et vertueux chevalier. Il n'est pas dans le passé d'images plus nobles que celles de la vie de Bayard. Du petit 'Riquet' de la cour de Savoie, au grand soldat mourant au pied d'un châtaigner d'Italie, un idéal constant : l'Honneur. Collection 'Le Passé nous parle', 'Le Chevalier Bayard' : adaptation et présentation par Marthe Le Prestre.

Marthe Le Prestre (Author), Marthe Le Prestre (Narrator)

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Europe Audiobooks in History