Athens

A History

De: Bruce Clark

Narrado por: Mark Elstob

A sweeping history of Athens, telling the three-thousand-year story of the birthplace of Western civilization.

Even on the most smog-bound of days, the rocky outcrop on which the Acropolis stands is visible above the sprawling roofscape of the Greek capital. Athens presents one of the most recognizable and symbolically freighted panoramas of any of the world's cities: the pillars and pediments of the Parthenon – the temple dedicated to Athena, goddess of wisdom, that crowns the Acropolis – dominate a city whose name is synonymous for many with civilization itself.

It is hard not to feel the hand of history in such a place. The birthplace of democracy, Western philosophy and theatre, Athens' importance cannot be understated. Few cities have enjoyed a history so rich in artistic creativity and the making of ideas; or one so curiously patterned by alternating cycles of turbulence and quietness. From the legal reforms of the lawmaker Solon in the sixth century BCE to the travails of early twenty-first century Athens, as it struggles with the legacy of the economic crises of the 2000s, Clark brings the city's history to life, evoking its cultural richness and political resonance in this epic, kaleidoscopic history.

©2021 Bruce Clark (P)2022 Head of Zeus

Audible Version should be re-recorded

The book fills an interesting gap. I liked it. By definition it must be superficial given the rich long history of the subject. But the reading is a real turnoff with the terrible pronunciation of Greek words and the intoned sarcasm which often seems in the wrong place. But Amazon, which delivers in Greece, should be deeply embarrassed by the prononciation of place names.