Europe Books

Even though I am adult, I have read a lot of books by this author. I find that with this author, the fact that it was written for young adults just means she is leaving out stuff I would rather not read about anyway (graphic rape scenes, graphic torture scenes, or whatever). The characters are good, plots are generally good, and pacing good. However, this book is not one of my favorite Sutcliff books. The plot is about the main character taking the place of the heir "horse lord" who was blinded by a rival years before. Sort of a "prince and pauper" storyline. Didn't like it and didn't find it believable. The heir's family was dead and he hadn't been seen in years, but it really wasn't believable to me that he could fool anyone who had known the heir before. I would recommend Eagle of the Ninth or Frontier Wolves instead.

I love the connections, briefly and elegantly painted, between people in this book. Great story, so well written. Highly recommended. Not the average kind of historical fiction.

I basically agree with all the reviews so far. I read this in my teens and it left a lasting impression on me. I've re-read it since on a fairly regular basis. Brilliant evocation of an early culture far removed from our own but peopled with those whose emotional reactions one can so empathise with - doubt, uncertainty and deepening friendship.

I am delighted it is back in print, although a bit ambivalent about the cover design. When will "The Sword at Sunset" be re-printed - preferably unabridged and with the map that some of the early editions had?

The "Mark of the Horse Lord" is a beautifully written story of loyalty, honor and sacrifice. The ancient Scottish setting and characters are masterfully portrayed and the story line grabs the reader on the first page and holds on tight to the very end!
Rosemary Sutcliff writes wonderfully engaging historical novels. While her books give the reader a great feel for the time period and setting, story line is never compromised! Most of her books are written for children and young adults, however, this book is more appropriate for adults and older teens. Younger readers may find the wording a little difficult to follow. Highly recommended!

I really love this book. I picked it up in high school for a book report and got sucked into Rosemary Sutcliff's world. I'm glad to see a new printing is coming out, because you couldn't find this book anywhere, and the copy I have I stole from school, that's how much I love this book. I also highly recommend The Sword and the Circle, a telling of the Arthurian legend.

Are you ready to go to the Netherlands where bicycal riding, canal site seeing, and tulips are done almost all year long? Do you want to know the real story? Know what's happening with Cicily's family. Join me into a world where the Netherlands are the best place to be!

This is the best book ever! It taught me a lot about Holland, and I learned a LOT of dutch. Now I can speak a little of a different language!

The sequel to The Diary of Melanie Martin is just as charming and rings with the same truthful voice, as Melanie records the ups and downs of a vacation in Holland with her family and best friend. Melanie is reading the Diary of Anne Frank on this trip, and this historic diary lends a thoughtful note to Melanie's own diary, which includes dealing with the threat of the cancer which has infected her best friend's mom. With the heroine's observations as witty as ever, Melanie Martin Goes Dutch will delight young readers as they experience both van Gogh paintings and topless beaches through Melanie's eyes.

Wishing you could take a trip this summer? The title of this book just makes me smile. Melanie's mother has a grant to study Van Gogh in Amsterdam for the summer and the whole family gets to go along. Melanie's diary of their trip is a fun read. Travel disasters such as lost luggage, an annoying little brother, and a fight with her best friend are not what she imagined her vacation would be like. Melanie is reading Anne Frank: the diary of a young girl. As events unfold on their trip Melanie finds herself empathizing with Anne. Her visit to the Secret Annex is very poignant.

I loved "hearing" the Dutch phrases (complete with pronunciation,)smelling the food and seeing the sights through the eyes of a character who is the same age I was when I lived there. This is a very funny book. The presence of Anne in the background of the story gives the story a sweetness beyond the humor.

When you open this book, you will find yourself peeking into the private diary of Melanie Martin, a ten year old girl living in New York with her mom, dad and Matt the Bratt (aka little brother!). Her mom is an art teacher who teaches her kids to appreciate art, and she loves when they do, even if its only because it includes naked people or blood scenes!
The story starts when summer vacation has just got out, and our girl Mel is getting bored. She and her mom do puzzles. It is one utterly boring day when Melanie's mom gets a phone call telling her that she's got the grant (for her teaching) and they're going to Amster Amster Dam Dam Dam!
They barely get this news before it is discovered that Cecily's mom (Cecily is Melanie's best friend) has got breast cancer.
Mel's mom invites Cecily on the trip and Melanie is overjoyed!
They all leave together for Amsterdam. They all expirience lots of adventures including lost luggage, a topless beach, LOTS of museums and a HUGE argument.
Mel thinks Cecily is getting way too much attention so they silently fight.
Will the fight turn this best-friend bliss into a bummer summer?
Read and find out!
Melanie Martin Goes Dutch is a great book that plenty of kids can empathize with - even grown-ups too!
I hope everyone will enjoy this book as much as I have, including Carol Weston's other fantastic books!
3 cheers, two thumbs up, plus five WHOLE stars as well!

