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    Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization
    Unavailable
    Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization
    Unavailable
    Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization
    Audiobook10 hours

    Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization

    Published by Penguin Random House Audio

    4/5

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    Currently unavailable

    Currently unavailable

    About this audiobook

    Filled with unforgettable stories of emperors, generals, and religious patriarchs, as well as fascinating glimpses into the life of the ordinary citizen, Lost to the West reveals how much we owe to the Byzantine Empire that was the equal of any in its achievements, appetites, and enduring legacy.

    For more than a millennium, Byzantium reigned as the glittering seat of Christian civilization. When Europe fell into the Dark Ages, Byzantium held fast against Muslim expansion, keeping Christianity alive.  Streams of wealth flowed into Constantinople, making possible unprecedented wonders of art and architecture. And the emperors who ruled Byzantium enacted a saga of political intrigue and conquest as astonishing as anything in recorded history.

    Lost to the West is replete with stories of assassination, mass mutilation and execution, sexual scheming, ruthless grasping for power, and clashing armies that soaked battlefields with the blood of slain warriors numbering in the tens of thousands.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherPenguin Random House Audio
    Release dateSep 15, 2009
    ISBN9780307577252
    Unavailable
    Lost to the West: The Forgotten Byzantine Empire That Rescued Western Civilization

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    Reviews for Lost to the West

    4/5

    115 ratings13 reviews

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    • 5/5
      I wanted to learn more about the Byzantine contribution to the renassaince, although the author does point to it in places this is more of a summary of the empires whole history. It still is a great read for anyone wanting to learn about the so called dark ages while European civilization was not only surviving it was thriving under Byzantium.
    • 5/5
      I approached this book without knowing much about it or its author. I now firmly believe it to be brilliant, with the last two-three chapters being particularly poignant and brilliantly written. We should all learn more about Byzantine history. Highly recommended!
    • 4/5
      I enjoyed this book. The large number of names and dynasties are sometimes difficult to follow due to the quick succession of rulers but the dynasty guide in the back is quite helpful. I must say I've learned quite a bit while reading.
    • 5/5
      It is very difficult to compress over a thousands years of history in a book but the author of this book has managed to communicate and describe all the tribulations of this long history very skillfully and clearly so the reader at end has a grasp of what had happened in that area of the world. I truly enjoyed listening to the narrations of this book and looking forward to reading other works by the author.
    • 5/5
      Brownworth is a fantastic storyteller, who makes history come alive. I immensely enjoyed this title.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      There are a number of reviews critical of inaccuracies or the amateur character of the book. These criticisms are just. Mr. Brownworth is not an academic, nor does he always get his facts right. If that undermined any thesis of the book, or intruded on his prose it would bother me. However, this is not the case.

      I found it best to embrace his status as a non-professional historian. He's a bit like a charismatic uncle; an autodidact with lots of great stories. He's splendid company and instills an interest in a place and time that I don't know as well as he does. He paints with broad strokes, but I find that a simple reflection of his great passion for his subject.

      I've read Norwich and Judith Herrin and I'm happy to put this on the shelf next to them.

      His next book- and I hope that there is one- will not be graded so leniently. But be assured I will read it.
    • 3/5
      I enjoyed listening to this (especially since the author read it) but it is really the fastforwarded version. It was a good overview but if you already know the history of the Byzantine empire you probably wouldn't like it.
    • 3/5
      A good overview of the history, from the end of the Western Roman Empire to the final fall of the Eastern Roman Empire in Byzantium. Partially by necessity told in "great man" style, with the success or failure of each era in Constantinople depicted as depending solely on the greatness of the Emperor (or occasionally Empress) and generals of the moment. I expect the reality was rather more complex.Gives a good sense of the ebb and flow of the various competing empires and kingdoms over time, and a much better idea of the connections between West and East, which remained substantial.
    • 3/5
      I listened to the audio version of this and enjoyed most of it, but he lost credibility with me when Brownworth failed to realize that the 'blonde prisoners of war' Constans dallied with to the outrage of his own military were in fact 'blond archers,' in other words, German soldiers he consorted with sexually and favored over his own military staff.
    • 5/5
      magnificently portrayed. .a must read.highly recommended! Long live Byzantium .

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      Like most people, I have heard about the Byzantium empire. But I never really knew much about it and this book provided a very nice introduction to this period. The author skillfully takes us from Diocletian's third century reign to to the fall of Constantinople as it was overrun by the Turks in 1453. The author manages to cover about a thousand years of history by focusing on the events and people that he felt had the most impact on this time period. He shines a light on a period that he feels has been largely forgotten and does not receive its historical due. He details the ways in which their culture, legal systems, etc have seeped into today's western life. Like all such stories through the ages, its leaders are sometimes good, sometimes manipulative and many times acted in accordance with their selfish desires while cloaking such acts as if in the interest of their people. For a true history buff and one well versed in this time period, this book may seem inadequate for such a point of view. But as someone who knows very little about this subject, I found his approach to be very accessible and conversational in a way that kept me interested. The author's sometimes humorous tone will probably make his writing seem less academic for scholarly endeavors. In many ways, I feel that his aim was to entertain and so that makes it hard to know if all I was reading was as credible as I would like to believe. I also wonder at the book's brevity because as we all know history is quite voluminous. In addition, covering such a vast period in so little amount of space made getting a view of everyday life and intimacies almost impossible. But all in all, it worked for me as an introduction to this period in history.*Review copy provided by Amazon.com's Vine Program.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 4/5
      Lost to the West has a promising premise - shining a light on the Byzantine Empire, a topic not extensively discussed in the West in general. However, the book can be more considered as a fast and general overview rather than a work of academic value. It isn't that Brownworth writes poorly (the book is a pleasant read to be honest), but that if you're looking to get a good understanding of the scope and scale of Byzantium, you may not be satisfied with this broad overview.

      1 person found this helpful

    • 2/5
      I was very, very disappointed with this book. I had a lot of very high expectations before I began reading and the book fell short of those in every possible way. Rather than the engaging read I was expecting, I instead got a rather boring rote recitation of dates, names, and places. The author also chooses to stick to the already quite debunked myths of people like Edward Gibbon on a great many matters, especially his examination of the reign of St. Constantine the Great. Then there are the unfortunately frequent absurd statements, especially when the author tries to comment on things outside of his normal purview, such as this statement in regards to the filioque controversy on page 223: "The Scriptures are mostly silent on the topic of the Trinity, making it virtually impossible to resolve an argument about the relationship of its members." Huh?! Has this guy ever read the New Testament? Or, specifically on this topic, maybe just John 15:26? My recommendation: pass this one up.