Drumurile mătăsii. O altfel de istorie a lumii

by Peter Frankopan, Neil Packer (Illustrator), Virginia Costeschi (translator)

Copile, pornește într-o aventură spre Orient și descoperă o istorie a lumii uimitor de originală!

Peter Frankopan, celebru autor și istoric, analizează legăturile care au luat naștere între popoare, comerț, epidemii, religie, aventură, știință și tehnologie în această carte extraordinară despre cum Orientul s-a unit cu Occidentul pornind de la o călătorie remarcabilă – călătoria de-a lungul Drumurilor Mătăsii.

De la Codul lui Hammurabi și mărețul Imperiu Persan, la hunii cei cumpliți, ascensiunea Europei, cele două războaie mondiale și politica actuală, Drumurile Mătăsii străbat vremurile și istoria, împletind firele care leagă diferite popoare, imperii și continente într-o fascinantă istorie a lumii.

Adunând povești despre fiecare aspect al societății, călătoria fabuloasă în care ne invită Frankopan, inspirată din triumful său literar Drumurile Mătăsii și magistral ilustrată de Neil Packer, este o istorie a lumii care nu poate lipsi din biblioteca niciunui copil.

Genres: History, Nonfiction, Childrens, World History, Picture Books, Economics

128 pages, Hardcover

First published July 8, 2021

About the author

Peter Frankopan studied History at Jesus College, Cambridge, where he was Foundation Scholar, Schiff Scholar and won the History Prize in 1993, when he took an outstanding first class degree. He did his D.Phil (Ph.D) at Corpus Christi College, where he was elected to a Senior Scholarship before moving to Worcester College as Junior Research Fellow in 1997. He has been Senior Research Fellow since 2000 and is Director of the Oxford Centre for Byzantine Research at Oxford University. He is a Fellow of the Royal Historical Society, the Royal Society of Arts, the Royal Anthropological Institute, and the Royal Asiatic Society.

Peter has held visiting Fellowships at Dumbarton Oaks (Harvard) and Princeton, and has lectured at universities all over the world including Cambridge, Harvard, Yale, Princeton, NYU, Notre Dame, King's London and The Institute of Historical Research. He writes regularly for the national and international press about current affairs and about how history helps to explain the present. His work has been translated into twelve languages.

Peter chairs a collection of family businesses in the UK, France, Croatia and the Netherlands, including A Curious Group of Hotels which he set up with his wife Jessica in 1999.

He is actively involved with several charities, mainly in the areas of education, international development, gender studies and classical music. Both he and Jessica are Companions of the Guild of Benefactors at Cambridge University. He has been a Governor of Wellington College since 2006.

He chairs the Frankopan Fund, which has awarded more than a hundred scholarships and awards to outstanding young scholars from Croatia to study at leading academic institutions in the UK, USA and Europe.

A chorister at Westminster Cathedral as a boy, music scholar at school and choral scholar at Cambridge, he is an accomplished musician and has recorded many albums as a singer and instrumentalist.

A keen sportsman, Peter won blues at both Oxford and Cambridge for minor sports, and represented Croatia internationally at cricket. He plays for the Authors CC, a team of writers whose members has included PG Wodehouse and Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. In recent years, the team has toured India and Sri Lanka, and played against the Pope's 1st XI - St Peter's CC - in England and in Rome.

In the summer of 2013, Bloomsbury published The Authors XI. A Season of English Cricket from Hackney to Hambledon. It was as one of The Guardian's Books the year, and was one of Hilary Mantel's Books of the Year in the Observer.

Reviews

[Anna (lion_reads) · Rating 3 out of 5]

2.75 stars

I liked that this book tried to pull the history of the world through a single thread. It is the kind of thematic interpretation of history that does not often appear in nonfiction books for kids. It also tried to explain some of the conflicts we have seen in modern times. More kids' history books should try to do that. There is so much information out there about the "cool" civilizations (Rome, ancient Egypt, ancient Greece, etc.). It was nice to see some other civilizations being highlighted here. This book tries to bridge some of that gap in knowledge.

Neil Packer's illustrations were wonderful — unique and colourful. There were full spreads throughout and no page was truly blank. Love the style!

There were a couple of things that I found "off" about this version of The Silk Roads by Frankopan. (Disclaimer: I never read the full book.)

First, there was no timeline or index in this edition, which is really frustrating. I imagine this would also not be helpful for kids who are trying to piece together the history written about. Also, if they already know about some events, they can't look them up to get Frankopan's perspective on them because there IS no index. Big minus. I also noticed there weren't a lot of dates in here for a history book, which made for sometimes vague reading.

Sometimes I felt like the way the longer chapters were worked down for this format was a tad confusing. One instance I noticed, was where the text was talking about Vikings in Ukraine/Russia and it seemed like it was misleading the reader into understanding that Ukraine/Russia was actually created by Vikings and was composed of Viking people. There was no mention of the Slavs, which seemed a bit misleading to me. I'm not sure if other readers will notice other things.