I purchased this book as a gift for my husband for Christmas. He is interested in Military History from the French and Indian Wars down to the present. He is also a military collector. He has read it and enjoyed it! For those who are interested in Military History - this book will make a nice addition to your collection.

The Millionaires' Unit is a very good book with a great story to tell: an elite group of Yale students took it upon themselves to prepare as pilots for the United States' entry into World War I. Not only is the story remarkable, it is remarkable that it hasn't been told before, (except in a privately published history in 1925). Starting as a privately funded militia, the First Yale Unit trained as pilots without recognition from the Navy until the U. S. officially entered the War. The young pilots were then among the first aviators flying for America to see combat over Europe.

The book is very good at setting the tone and profile of upper class Americans before the Great War, then shattering the romantic ideas of our isolated country about industrialized warfare as the young men struggle to uphold the highest ideals of duty and honor. The book evocatively portrays Yale as more of a social club than an academic institution, the difficulty of maintaining and flying primitive aircraft, and the nascent attempts of the Navy to come to grips with the importance of aviation.

Above all, The Millionaires' Unit is a human story told mostly through the correspondence of these erudite, passionate, and committed pioneer pilots. Those that survived went on to serve the country at the top of their fields in politics, finance, and aviation. Those that died elicit some of the most heartbreaking reactions from friends and families in wartime literature. It's a well-rounded book, touching on social, aviation, and military history as it delves into the personal reactions of a young America coming of age at the dawn of the 20th century. I found it a great read.

Darroch Greer

As a kid, my favorite book was, "Iron Men with Wooden Wings" by Lou Cameron. Stories of World War I pilots doing battle in the skies over France and Germany in primitive, cloth covered biplanes ignited my imagination. Years later, I earned a pilot's license and have enjoyed flying my own cloth covered plane.

Recently, I was delighted to learn about and read Marc Wortman's title, "The "Millionaires' Unit", which documents the grass-roots formation of a flying squadron of fresh-faced Yale boys almost a hundred years ago. A war was raging in Europe and America was decidedly unprepared for their eventual involvement. Their experiences together at Yale gave them a deep sense of duty to a greater cause. Their privileged upbringing and family connections gave them access to the money to fund their own military flight school and to the captains of industry and state to endorse and champion their mission. Millionaires' Unit is not simply a tale of "iron men with wooden wings", although we certainly grow with each of them from boys to men.

Much less a documentary and much more a narrative, Wortman weaves their personal ambitions and flaws together with their collective mission to fly and to serve. Not since "The Blue Max" has such a complex story of class, ambition, romance and defiance - set against the exhilarating and dangerous backdrop of the pioneering age of aviation - been told.

The Millionaires' Unit recapitulates in beautiful prose the story I first learned about as a child. It was the story, in part, of my grandfather, Erl Gould whom I called Grandfeathers, as he was Naval Aviator #68.

Marc Wortman has combed historical and private records to harvest the best picture of Trubee Davison and his family, flying boats, 1916 and Great World War, and these intrepid young men from Yale. It is simply a terrific read but also an inspiration at a time when few Americans rise above the fray and dedicate themselves to something larger than their own self-interest. As a former Naval Aviator myself, I wore Grandfeather's wings of gold with an inexpressible pride and humility.

Marc Wortman should be congratulated on this fine piece.

It walks the line between history and adventure and achieves a tremendous blend in the process. Not only does it recall the origins of a fledgling form of warfare, but it also provides a tremendous insight into the world of Yale and American aristocracy as it existed in the early twentieth century.

Highly recommended.

Owen Zupp
Author of 'Down to Earth'. (www.owenzupp.com)

This is essential reading for anybody who is seriously interested in the tradeoffs between capitalism and socialism. As Hugo puts the matter in "Les Miserables", socialism is a great system for distributing wealth, but poor for creating wealth. Capitalism is a great system for creating wealth, but poor for distributing it.

Muller documents very well, and very fairly, the fact that this basic conundrum was well understood by most thinkers since the 18th centry. Muller presents the various solutions proposed by thinkers from all sides of the political spectrum to solve the conundrum.

