The Empire Must Die
Russia's Revolutionary Collapse, 1900 - 1917
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The Empire Must Die
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Narrated by:
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Simon Vance
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By:
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Mikhail Zygar
About this listen
The window between two equally stifling autocracies - the imperial family and the communists - was open only briefly, in the last couple of years of the 19th century until the end of WWI, by which time the revolution was in full fury.
From the last years of Tolstoy until the death of the Tsar and his family, however, Russia experimented with liberalism and cultural openness. In Europe, the Ballet Russe was the height of chic. Novelists and playwrights blossomed, political ideas were swapped in coffee houses, and St. Petersburg felt briefly like Vienna or Paris. The state, however, couldn't tolerate such experimentation against the backdrop of a catastrophic war and a failing economy. The autocrats moved in and the liberals were overwhelmed. This story seems to have strangely prescient echoes of the present.
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- By Joshua on 11-03-16
By: Volker Ullrich
-
The Fall of Heaven
- The Pahlavis and the Final Days of Imperial Iran
- By: Andrew Scott Cooper
- Narrated by: Assaf Cohen
- Length: 22 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 219
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 200
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 200
In this remarkably human portrait of one of the 20th century's most complicated personalities, author Andrew Scott Cooper traces Mohammad Reza Pahlavi's life from childhood through his ascension to the throne in 1941. He highlights the turbulence of the postwar era, during which the shah survived assassination attempts and coup plots to build a modern, pro-Western state and launch Iran onto the world stage as one of the world's top five powers.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent account of a pivotal and sad time
- By Guerin Shea on 09-05-16
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The Devil's Diary
- Alfred Rosenberg and the Stolen Secrets of the Third Reich
- By: Robert K. Wittman, David Kinney
- Narrated by: P. J. Ochlan
- Length: 15 hrs and 9 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 110
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Performance4 out of 5 stars 94
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Story4 out of 5 stars 95
A groundbreaking historical contribution, The Devil's Diary is a chilling window into the mind of Adolf Hitler's "chief social philosopher", Alfred Rosenberg, who formulated some of the guiding principles behind the Third Reich's genocidal crusade.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fresh perspective on terrible events.
- By Sparkly on 04-20-16
By: Robert K. Wittman, and others
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The Pope and Mussolini
- The Secret History of Pius XI and the Rise of Fascism in Europe
- By: David I. Kertzer
- Narrated by: Stefan Rudnicki
- Length: 14 hrs and 10 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 436
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 385
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 381
From National Book Award finalist David I. Kertzer comes the gripping story of Pope Pius XI’s secret relations with Italian dictator Benito Mussolini. This groundbreaking work, based on seven years of research in the Vatican and Fascist archives, including reports from Mussolini’s spies inside the highest levels of the Church, will forever change our understanding of the Vatican’s role in the rise of Fascism in Europe.
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4 out of 5 stars
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It is not narrated well - the delivery does not keep it as captivating as this book should be
- By Karina Inigo on 07-14-15
By: David I. Kertzer
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Stalin, Volume I
- Paradoxes of Power, 1878-1928
- By: Stephen Kotkin
- Narrated by: Paul Hecht
- Length: 38 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 879
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 745
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 744
Volume One of Stalin begins and ends in January 1928 as Stalin boards a train bound for Siberia, about to embark upon the greatest gamble of his political life. He is now the ruler of the largest country in the world, but a poor and backward one, far behind the great capitalist countries in industrial and military power, encircled on all sides. In Siberia, Stalin conceives of the largest program of social reengineering ever attempted.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Excellent Book But First Time Listener Beware
- By Nostromo on 03-23-15
By: Stephen Kotkin
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The Pope at War
- The Secret History of Pius XII, Mussolini, and Hitler
- By: David I. Kertzer
- Narrated by: Arthur Morey
- Length: 17 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 289
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 251
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 249
When Pope Pius XII died in 1958, his papers were sealed in the Vatican Secret Archives, leaving unanswered questions about what he knew and did during World War II. Those questions have only grown and festered, making Pius XII one of the most controversial popes in Church history, especially now as the Vatican prepares to canonize him.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Intellectually dishonest
- By ReviewAmazon384 on 04-08-23
By: David I. Kertzer
-
The General
- Charles De Gaulle and the France He Saved
- By: Jonathan Fenby
- Narrated by: Robin Bloodworth
- Length: 28 hrs and 51 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4 out of 5 stars 87
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 76
-
Story4 out of 5 stars 76
No leader of modern times was more uniquely patriotic than Charles de Gaulle. As founder and first president of the Fifth Republic, General de Gaulle saw himself as "carrying France on [his] shoulders." In his 20s, he fought for France in the trenches and at the epic battle of Verdun. In the 1930s, he waged a lonely battle to enable France to better resist Hitler's Germany. Thereafter, he twice rescued the nation from defeat and decline by extraordinary displays of leadership, political acumen, daring, and bluff, heading off civil war and leaving a heritage adopted by his successors of right and left.
