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The War of the World

History's Age of Hatred

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The War of the World

By: Niall Ferguson
Narrated by: Saul Reichlin
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About this listen

Penguin presents the unabridged edition of The War of the World by Niall Ferguson, read by Saul Reichlin.

The world at the beginning of the 20th century seemed for most of its inhabitants stable and relatively benign. Globalising, booming economies married to technological breakthroughs seemed to promise a better world for most people.

Instead the 20th century proved to be overwhelmingly the most violent, frightening and brutalised in history, with fanatical, often genocidal warfare engulfing most societies between the outbreak of the First World War and the end of the Cold War.

What went wrong? How did we do this to ourselves? The War of the World comes up with compelling, fascinating answers. It is Niall Ferguson's masterpiece.

©2017 Niall Ferguson (P)2017 Penguin Audio 20th Century Military Modern World War Imperialism Russia Socialism Thought-Provoking Soviet Union Middle Ages Africa Middle East Self-Determination Imperial Japan Interwar Period Winston Churchill Latin American Cold War Holocaust Capitalism Iran

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Critic reviews

"A heartbreaking, serious and thoughtful survey of human evil that is utterly fascinating and dramatic." (Simon Sebag Montefiore, The New York Times)
"Unputdownable, controversial, compelling." ( The Independent on Sunday)
"The grenade lobbed into the cosy tea party of received wisdom." (Max Hastings)
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what an amazing detailed insight into the last century of warfare. very informative. an eye-opener.

outstanding

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A very informative and interesting look back at history. Definitely recommend this to anyone interested in learning about history and human nature

A very interesting read or listen in this case

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Pretty much the modern history of the world and what a bunch of thoroughly awful humans we all are or have the potential to be …..
Watched the tv series about 15 years ago and bought the book at the time . Thanks to audible I’ve now “read” it in a week .

Well that explains it !

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A refreshing look at familiar areas of history.

Ferguson has an uncanny ability to gore sacred cows without seeming disrespectful. Reichlin's reading lends an emphasis and drama to the text arguably necessary for such weighty material in an audiobook.

Thoroughly enjoyable for those already familar with twentieth century history.

Excellent book. Well read.

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A reminder of the scale and horror of war not "so long ago". Masterful, insightful and spell binding.

The Horror of War

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Although a fan of both non fiction and Niall Ferguson I simply could finish this work. With a book so fact and statistic heavy, the presenter has their work cut out to keep the listener engaged, but in this case they, at least for me, failed as it was simply too monotone and boring.
I also could not go along with a premise that all conflict is racially motivated when so many of the examples used seemed, at least to me, to be more about culture and religion rather than race.
A pity, it is the first book by the author that I simply have not been impressed by and incidentally the first audio book I have given up on.

Not able finish

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Completely enthralled by this book. It’s detail and it’s concepts about the 20th Century wars and how they might be viewed.

Outstanding

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Dr Ferguson never lets you down. This should be required reading for every modern history student. Its logical, challenging and sets aside much of what you consider as fact. Get it, and free your attitudes to conflict in this century.

Genius

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A fascinating book which is deals with very difficult subject matter such as genocide and the holocaust. A must read for anyone who wants to learn about the human cost instead of the glamorous side of war

Brilliant

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It’s theme and aims are somewhat vague and Ferguson seems to flit about but it’s still really interesting, particularly for readers who already have some knowledge of the major 20th century conflicts.

Very interesting take on war in the last century

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