In a way, the book is depressing, because it shows that all possible solutions have already been thought of, and tried.

This book is an amazing book and goes through and discusses exactly what many of the previous economic philosophers believe. Muller writes this wonderfully, and is typically an easy read. I wouldn't mind reading this book for fun actually.

This is a remarkable book. Besides the usual variety that appears in most books on economic thought (Smith, Marx, Keynes, Hayek, Schumpeter) it includes a nice selection of non-economists such as Voltaire, Burke and Marcuse. Muller is a master of situating intellectuals in their respective context and presenting them in lively detail. Having read Voltaire's "Candide", it was remarkable to find out about his personal adventures with financial speculation. When dealing with Smith, Muller takes pains to retain all the nuances, such as Smith's claim that division of labor, no matter how productive, could make human beings "as stupid and ignorant as it possible for a human creature to become". As Muller is a specialist on conservative thought, his treatment of a variety of criticisms of the market by conservatives is very intriguing. Furthermore, although chapters are written in a way to make them independent of each other, Muller links them nicely using common themes and referring back to already discussed, older ideas. One of such themes is the identification of capitalism with Jews. One might find it surprising how old and often recurring this identification was in European thought.

My main qualm regards Muller's treatment of the left. Although all of the selections are understandable (Marx is a must, Lukacs is representative of 20th century communism and easy to juxtapose with Freyer, while Marcuse is representative of the New Left), large strands of interesting left-wing thought are omitted. Karl Polanyi who wrote the classic about the industrial revolution and the nature of the market ("The Great Transformation") and who seems like a perfect addition to such a book is only mentioned in one of the hundreds of footnotes. Anarchists seem non-existent. The reader might walk away with the feeling that the only things the left has to offer are nagging and central-planning. In the meantime, Hayek and Schumpeter - classical liberals with overlapping ideas (e.g. the role of the entrepreneur) are both given separate chapters. On an unrelated note, some might find the treatment of Keynes inadequate as well. In the first page of the Keynes/Marcuse chapter, Muller states that "[Keynes] provided an economic rationale for governments to try to actively combat unemployment by raising the level of government spending" (p. 317). You will hear the same reductionism in an intro to macro college course, but Keynes' insights were way more nuanced (the role of uncertainty - see: Duncan Foley's "Adam's Falalcy"; the need for a fundamentally different monetary policy - see: Allan Meltzer's and Geoff Tily's work) and often cannot be described as "Keynesian" (or rather, what came to be viewed as "Keynesian").

Despite these flaws, this is a very well-written, insightful and stimulating book. If you are interested in the history of economic thought and more broadly - the different attitudes toward the market economy, make sure to check it out.

The world of capitalism is presented to us through the eyes of the greatest European thinkers. Muller examines the relationship between the individual and the state though the prism of the marketplace tapping into the writings from thinkers such as Adam Smith, Marx, Voltaire, Schumpeter and Hayek. The depth and breath of this economic treatise on the marketplace presents perspectives from all sides of the political spectrum while taking the time and care to place that thinker's perspective within its proper historical context.

The thinkers that are tapped into come from a very broad swath of history. Their perspectives trace how western civilization left the feudal period where commerce and finance where frowned upon as immoral or dirty and how Europe eventually developed market-based institutions that we are so familiar with today. This book clearly shows how thinking men viewed the development of markets and how societies dealt with the social and moral benefits and costs of markets. Muller also describes how different societies in different time periods came to different conclusions on how a market should be regulated and managed as a result of the efforts of these great thinkers.

The way we operate today is linked inextricably to the past. Market-based societies are a product of western European history and culture. The answer to why things are like today can be found in the past and Mueller provides the key.

"The Mind and the Market" is certainly a rare bird: a 400-page tract of intellectual history that manages to be lucid and fascinating, informative and persuasive. It is not a historical chronicle per se; instead it is a chronological sampling of biographical profiles of major and minor thinkers and how they viewed, with admiration and mistrust, capitalism and the "free market."

Muller examines the careers and thoughts of thinkers from the eighteenth- and nineteenth-centuries (from Adam Smith to Karl Marx), as well as more recent writers (such as George Lukacs and Friedrich Hayek) and lesser known intellectuals (Hans Freyer and Werner Sombart). An intriguing subplot of sorts that runs through these chapters is the societal and academic view of the role of Jewish populations in the development of the market; such views, even among the best thinkers (with few exceptions), tended to be harsh and simplistic. Muller's book does not in any way pretend to be comprehensive--he admits in the introduction that the authors under discussion "are drawn disproportionately from German-speaking Europe"--but this tighter focus allows for a better, more coherent narrative.

