The Great Sea cover art

The Great Sea

A Human History of the Mediterranean

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The Great Sea

By: David Abulafia
Narrated by: Jonathan Keeble
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About this listen

Brought to you by Penguin.

For over 3,000 years, the Mediterranean Sea has been one of the great centres of civilisation. David Abulafia's The Great Sea is the first complete history of the Mediterranean, from the erection of temples on Malta around 3500 BC to modern tourism. Ranging across time and the whole extraordinary space of the Mediterranean from Gibraltar to Jaffa, Genoa to Tunis, and bringing to life pilgrims, pirates, sultans and naval commanders, this is the story of the sea that has shaped much of world history.

©2019 David Abulafia (P)2019 Penguin Audio Africa Europe Middle East Imperialism Pirate France Ancient History Crusade

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All stars
Most relevant  
how we used to rule the waves and was a fighter forsee, good little read

Good history

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An amazing journey through time - very robust and deeply routed in evidence yet accessible and fun account of the cultures & peoples of the Mediterranean. Highly recommend.

A great read

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This was a great journey through the history of the Mediterranean form the rise and fall of various nations and sea powers and individuals that shaped and formed societies around the sea. Some really fascinating stories and very enjoyable. Very good narration too.

Mediterranean over millennia

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A magisterial history of the Mediterranean – very learned, informative and entertaining.

However, it was a pity that they couldn’t find a better reader. His voice is portentous and overdramatic, and his acting training clearly didn’t teach him the importance of pronouncing words properly. If a word is unfamiliar, look it up or find out. There is a reason why ‘golf’ is spelled differently from ‘gulf’ & they aren’t pronounced the same.

Terrific book - poor reader

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This book was a challenge for me because there is so much detail and so many names to try and register.
I got a bit anxious about my ability to cope with it all but when I started to relax I loved it.
What did continually strike me was how well read it is. If it was a challenge to me as a listener how much of a challenge to the narrator - Brilliant job by him.
Fascinating story and I am left in awe of
the scholarship. I was a bit daunted by
the book but I really loved it and will
go on to listen to The Boundless Sea.

Daunted then Delighted.

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I thought that I was quite well up on the history of the civilisations of the Mediterranean. I was incorrect. Loved this book.

An education.

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Incredibly interesting history of the Mediterranean. It starts in pre-history and comes right up to modern times. I learned a lot about the history and tensions in the region, and thoroughly enjoyed it. The narration was just fine.

Fascinating

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To my mind this is, in the end, a fantastic historical overview of the most essential civilised activity, trade, in the places where it has mattered most. It encompasses diplomacy, warfare, religion, language, culture, migration, law, custom and everything else but really it is about the momentous effects of humans doing what humans always want to do. Brilliant narration of a very entertaining and informative text.

Enjoyable & informative

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A wonderful, engaging journey through the centuries of human contact and conflict, that underpins the premise there's nothing new, just another age in history and will we ever learn.
For those who struggle with timelines, the book is brilliant. The right balance of major historical events and figures and yet single human stories, brings alive the history in a powerful way.
wherever you go around the Mediterranean after listening, you will hopefully look out on the water and acknowledge and connect with the many thousands of lives with their cultures and faiths, it has affected. leading us to where we are today. Still searching for identity, purpose and peace.

Absolutely Magnificent

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I immersed myself in this erudite and lengthy history and learnt a lot about the end and flow of historical tide right into the present day.

Tides of history

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