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1 out of 5 stars
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Book Great Read. Narrator Horrible-slow dead voice
- By marigoyle on 10-23-13
By: Jonathan Fenby
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Gandhi & Churchill
- By: Arthur Herman
- Narrated by: John Curless
- Length: 29 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 748
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 513
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 516
In this fast-paced epic, best-selling historian and master storyteller Arthur Herman spotlights two giants of the 20th century. Gandhi & Churchill shows how their 40-year rivalry revolutionized India and the British Empire, paving the way for a new era. Gandhi championed India's independence, Churchill the British Empire.
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5 out of 5 stars
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A motif that works well
- By Maine Dave on 11-30-09
By: Arthur Herman
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Lioness
- Golda Meir and the Nation of Israel
- By: Francine Klagsbrun
- Narrated by: Jo Anna Perrin
- Length: 32 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 209
-
Performance4 out of 5 stars 182
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 183
Golda Meir was a world figure unlike any other. Born in tsarist Russia in 1898, she immigrated to America in 1906 and grew up in Milwaukee, where from her earliest years she displayed the political consciousness and organizational skills that would eventually catapult her into the inner circles of Israel's founding generation. Moving to mandatory Palestine in 1921 with her husband, the passionate socialist joined a kibbutz but soon left and was hired at a public works office by the man who would become the great love of her life.
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1 out of 5 stars
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The persistent mispronunciations of Hebrew and Yiddish words ruined this performance
- By YH-O on 12-30-18
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Paris
- After the Liberation 1944-1949
- By: Antony Beevor, Artemis Cooper
- Narrated by: John Curless
- Length: 18 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 50
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 40
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 39
In this brilliant synthesis of social, political, and cultural history, Antony Beevor and Artemis Cooper present a vivid and compelling portrayal of the City of Lights after its liberation. Paris became the diplomatic battleground in the opening stages of the Cold War.
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4 out of 5 stars
-
Worthwhile listen
- By DanBudda on 07-27-16
By: Antony Beevor, and others
-
Prague Winter
- A Personal Story of Remembrance and War, 1937-1948
- By: Madeleine Albright
- Narrated by: Madeleine Albright
- Length: 15 hrs and 23 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 437
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 386
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 384
Before Madeleine Albright turned twelve, her life was shaken by the Nazi invasion of Czechoslovakia—the country where she was born—the Battle of Britain, the near total destruction of European Jewry, the Allied victory in World War II, the rise of communism, and the onset of the Cold War. Albright's experiences, and those of her family, provide a lens through which to view the most tumultuous dozen years in modern history.