"The Mind and the Market" is at its best when it sticks to intellectual history; when Muller turns to economic history, however, he occasionally falters (or, more accurately, his discussion is nakedly incomplete). In his largely unimpeachable comments on Marx's myopia, for example, he counters that capitalist development in the late nineteenth century lead to better working and living conditions in England, as well as "improved standards of health and safety in one industry after another." Such a description of the standard of living is true, but "capitalist development" is only half the story and even that story applies to only to the island and not the empire. The British Isles also benefited from colonialism: unprecedented wealth entered the country at the same time that significant chunks of its labor supply shipped overseas to jobs in civil service and the military--often never to return (60,000 died in the Crimean War alone).

Similarly, Muller notes correctly that Hayek's economic theories have gained much prominence during the last three decades, but his arguments for their exoneration is a bit one-sided. He notes the deregulation and tax reduction in the United States during the 1980s but fails to admit the un-Hayek escalation in government spending (at both the federal and state levels) and in budget deficits.

Fortunately for the reader, however, such details, which comprise only small portions of the book, are beyond its scope and in no way compromise the integrity of Muller's discussion of these great thinkers. Taken as a whole, "The Mind and Market" amply displays the love-hate relationship between philosophers and capitalism and how that relationship has evolved during the last two centuries.

One of the most detailed accounts of being a successful ace fighter pilot. Mr Goebel's wartime experiences again show us all what sacrifices our veterans make.

We trained together in the FTC but were sent to different Squadrons,
Wonderful memories!

Woodbine 30

In doing research for a book of my own, I have read -- and continue to read -- as many accounts of the air war over Europe as I can, from many perspectives. Mr. Goebel's book, which he was kind enough to personally autograph for me, is not just an amazing, technical account of the details to flying and fighting in what is arguably the most significant fighter plane ever developed, but also tell the story of the American spirit, as an individual, and collectively in the Armed forces, which represented an era that is the foundation of what we enjoy in a free land today. His ability to tell his story, and the story of those around him -- in America's and the world's most pivotal time in history -- is first class reading from a first class author, in addition to his being a first class gentleman and a first class American Ace. Set around the 15th Air Force's 31st. Fighter Group flying out of Italy, 'Mustang Ace' is great reading on every level. It brings both smiles and tears as you get close to real people who won or lost each day by their skill, their courage and crazy luck -- good or bad -- that often made no sense. If you like airplanes, WWII air combat history and personal achievement on a scale few can imagine, then there is nothing better. This is the real deal; an untypical story portrayed with the typical modesty of a real hero, a real Ace, from an elite group of men that have never been fully appreciated for what they did, and how they did it.

Helped by fameds historian Eric Hammell, who helpe shape the original manuscript into a cohesive and envolving story, Robert Goebel, an eleven-kill ace in WWII, wrote a very pleasant book, from training in the United States till ace status in Italy and Europe. If you're into fighter pilot biographies, this one will not disappoint. But I dare to say: the best ever written was "THE BIG SHOW", by Pierre Clostermann.

This book puts you in WWII aviation. It takes you throught flight training and into combat in the Mustang. I am a current flight instructor and believe me this book is realistic as it gets. If you love aviation you will love Bob Goebel's book.

It is always difficult and challenging to pick up what is regarded as a classic and read through it in a naive manner, not as a specialist but as an amateur who just wants to learn. There are always surprises.
In contrast to the looser Herodotus, his near contemporary, Thucydides sought to record an "objective truth" of the great war between Athens and Sparta, in the 5C BC. He consulted multiple sources and carefully judged what to include and what not to include, ito establish an idea of what really happened. While some of the forms, such as elaborately made-up speeches as a study in rhetoric, differ from what we would do today, he set a new standard for accuracy. THe result is a work of genius, the first serious attempt at writing history rather than merely storytelling.

Reading this is not always fun. There are long sections that are lists of occurences, with references to individuals who appear and disappear without followup. But there are also penetrating analyses of remarkable characters, such as Perikles, Alcibiades, and other great generals, who became reference points to the present day. Thucydides also broached the subject of political science as history - how institutions actually functioned - in new ways, with demonstrations of how the unleashing of passions led to their corruption or distortion. Finally, there are chilling sections with timeless insight in human conduct in war, with the full horror of the breakdown of all order and law.

