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Justinian's Flea
- Plague, Empire, and the Birth of Europe
- Narrated by: Barrett Whitener
- Length: 11 hrs and 52 mins
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Publisher's summary
In Justinian's Flea, William Rosen tells the story of history's first pandemic - a plague seven centuries before the Black Death that killed tens of millions, devastated the empires of Persia and Rome, left a path of victims from Ireland to Iraq, and opened the way for the armies of Islam. Weaving together evolutionary microbiology, economics, military strategy, ecology, and ancient and modern medicine, Rosen offers a sweeping narrative of one of the great hinge moments in history, one that will appeal to readers of John Kelly's The Great Mortality, John Barry's The Great Influenza, and Jared Diamond's Collapse.
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Islamic conquest history from the outside
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The Templars
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- By: Michael Haag
- Narrated by: Guy Bethell
- Length: 11 hrs and 6 mins
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Arguably one of the most provocative, puzzling, and misunderstood organizations of medieval times, the legendary Knights Templar have always been shrouded in a veil of mystery, while inspiring popular culture from Indiana Jones to Dan Brown. In The Templars, author Michael Haag offers a definitive history of these loyal Christian soldiers of the Crusades - sworn to defend the Holy Land and Jerusalem, but ultimately damned and destroyed by the Pope and his church.
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Narrator ruined it
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By: Michael Haag
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Marathon
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Published to coincide with Marathon's 2500th anniversary, a riveting history of the historic battle. The Battle of Marathon in 490 B.C. is not only understood as the most decisive event in the struggle between the Greeks and the Persians, but can also be seen as perhaps the most significant moment in our collective history. 10,000 Athenian citizens faced a Persian military force of more than 25,000.
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Effectively evokes the world of ancient greece
- By Aaron on 11-02-10
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The Mental Floss History of the World
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About 60,000 years ago, the first Homo sapiens were just beginning their move across the grasslands and up the ladder of civilization. Everything since then, as they say, is history. Just in case you were sleeping in class that day, the geniuses at mental_floss magazine have put together a hilarious (and historically accurate) primer on everything you need to know---and that means the good stuff.
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Brilliant and Funny. What more could you want?
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The Race for Paradise
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In The Race for Paradise, Paul M. Cobb offers a new history of the confrontations between Muslims and Franks we now call the "Crusades", one that emphasizes the diversity of Muslim experiences of the European holy war. There is more to the story than Jerusalem, the Templars, Saladin, and the Assassins. Cobb considers the Arab perspective on all shores of the Muslim Mediterranean, from Spain to Syria.
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A heady piece of history and a romp.
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In Search of the Dark Ages
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In Search of the Dark Ages is an unrivalled exploration of the origins of English identity, and the best-selling book that established Michael Wood as one of Britain's leading historians. Now, on the book's 40th anniversary, this fully revised and expanded edition illuminates further the fascinating and mysterious centuries between the Romans and the Norman Conquest.
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Brilliant!
- By Dee Goulet on 08-31-22
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When Montezuma Met Cortes
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In 1519, the Spanish conquistador Hernando Cortés first met Montezuma, the Aztec emperor, at the entrance to the capital city of Tenochtitlan. This introduction - the prelude to the Spanish seizure of Mexico City and to European colonization of the mainland of the Americas - has long been the symbol of Cortés' bold and brilliant military genius. Montezuma, on the other hand, is remembered as a coward who gave away a vast empire and touched off a wave of colonial invasions across the hemisphere. But is this really what happened?
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Flawed, but worth it for those interested.
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Walls
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With Frye as our raconteur-guide, we journey back to a time before barriers of brick and stone even existed - to an era in which nomadic tribes vied for scarce resources, and each man was bred to a life of struggle. Ultimately, those same men would create edifices of mud, brick, and stone and with them effectively divide humanity: On one side were those the walls protected; on the other, those the walls kept out. The stars of this narrative are the walls themselves - rising up in places as ancient and exotic as Mesopotamia, Babylon, Greece, China, Rome, Mongolia, Afghanistan, the lower Mississippi, and even Central America....
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A boom that will transform how you view all of history.
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The Sea Wolves
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In AD 793 Norse warriors struck the English isle of Lindisfarne and laid waste to it. Wave after wave of Norse "sea wolves" followed in search of plunder, land, or a glorious death in battle. Much of the British Isles fell before their swords, and the continental capitals of Paris and Aachen were sacked in turn. Turning east, they swept down the uncharted rivers of central Europe, captured Kiev, and clashed with mighty Constantinople, the capital of the Byzantine Empire.