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5 out of 5 stars
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History from a Personal Perspective
- By Jeanette Finan on 02-22-13
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Phantom Terror
- Political Paranoia and the Creation of the Modern State, 1789 - 1848
- By: Adam Zamoyski
- Narrated by: Gildart Jackson
- Length: 22 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 104
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 91
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 92
Phantom Terror explores this troubled, fascinating period, when politicians and cultural leaders from Edmund Burke to Mary Shelley were forced to choose sides and either support or resist the counterrevolutionary spirit embodied in the newly omnipotent central states. The turbulent political situation that coalesced during this era would lead directly to the revolutions of 1848 and to the collapse of order in World War I.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Amazing
- By Mike Johnson on 07-14-15
By: Adam Zamoyski
-
Troublesome Young Men
- The Rebels Who Brought Churchill to Power and Helped Save England
- By: Lynne Olson
- Narrated by: Dennis Kleinman
- Length: 14 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall5 out of 5 stars 128
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 114
-
Story5 out of 5 stars 113
On May 7, 1940, the House of Commons began perhaps the most crucial debate in British parliamentary history. On its outcome hung the future of Prime Minister Neville Chamberlain's government and also of Britain - indeed, perhaps, the world. Troublesome Young Men is Lynne Olson's fascinating account of how a small group of rebellious Tory MPs defied the Chamberlain government's defeatist policies that aimed to appease Europe's tyrants and eventually forced the prime minister's resignation.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Spectacular Narrative History Book
- By Nostromo on 11-30-18
By: Lynne Olson
-
Mao
- The Unknown Story
- By: Jung Chang, Jon Halliday
- Narrated by: Robertson Dean
- Length: 29 hrs and 50 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,601
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,294
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,297
Based on a decade of research and on interviews with many of Mao's close circle in China who have never talked before, and with virtually everyone outside China who had significant dealings with him, this is the most authoritative biography of Mao ever written.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Fills many gaps! Very good..but!
- By Jene on 08-07-06
By: Jung Chang, and others
-
Adolf Hitler
- By: John Toland
- Narrated by: Ralph Cosham
- Length: 44 hrs and 42 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 940
-
Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 831
-
Story4.5 out of 5 stars 832
Based on previously unpublished documents, diaries, notes, photographs, and dramatic interviews with Hitler's colleagues and associates, this is the definitive biography of one of the most despised yet fascinating figures of the 20th century. Painstakingly documented, it is a work that will not soon be forgotten.
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5 out of 5 stars
-
Strange Person
- By Mark on 11-25-14
By: John Toland
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3 out of 5 stars
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A good book done in by bad narration.
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Incredible research as important now as then
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No nation is a stranger to war, but for Russians war is a central part of who they are. Their "motherland" has been the battlefield where some of the largest armies have clashed, the most savage battles have been fought, the highest death tolls paid. Having prevailed over Mongol hordes and vanquished Napoleon and Hitler, many Russians believe no other nation has sacrificed so much for the world.
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4 out of 5 stars
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A bit dry and academic
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October 1917, heralded as the culmination of the Russian Revolution, remains a defining moment in world history. Even a hundred years after the events that led to the emergence of the world's first self-proclaimed socialist state, debate continues over whether, as historian E. H. Carr put it decades ago, these earth-shaking days were a "landmark in the emancipation of mankind from past oppression" or "a crime and a disaster."
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Solid overview of events
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3 out of 5 stars
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Lenin
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Drawing on new research, including the diaries, memoirs, and personal letters of both Lenin and his friends, Victor Sebestyen's unique biography - the first in English in nearly two decades - is not only a political examination of one of the most important historical figures of the 20th century but a portrait of Lenin the man. Unexpectedly, Lenin was someone who loved nature, hunting, and fishing and could identify hundreds of species of plants, a despotic ruler whose closest ties and friendships were with women.
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3 out of 5 stars
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Lenin totally took an extra piece of that cake.