THis translation is also sufficintely readable, far better than the turbid one I first read in college. THucydides is quite eloquent in this version.

Recommended as one of the great classics of Western literature. It is a work of genius so great that it is still relevant and vivid.

I used this book for an introductory History class. It is a great supplement to the study of the Greek periods. It has a nice glossory in the back for unusual terms, as well as helpful maps. Some of the text is a bit dry, but the reading is not very difficult.

The history of the Peloponnesian is a brilliant account of a classic war that began as a preemptive attack on Athens by Sparta to prevent the domination of the Greeks by the Athenians. The war began in the year 427 BC and ended 27 years later with the defeat of Athens by Sparta. This history however is only up to the 21st year of the war. Although there are several translations of the work I selected the translation by Thomas Hobbes the 17th century philosopher. It is the first done in the English language. Thucydides was a soldier on the Athenian side which in a sense puts a lie to the common notion that it is the winners of war who write history. The war was finally won by Sparta, powerful on land, and an oligarchy with a communal outlook on life defeating Athens with the strongest navy in the world, and a democracy with an individualistic outlook on life. Ironically it is Sparta's eventual mastery of the sea that defeated the Athenians. Whether or not this bodes ill for America remains to be seen. History is not over.

Thucydides relates not only the battles of the war in some detail describing tactics and the individuals involved, but also the strategy and the politics. There is intrigue, treason, broken alliances, and hubris. The winners of a battle rarely show mercy and treason is dealt with harshly with often entire towns put to the sword or enslaved. Among the combatants there is respect for the strong and contempt for the weak. Truces are often held to bury the dead because the dead are respected by all.

Unlike Homer's Illiad written about one thousand years earlier Thucydides does not mention the gods as having a say in the outcome of the war. While religion is a factor it is not a determining factor in the conduct and outcome of the war. One could argue that Thucydides is a secular account of history whereas Homer is a more religious account.

Thucydides should be mandatory reading and study for all white males between the ages of 16 and 18 of above average IQ. The History will prepares them for war and instill in them the desire and willingness to defeat the enemy. It teaches contempt for the enemy which is a valuable attitude in war. Pericles funeral oration to the Athenians is the most inspiring and most moving speech ever given. The resemblance of this speech to the Gettysburg address is obvious and leads one to conclude that if Pericles could inspire Abraham Lincoln in his thinking then Thucydides' History did so likewise and influenced the strategy and the eventual outcome of the Civil War including the period of reconstruction. The contrast between the Spartan outlook on life and that of the Athenians to the adversaries in all subsequent wars up to the present war on terror is striking indeed. There are lessons still to be learned from the Peloponnesian War and woe to those that fail to learn these lessons.

The greatest of all Greek historians was the Athenian general Thucydides (455-400 B.C.E.). Thucydides' classic work, "History Of The Peloponnesian War", provides us with the historical framework for 5th century Greece, a golden age of intellectual achievement and creativity rarely equaled in human history. This history is by far the best account of the bitter war between Athens and Sparta as well as the only surviving contemporary record of the rise of the Athenian empire. Thucydides as a master storyteller does not just cover the battle scenes; he records the great political speeches of Pericles, leader of Athens, and Lysander leader of Sparta with great acumen. He is recognized as the first historian to actually go and get eyewitness accounts, visit battlefieilds and research documents and records. This work took him over 20 years and it shows!

The lessons he teaches about imperial over reaching and unreasonable peace settlements are prescient today as they were during his times. President Woodrow Wilson, read this book on his voyage across the Atlantic to the Versailles Peace Conference and vociferously fought the other Allies in making unreasonable demands of the Germans. Wilson learned the dangers that the world would be placed in by backing the Germans into a corner politically and economically from Thucydides book.

As a graduate student in philosophy and history, I heartily recommend this timeless classic to anyone who is interested in political philosophy, and history. I also recommend you read it with David Cartwright's "A Historical Commentary On Thucydides."

No book has kept me up at night or occupied my thoughts in the past decade more than Thucydides. The story told here is stunningly and disturbingly relevant for any American. Sparta vs Athens seems an allegory for the conflict between traditional America, of our first hundred years or so, and modern, progressive America from about 1900 onward. Its no allegory of course, and the realization that history repeats itself gives the work an importance that no book can match.

I recall in college taking one of those Intellectual History survey courses required of incoming freshman. We were all assigned to read Perikles funeral oration as an example of how like our society Athens was and of course, how noble that likeness made the two societies. We weren't, of course, assigned the entire book, just the oration out of context. When I finally got around to reading Thucydides years later, I thought back to that course and wanted my tuition money back!

