The Jewish War

By: Flavius Josephus

Narrated by: Charlton Griffin

In AD 66, nationalist and religious revolutionaries in Judaea led a ferocious revolt of the Jewish people against the authority of mighty Rome, culminating in the greatest upheaval and savagery the world had known up to that time. By the end of the conflict seven years later, over one million Jews had perished and tens of thousands were sold into slavery. Until the Holocaust, it remained the greatest tragedy ever endured by a people.

How had this once prosperous region been laid low, and by what process did its fratricidal feuds take it down a slippery slope to utter annihilation? Fortunately for us, there was an eyewitness to the historical events: Joseph ben Matthias, known to posterity as Flavius Josephus.

In beautifully written and clearly understood prose, Josephus sets out to explain the origin of the conflict. He describes how the fanatical zealots came to dominate the political life of Judaea, illustrates how the Romans were drawn into the fight, and shows how the war was carried on by both sides, ending with the famous siege of the fortress of Masada.

The Jewish War is one of the most important histories to survive from ancient times, dealing as it does with a subject of which there are very few sources. This is an engaging and heartfelt chronicle by an eyewitness who lived through it all.

Public Domain (P)2012 Audio Connoisseur

Classic history contemporary to the events

A classic history written in the 1st Century A.D. This is important to understand as it is different from how history is written today. If it were a modern piece it would probably get a 2-3. Little sourcing, long monologues, limited cross references, etc. So read it as it is.

The first point that caught me was the scope of the book. I thought it was about the Roman Jewish war of 66-70 AD. It starts about 200 years prior to that and carries through to 70 AD. The second point was how hard fought the final war seemed to be. Usually it is presented something like, Jews revolted surprising Rome, some initial limited success, Rome reacted, marched in and crushed Jews, big finale at Masada, the end. Josephus details a bitter conflict, that although Rome was never in serious danger, cost Rome far more in blood and treasure than was expected. (and, of course, the author was a brilliant fellow, almost as brilliant as his benefactors Vespasian and Titus, the winners of the war).

Fascinating history

This is a fascinating and enlightening book that I have wanted to read for years. However, the narrators constant mispronunciation of words made it difficult and frustrating to follow the story. The narrators tone, rhythm, and expression were just perfect. But he just kept mispronouncing word after word after word. Someone should have reviewed his work. He has the potential to be an extremely good narrator for this type of literature. He just needs to get the words pronounced correctly!

Satisfied the need to understand

Satisfied the need to understand what happened in the Post years of Christ. Some sources try to say this is a fraudulent source, but I disagree. I will continue to further my studies

History

Real nice piece of history and how ancient world looked like through the eyes of historian Josephus Flavius.

great buy

I loved this Book & the accuracy. I would reccomend this book for all types of readers.