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The Eagle and the Lion
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The Roman empire shaped the culture of the Western world against which all other great powers are compared. Stretching from the north of Britain to the Sahara, and from the Atlantic coast to the Euphrates, it imposed peace and prosperity on an unprecedented scale. However, the exception lay in the east, where the Parthian and then Persian empires ruled over great cities and the trade routes to mysterious lands beyond. This was the place Alexander the Great had swept through, creating a dream of glory and conquest which tantalized Greeks and Romans alike.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Good Goldsworthy, Not greatest
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Metternich
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 26
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 26
Metternich has a reputation as the epitome of reactionary conservatism. Historians treat him as the archenemy of progress, a ruthless aristocrat who used his power as the dominant European statesman of the first half of the nineteenth century to stifle liberalism, suppress national independence, and oppose the dreams of social change that inspired the revolutionaries of 1848. Wolfram Siemann paints a fundamentally new image of the man who shaped Europe for over four decades. He reveals Metternich as more modern and his career much more forward-looking than we have ever recognized.
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Very intensely researched
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The country that gave us Vlad Dracula, and whose citizens consider themselves descendants of ancient Rome, has traditionally preferred the status of enigmatic outsider. But this beautiful and unexplored land has experienced some of the most disastrous leaderships of the last century. After a relatively benign period led by a dutiful king and his vivacious, British-born queen, the country oscillated wildly.
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A haunting look at Romanian history
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The Russian Revolution
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Groundbreaking in its inclusiveness, enthralling in its narrative of a movement whose purpose, in the words of Leon Trotsky, was "to overthrow the world", The Russian Revolution draws conclusions that aroused great controversy. Richard Pipes argues convincingly that the Russian Revolution was an intellectual, rather than a class, uprising; that it was steeped in terror from its very outset; and that it was not a revolution at all but a coup d'etat - "the capture of governmental power by a small minority."
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Destruction of the Lenin Myth
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From the Ruins of Empire
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A little more than a century ago, as the Japanese navy annihilated the giant Russian one at the Battle of Tsushima, original thinkers across Asia, working independently, sought to frame a distinctly Asian intellectual tradition that would inform and inspire the continent's anticipated rise to dominance.
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Breathtaking Scale, Cohesion and Vision of Asian History
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Spies, Lies, and Algorithms
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 239
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In Spies, Lies, and Algorithms, Amy Zegart separates fact from fiction as she offers an engaging and enlightening account of the past, present, and future of American espionage as it faces a revolution driven by digital technology. Drawing on decades of research and hundreds of interviews with intelligence officials, Zegart provides a history of US espionage, gives an overview of intelligence basics and life inside America's intelligence agencies, and explores the vexed issues of traitors, covert action, and congressional oversight.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Superb and insightful!
- By Cameron on 02-01-22
By: Amy B. Zegart
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Stalin in Power
- The Revolution from Above, 1928-1941
- By: Robert C. Tucker
- Narrated by: Paul Woodson
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- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 15
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 12
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Story4 out of 5 stars 12
In 1929, Stalin plunged Soviet Russia into a coercive "revolution from above", a decade-long effort to amass military-industrial power for a new war. He forced 25 million peasant families into state-run collectives and transformed the Communist Party into a servile instrument. In 1939, he concluded the pact with Hitler that enabled him to grasp at Eastern Europe while Hitler made war in the West.