Read the original text. Political writers and propagandists of all stripes make reference to Thucydides to give weight to their views. Don't trust their interpretations. Read for yourself and decide. Skip the commentaries and translations and go right to page one of the text.

This is one of the finest books I have read in a long time. Believe it or not, I heard about it from a Q and A with the actress Natalie Portman who recommended the book. The writer tells the history of the relationship between the Jewish population and their neighbors and German governnment. It ends in 1933, and points out ways in which the Jews tried to assimilate but were never able to please their government enough. It opened my eyes to 200 years of life before Hitler and how he was a cog in the machinery of the sickness of anti semitism. There are many personal examples of characters, their brilliance and fortitude to always try to "make things work" between them and their government. It is a heartbreaking book but one which should be read for Jews and Christians alike.

Amos Elon opens this book describing Moses Mendelsohn, a German philosopher's entry as an impoverished and uneducated teen into Berlin through a gate reserved for "swine, oxen and Jews," and ends it by describing how a famous Jewish writer left Berlin by train just hours ahead of the Gestapo.

Between these bookends you'll find the history of the German Enlightenment, the general acceptance and tolerance that Jews came to enjoy in Germany, of the significant role that Jews played in Germany's cultural, scientific, political and business worlds, and of the assimilation process that led to the specific identity of being a German Jew, and of most tragic suffering. What a pity!

It is the privilige of the victor to write history; most English-language histories of Germany's Jews to a greater or lesser degree approach their story through the prism of Anglo-American history, and adopt some of the prejudices and justifications of Anglo-American historians sometimes becoming recitations of trusims. Not so this book, which is far more sophisticated. Without excusing that which ought never have happened, Elon clearly symapathisizes with the German people, and does not, for example, only describe the depths of the racial hatred to which they sunk, but also describes how barely 30 years before, they were far and away the most tolerant and least racist nation in history. Would that this were better known.

Not only is it a (brief) history of German Jewry, but also a brief history of German culture, politics and science. Elon believes that the Social-Democrats were far too weak, disorganized, and confused to have been able to maintain law and order during the Weimar Republic, and that the more conservative parties, which largely were extensions of churches, were too tied down by their religious affiliations to have been able to provide effective government. This, he believes, meant that the only form of government that could have saved Germany from the horrors that came to be would have been a military dictatorship. Expecting the Germans to smoothly transition from centuries of monarchic rule to a democracy during the depths of the Great Depression was not realistic. Democracies cannot exist without citizens who think for themselves, monarchies often raise people to follow orders without question. This is an interesting idea, and not what one hears from the sort of historians who write that the horrors arose because people weren't nice enough.

This is a hugely informative and highly moving book that is history sine ira et studio, history at its very best. I heartily recommend this book.

This book is truly one of a kind. It's detail and clarity is unprecedented and its topic very engaging as Elon does an amazing job in taking his readers through the 200-year journey and labyrinth of a mostly unexplored period of Jewish history. Awesome! Truly the best thing since sliced bread. Besides being a fabulous historical treatise, it answers many questions.......many many questions and problems and does it so wholesomely and so didactically and flawlessly.

My hat is off to you, Mr. Elon. I am silenced by the great amount of awe and respect I now harbor toward you. Thank You!

One of the best history books I read (and I read quite a few):
Well written, the past comes to life and what's more important you start to live it as if you don't know the future. One of the biggest problems in reading history is the fact you know "the answers" a privilege people don't have when they actually live and take decisions. This book gives you the feeling as if you almost are there with out knowing how things will eventually turn out.
Side bonus: a look in to the best of European culture of the 19th century.
A key for understanding lots of current issues, it will also help to understand the desires and nightmares of Jews in Israel today.

The book is very well written, and the author has a great talent for storytelling. It is almost like reading a novel, this is achieved without affecting the academic value of the work.

The book is referred to as the history of Jews in Germany between 1743 and 1933, in reality it is the history of intellectual jews in those years. There is little mention of poor jews, and for the most concentrates on the people who would have left a larger mark and legacy: mainly intellectuals. There is also some mention of how jews in neighboring countries lived.

I highly recommend the book to anyone who is interested in the subject.

excellent photographs of collection of royal family of england ,from1840-1940.some of the pictures i've seen before ,but there are alot of new one's not seen before.

