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Persian Fire [Audiobook] (Audio Cassette)

by Tom Holland (Author)

5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

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Product Details

Audio Cassette: 4 pages
Publisher: Time Warner (Nov 1 2005)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1405501154
ISBN-13: 978-1405501156

Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (2 customer reviews)

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Product Description

In 480 BC, Xerxes, the King of Persia, led an invasion of mainland Greece. Its success should have been a formality. For seventy years, victory - rapid, spectacular victory - had seemed the birthright of the Persian Empire. In the space of a single generation, they had swept across the Near East, shattering ancient kingdoms, storming famous cities, putting together an empire which stretched from India to the shores of the Aegean. As a result of those conquests, Xerxes ruled as the most powerful man on the planet. Yet somehow, astonishingly, against the largest expeditionary force ever assembled, the Greeks of the mainland managed to hold out. The Persians were turned back. Greece remained free. Had the Greeks been defeated at Salamis, not only would the West have lost its first struggle for independence and survival, but it is unlikely that there would ever have been such and entity as the West at all. Tom Holland's brilliant new book describes the very first 'clash of Empires' between East and West. Once again he has found extraordinary parallels between the ancient world and our own. There is no competing popular book describing these events. --This text refers to an out of print or unavailable edition of this title.

About the Author

Tom Holland received a double first from Cambridge. He has adapted Homer, Herodotus, Thucydides and Virgil for BBC Radio. He was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize for RUBICON and won the Hessell-Tiltman Prize for History 2004. --This text refers to the Paperback edition.

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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars An excellent book, Mar 2 2008

By	K. Kehler (B.C., Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Persian Fire (Paperback)

I read Holland's first book -- Rubicon -- and enjoyed it, so I was pleased to see him tackle another important moment in classical history, this time the repulsing by the (barely united) Greeks of the massive Persian invading army. As mentioned, Holland's first book was a revelation to me (and many others) as a work of popular history, but if anything Holland has improved his writing. The book is superbly written, full of clear prose, vivid images, and well marshaled information. He gives fascinating historical overviews of the competing principals. Most of us know a fair bit about the history of Athens and Sparta -- though Holland's chapter on Sparta taught me a lot -- but we (in the West) probably don't know nearly as much about the internecine battling and aristocratic maneuvering that led to the rise -- and imperialistic bent -- of the Persian empire. So, there's plenty of political history, cultural information, discussions of religion and cultural practices, and some terrific military history in this fine book, which, I hardly need to add, ends well: with the liberty-espousing, city-state dwelling Greeks (though by no means enamoured of equality) besting their terrifying foes. If you liked Rubicon, or just like a very well written work of history, you are in for a treat.

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5.0 out of 5 stars Holland's best, Oct 30 2009

By	Ryan B. Ward (London, Ontario Canada) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

This review is from: Persian Fire (Paperback)

I'm a fan of Tom Holland in general, having also read and enjoyed Millenium and Rubicon. In my opinion, though, Persian Fire is his best work. The writing style is extremely engaging, and the discussion of the earlier histories of Persia, Sparta and Athens are both fascinating and helpful in understanding the main body of the text. The discussion of Persian history is especially useful, given that relatively little has been written about the history of that empire from its own perspective. The length of the work seems to me to be appropriate, enough to include sufficient detail without slowing the narrative. The one criticism I have of this work is that it includes a very short discussion of early Greek philosophy which is misleading. It contrasts the ethical dualism of Persian royal ideology with the materialistic and proto-scientific speculation of the Ionian Greeks. While there is some merit in this contrast, Holland pushes it much to far, suggesting that ancient Greek materialism and modern materialism were fundamentally the same. However, the Ionians didn't make as much of a distinction between spirit and matter as more modern writers often do. For example, Thales, who argued that everything was composed of water, also stated that "all things are full of souls". The idea that justice was an effective force in the events of the world was also common among the Ionians, suggesting that perhaps Greek philosophy and Persian royal ideology weren't after all so far apart.
However, with this one minor proviso, I entirely recommend this book, which is both an informative account of Persian and Greek history, and an extremely entertaining read.

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