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A little dry but very interesting
- By Angela on 08-30-15
By: Lars Brownworth
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What listeners say about Justinian's Flea
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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- Customer in MD
- 04-23-20
Great writing. Mediocre narration.
The writing was very good. However the narration leaves a lot to be desired. Very flat and monotone.
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- Ayla Hemenway
- 08-22-21
Good, not great
I was expecting this book to be 60/40 information on the plague/history of world. However, it was the opposite. More history of the world than the history of plague. Often times I got confused since there were so many names and the topics seemed to change on a dime. Narration was dull and put me to sleep. Nice voice though. Overall disappointed but glad I was able to listen all the way through.
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Overall
- Quahog
- 05-18-10
Solid and Interesting History
Popular history should combine scholarly detail and diverting anecdote while making it clear which is which. The book accomplishes this very well. My only quibble is that, while the author deals with the plague in historical and biological depth, it is not the major focus of the book - which is really an overview of Justinian's reign and accomplishments.
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- TBear28
- 07-30-20
Great content
And I hate myself for saying this, but this story and history is so riveting I wish the narrator had more tone to invoke the pivotal crossroads this history provokes.
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- Scott Guthery
- 05-10-12
Beautifuly Read, Lots of Details
What made the experience of listening to Justinian's Flea the most enjoyable?
First, I buy anything read by Garrett Whitener. Just listening to him read regardless of the text is a joy. As far as this particular book goes, it's all in the inifinite details. There is a theory about the large sweep of history but you have to see it yourself (although it is revealed at the end in case you didn't see it). If you don't like details this isn't the book for you. I've gone back many times to listen in particular to the chapter on the flea itself and the life cycle of the Black Plague vector. I can certainly understand that reviews of the book are binary - you like it a lot or you don't a lot. I like it a lot - a whole lot.
Who was your favorite character and why?
The flea!
Which character ??? as performed by Barrett Whitener ??? was your favorite?
I suppose Justinian's wife although Whitener does Roman generals beautifully too.
Any additional comments?
If you don't like this book I recommend you look for others read by Whitener that you may like. He is the all time best reader in my opinion and he does read books of many different genre.
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Overall
- Nikoli Gogol
- 12-29-07
A Credible Theory That Explains Current Events
Picture this. In the 6th century AD, the Emperor Justinian decides to re-conquer what had been the fullest extent of the Roman Empire from his base in Constantinople. He sends an underequipped general, Belisarius, on this mission.
Through guile and tactical genius, Belisarius regains the Roman Empire beating every enemy he faces: Vandals, Goths, and Gauls. North Africa, Italy, the Levant, and parts or modern day Europe are re-conquered. This accomplished, the newly conquered empire could have been the modern colossus governed under a newly codified set of laws sponsored by Justinian.
Unfortunately, Constantinople and the rest of the empire suffer from a plague that kills 25,000.000 people (a very large percentage of the world’s population at the time) and continues to kill in subsequent years.
Immune from the plague are the isolated tribes of Arabs who come under the sway of a merchant, Mohamed, who preaches a new religion that features jihad. The newly conquered territories cannot be held by Byzantium and the effects of the plague have effectively shaped the modern world.
The book is complex and the narrator does the best he can but the story can be followed.
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12 people found this helpful
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- Loren
- 10-25-14
Good Story, Bad Narration
Would you try another book from William Rosen and/or Barrett Whitener?
The story itself is great and Rosen seems to have written a very complete narrative about the reign of Justinian and the effects of the plague on Rome. Whitener is so absolutely boring and monotone that he makes listening to a good story difficult to say the least.
Who would you have cast as narrator instead of Barrett Whitener?
Anyone else
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- JB
- 11-14-19
Please re-title this book
Amazing amazing job on the eastern Roman empire, history, wars, intrigue, and finally… The plague. Only about 15% of this book is about the plague, so if you are looking for a book on the plague… Do not buy this book. However, if you are interested in early Christendom, early European formation, palace intrigue, and in general every day life of those who lived in the 6th century, This is the book for you. This book should not be named Justinian’s flea, but should be named something that reflects the true story line.
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Overall
- Chris
- 07-22-07
Good, but dry
This was an interesting book, but the narration was extremely dry. I would give the text a 4 out of five, but the narration drops it down to a 3.
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12 people found this helpful
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- Amazon Customer
- 02-20-19
you will need a cast of characters
Reader was monotone, made listening to the minutiae difficult. Great premise, I learned a lot, but not for the novice.
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