This is an excellent resource as well as enjoyable reading and viewing. Queen Victoria had a large, illustrious family. This book not only humanizes and personalizes the many family members, it also helps to make sense of the extended family connections - particularly with the included family trees in the back of the book.

I have perused through this book many times, and have recently given one to a friend, who absolutely loved it. This is not a history book that will just sit on a shelf. It is a required addition to anyone interested in the history of Queen Victoria and the Eurpoean monarchies.

Absolutely remarkable. Charlotte Zeepvat takes the reader into the lives of Queen Victoria and her family with the amazing photographs, both candid and formal. The pictures are rare. They are well organized and have excellent captions. Zeepvat is a great writer/historian and I recommend her books to all.

for those interested in royalty. While some of these photos can be found in many different books, some of them I've seen for the first time. Queen Victoria's decendants are so numerous and belong to so many different royal houses. Definitely a worthwhile purchase!

There are certain photos that I simply expect to see when perusing volumes about European royalty. However, upon receiving Zeepvat's book, I was thrilled to find so many rarely seen photos of some of the more obscure descendants of the "Grandmother of Europe." If you're a royalty buff like I am, you can spend hours immersed in this marvelous book and its detailed family trees.

I took this book, along with a plethora of touristy guidebooks, and this one got read the most! We spent hours and hours in the Forum and the Palatine, and really delighted in uncovering the mysteries of so many building foundations. I left Rome wishing I had an archaeologist as a personal tour guide, but this book was an excellent substitution! It can be read at home, but I found infinitely more meaning when I sat at the site and read about where I was. Take this to Rome if you are interested in the ancients!

I had the fortune or misfortune of buying this book prior to my first visit to Rome. It is such a well-organized, well-written, and concise guide to ancient Rome that you could make the mistake that I made upon completing it and my first visits there. You might search a long, long time and spend a lot of money trying to find something better. Based upon my experience, a university-level seminar or a three semester hour course is the only thing that could surpass this guide.

Don't be put off by simplified plans shown in the pages. You need clear, simple ideas of what the stuff once was to understand what you're looking at. When you're in the ruins, you will be surrounded by other tourists, any changing weather conditions, and you will be viewing the architectural remains of a previous civilization from many different standpoints. You can't do that successfully without a clear, simple concept already in your mind.

Fodor's Holy Rome, 1st Edition: A Millennium Guide to Christian Sights (Fodor's Holy Rome)

You can't really understand Rome without this companion. It looks deeply into the very heart of the city, into its foundations and the stories they tell. This is practical archaelology at its best, presenting us with the lessons that history can teach us.

I used this book for my second trip to Rome and it was absolutely invaluable. I wish that I had it for my first trip. I am a person who only cares about the Ancient Roman artifacts and this book literally has ever one listed by region that you have access to. If you decide to use this book bring along a highlighter and check off the sections that you complete, by the end of the day you will be amazed at how much you have seen. I cannot recommend this book enough.

I just returned from Rome, using this book as my primary guide. We were able to identify almost every random bit of ancient archaelogy sticking out of the ground as we walked about the city, and if you've been to Rome, you'll understand how impressive that is.

A major shortcoming that I noticed is that the book treats the ancient-era churches very lightly: while the myths of gods such as Pollux and Castor are frequently referenced in relation to the ancient sites, the C1 AD story of Saint Clement is inexplicably left out of the section on the church of San Clemente constructed by Constantine. Also, as the author states in the beginning, the intent of this guide is to detail ancient Rome only. If you are interested in medieval, Renaissance, or ecclessiastic history, you will certainly need a supplemental guide.

Now, for the advantages... The guide systematically presents every ancient structure in Rome (we were never disappointed), providing a very good map at the beginning of each chapter for a major area (e.g. the Palatine, Field of Mars) to help you identify what you are looking at. The site is laid out in a sort of walking tour format and if you begin at the point suggested, you can follow the chapter page by page as it logically guides you through the region. We did find that writing in page references for each location on the map at the beginning made the book much easier to use. For more complicated buildings, additional diagrams are provided in the appropriate subsection where it is further detailed. The Baths of Caracalla are a superb example of this.

While Claridge delves a bit too thoroughly into the exact type of marble used in the facing and floors of each building, you find yourself recognizing the materials and envisioning the baths, basillicas, and forums as they might have looked clad in Phyrgian red and Numidian yellow marbles. With frequent referencing, we soon became familiar with Caracella, Domitian, and Nerva as we viewed the great construction projects they enacted. The author presents quite clearly the historical origin and significance of each site as well as its original appearance (if known) and the many refurbishments it went through with the frequent fires of Rome.