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4 out of 5 stars
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How to become a dictator
- By Kindle Customer on 09-22-21
By: Robert C. Tucker
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The Fall of the Ottomans
- The Great War in the Middle East
- By: Eugene Rogan
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 17 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,329
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,317
In The Fall of the Ottomans, award-winning historian Eugene Rogan brings the First World War and its immediate aftermath in the Middle East to vivid life, uncovering the often ignored story of the region's crucial role in the conflict.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great Book About A Little Known Part of WWI
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By: Eugene Rogan
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Pandora’s Box
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 214
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 191
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 188
In this monumental history of the First World War, Germany's leading historian of the 20th century's first great catastrophe explains the war's origins, course, and consequences. With an unrivaled combination of depth and global reach, Pandora's Box reveals how profoundly the war shaped the world to come. Jörn Leonhard treats the clash of arms with a sure feel for grand strategy, the everyday tactics of dynamic movement and slow attrition, the race for ever more destructive technologies, and the grim experiences of frontline soldiers.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Excellent reading of a complex book
- By chris on 02-26-19
By: Jorn Leonhard, and others
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Churchill
- Walking with Destiny
- By: Andrew Roberts
- Narrated by: Stephen Thorne
- Length: 50 hrs and 28 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 4,508
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 4,005
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Story5 out of 5 stars 3,988
When we seek an example of great leaders with unalloyed courage, the person who comes to mind is Winston Churchill: the iconic, visionary war leader immune from the consensus of the day, who stood firmly for his beliefs when everyone doubted him. But how did young Winston become Churchill? What gave him the strength to take on the superior force of Nazi Germany when bombs rained on London and so many others had caved? In this landmark biography of Winston Churchill based on extensive new material, the true genius of the man, statesman, and leader can finally be fully understood.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Superb Biography
- By Jean on 03-03-19
By: Andrew Roberts
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Dynasty
- The Rise and Fall of the House of Caesar
- By: Tom Holland
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 16 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 1,605
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 1,444
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 1,431
Author and historian Tom Holland returns to his roots in Roman history and the audience he cultivated with Rubicon—his masterful, witty, brilliantly researched popular history of the fall of the Roman republic—with Dynasty, a luridly fascinating history of the reign of the first five Roman emperors. Dynasty continues Rubicon's story, opening where that book ended: with the murder of Julius Caesar. This is the period of the first and perhaps greatest Roman emperors. It's a colorful story of rule and ruination, from the rise of Augustus to the death of Nero.
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4 out of 5 stars
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Accessible, enjoyable history
- By Mary on 01-28-16
By: Tom Holland
What listeners say about The Empire Must Die
Average customer ratingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall4 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Jason Close
- 05-21-18
This was a decent history book.
This book was done well. It has a good ratio of data-to-anecdote. Your won't get lost in the weeds too much with repetitive listing of dates and people, but that info is included where relevant.
It will give you a good grounding on how the stage was set for the Communist regime of early 20th century.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Habibus Magnus
- 07-28-23
Stunningly good!
I must admit that I was skeptical when I saw that the author was a journalist and not an academic historian. I am so very delighted to have given it a try. I have really encountered such vivid portraits of the protagonists of this tragic story. Highly recommend it. one of my favorite books ever on the Russian Revolution.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- brian
- 06-22-18
An excellent look at an interesting history.
A documentary format, if you will, through old diary and other forms to look on those interesting and dark days. Narration by Simon Vance is excellent as always, a narrator I love to hear, among many others, American and British.
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3 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- JohnWells
- 03-02-19
Simon Vance is excellent
Very good book excellent narration, well written and recommended for those interested in Russian history.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Marina
- 04-29-22
Heartbreaking synopsis
This is an absolutely heartbreaking and poignant synopsis of HOW what happened in Russia - happened. A general but pretty thorough account - I really enjoyed the book. I escaped USSR aged 14 for America, as a Jewish refugee, with my family. So much blood spilled in that country, for all involved, generations past, and - by now as we are in Putin’s war on Ukraine- onto the future generations of that land. Utterly heartbreaking. Informative. A must-read.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story3 out of 5 stars
- Becks
- 03-11-21
Have to agree with boring review
This book is VERY boring. And I seek out long novels- many of them historical- that would be considered boring by the typical reader. Simon Vance is great; one of my favorite narrators. I just can’t even explain the tedium.
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1 person found this helpful
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Overall2 out of 5 stars
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Performance3 out of 5 stars
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Story1 out of 5 stars
- Will
- 09-04-19
OMG This Is Boring
I have listened intently to many long audio books about history, things that would make other people fall asleep at the wheel. I love them. But this is a boring book. It has the occasional interest tidbit. But waiting for those is agonizing. I really wanted to like it.
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1 person found this helpful