For our trip, we opted out of taking any tours, and we didn't feel we missed anything. We were often surrounded by tours and gained more information from our book than the guide was sharing with his group. You never know how reliable a guide really is, and with this book, you can be assured of Amanda Claridge's credentials. The trip became a bit of a mystery adventure for us as we excitedly reconstructed the ruins around us into the elegant structures they once were.

Even if you do decide to go with a more mainstream guide book for your trip to Rome, you will find this one to be an invaluable supplement for all those tidbits that the major guides just don't have time to cover.

In my book, "Astronomical Symbols on Ancient and Medieval Coins", I devote an entire chapter to the eighth Crusade. The political events of the time, the celestial omens that were seen in the heavens and depicted on coinage of Louis IX and that of his brother Charles of Anjou, combined with the influence of Charles of Anjou on Louis IX, all came together as the basis for the decision by Louis IX to land at the Bay of Tunis for his final crusade.

As part of my research, I read numerous books on the history of the period, and I found that Runciman's book, "The Sicilian Vespers," was especially useful. There were many items of interest in his book that added to my understanding of the history of that time.

Marshall Faintich

Sir Runciman once again delivers informative historical narrative that is thorough and equally entertaining. The political intrigue of the 13th century, involving virtually all of the Mediterranean powers, provide just the detail needed to grasp the causes and affects of the Vespers revolution. Sir Runciman deftly weaves the varied characters and their roles together into the story that pulls the reader in and keeps their attention. There are a confusing array of political players in the drama but Sir Runciman's story-telling style helps avoid confusion and makes the intricate connections required to better understand the period. Very well done and a wonderful addition to any library.

Herein, outstanding British historian Runciman explains in considerable and fascinating detail the story of the Sicilian Vespers, and its profound impact on the history of Christendom. What comes across most dramatically to this reader in Runciman's wonderful account is the love of intrigue and political striving of the 13th century Papacy. Here, we see the several Popes of the period acting as petty Italian Princes in their attemtps to further their own secular power. And the upshot of these attempts came to be a profound weakening of the unity of Western Christendom that ultimately fructified into the Reformation of the 16th century.

Another amazing aspect of the story Runciman herein records is the stunning skill and subtlety of Byzantine diplomacy. At the time, the Byzantine, or Later Roman, Empire was yet reeling from the devastation of the hideous Fourth Crusade. And, yet with little remaining military power at their hands, the Byzantines managed to avert what would have been another disasterous Western "crusade" from destroying Constantinople. Here we see also a natural alliance forming between Aragon, later Spain, and the Orthodox East. One could make a good case that this was also the natural alliance that so frustrated Napoleon's design, when he was harried by guerrila warfare in Spain, and by Holy Russia's Biblically courageous defense of Mother Russia.

We strongly recommend Sir Steven Runciman's excellent work to all who would understand this very important, but little discussed, background to modern European history. God bless.

What an excellent history. It's a careful, economical but thorough recounting of events among a huge array of far-flung characters. It's not difficult to read, but rereading helps fix the cast in the mind. (The index is excellent, but a list of characters would have been helpful, although that sort of user-friendliness would definitely have been at odds with the book's Cambridge gestalt.) Sir Steven is very sparing of analysis and conjecture, so that when he does essay a mild synthesizing comment, it is all the more powerful and organic, having grown from the "objective" account and selections of incident. His final thesis -- that the medieval papacy foundered during this period due to its cautious, conscious decision to eschew centralized surrogate command (through the Hohestaufen empire) in favor of decentralized partitioning (the original balkanization) that fed and inculcated a nationalism that was ultimately much more debilitating to papal power -- is both startling and inevitable. Besides the masterful overarching view of European history, the book also is fascinating and illuminating about Sicily in particular, and its polyglot zealotry.

Runciman's writing is absolutely amazing in this volume which treats of Europe in the mid-to-late thirteenth century. I devoured this book in a matter of days, fascinated as I am with Sicilian history and culture. Runciman gives a fantastic view of the Kingdom of Sicily after the fall of "The Kingdom in the Sun", or the Norman Kingdom based in Palermo. From the benevolent king William the Good to the villanous Charles of Anjou, Runciman presents all of those occurances which led up to the Sicilian Vespers, or the systematic destruction of French power over the Sicilians on Easter Monday, 1282. A must-read for all those interested in the history of Europe in this era.