In general, this book felt a bit too much like all the other history books written by the West for the West. Asia and Africa are for the most part at the sidelines, and there was not enough criticism of colonialism and its negative effects (especially of the British in Asia). It was sometimes implied, but kind of vaguely. Because of that, there were certain gaps in the descriptions. For example, communism and the rise of the Soviet Union were barely explained at all except in that it caused deaths and was the enemy of the British. This is also kind of misleading because there are specific times of strife that caused people to look for new doctrines outside of imperialism. In that way, it felt like a very British treatment of communism and Russia. There wasn't really a balance. And I imagine there are some slips like this in reference to Asian events. The Native American experience was kind of lost in the shuffle too (there is SOME), even though the Americas are included in the Silk Roads.

I wish there was more about how cultures passed on things to each other like knowledge, certain styles of art, philosophy, etc. But I suppose it's Frankopan's main thesis to look at history through the lens of economy, war and politics instead.

So I don't know if I could recommend this book. I had a bit of a lukewarm reaction to it. I think it's a step in a good direction, but I'm not sure it's providing enough new information for Western kids about the history of the world. Maybe it just doesn't work in 127 pages.

[Charlie Calver · Rating 4 out of 5]

Listened on audiobook. Was finding the adult version a bit tiresome and over detailed (even on 1.5x speed) 🤣 plus Peter Frankopan is a DILF and he narrates this one and even his voice is hot

[Gordan Karlic · Rating 4 out of 5]

I thought a lot (probably too much) should I give a 3 or 4 rating to this book, but in the end, I decided it will be 4 because there isn't a rate of 3.5.
What was the biggest problem I had with this book you might ask? It is a fact that the topics covered within the book are too inclusive in relation to the title of the book.
A lot of things don't really belong under the term "silk road" but the author included them nonetheless, because that big chunk of the book is not really talking about its topic, or it makes the term "silk road" too broad.
Another big caveat I have is that often the information is inaccurate or at least taken without a shred of salt to say, and it seems to me that this was often done on purpose because the author wanted to be popular, that is, to cover topics that were in popular belief although they are not the most accurate.
Overall decent book, you will find a lot of information but nothing that is groundbreaking.

[Lien Nguyen · Rating 2 out of 5]

Picked this book for a quick win of my 2020 reading challenge 😂 so much info squeezed in less than 100 pages, make it difficult to follow the story lines in a time order. Also different from my expectation of “hearing a world history from Eastern perspectives”

[Sarah Faichney · Rating 5 out of 5]

Narrated by the author, this is a marvellous audiobook detailing the historical importance of the Silk Roads. I cannot believe how much knowledge and information is packed into such a short space of time! I have just purchased the illustrated edition as a Christmas gift for a child, and I simply must listen to the extended audio version myself. Peter Frankopan's 'The Silk Roads' is an invaluable, and thoroughly engaging, overview of world history and politics. Completely captivating! 

[Tzu · Rating 4 out of 5]

I love this so much!

The illustrations are wonderful and the story explaining the very history of our civilizations, their whereabouts and religions made it to be the fastest read I've had in a long time.

I'll be rereading this for sure as well! Just to freshen up all that I had missed in History Class once again. ;)

[Anonymous · Rating 3 out of 5]

It’s no wonder a dream book of the author as he mentions about his childhood wish to know the past. This illustrated edition has been presented as narrative form appealing to the teens perhaps. The apt title as per me should have been “Winds of Change: A teenager’s guide to world history”. I found the author to be escalating away from the context of ‘silk road’ and wander to the realm of civilisational history and politics. There were not much of data to pull this into the category of research document but carefully yarned retelling of the history which makes it opposite of boring except for the illustrations which I didn’t like at all.

Here is a quick gist of the book:
Silk in the ancient times was also a currency. The ancient network of routes which connected Asia with Europe and Africa served not just as a carrier of goods but also culture. It carried values, faith, answers, philosophy to foreign lands. The ideas evolved into religion reflected in lifestyle and faith thrived through competition, adaptation and innovation. Most successful among these were Buddhism and Christianity which reached far and wide. Rulers played a major role as proponents of the faiths. Mass acceptance brought with it jealousy and malice amongst other who sought for it. Persecutions and violence were committed ‘all in the name of God’ but nobody could foresee the stain these actions put on the religions for centuries to come.
Climate change in mid 4th century started a domino effect that brought an end to the age of antiquity. The period saw a rise of barbarian tribal communities in Central Asia, prominently Huns/Xiongnu. Huns were the force that brought devastation with them wherever they went. This force had a benefitting effect on civilised world- the Sassanian Persian and Roman united against the common enemy of civility. One honorary mention here is to Attila who ravaged Western Roman cites one by one till the Catalunian plain war. Meanwhile the Eastern empire continued to flourish through trade until the scale of power turned in Persia in the 7th century jeopardising the prosperity of Eastern Roman or Byzantine Empire cities this time as war comes with a heavy price tag.
In early decades of the century, a new faith was germinating through a trader Muhammad in the Arabian peninsula. In the tumultuous times of war, the revelations to Muhammad with the reward of salvation and idea of jannat permeated hope to the people. The initial tolerance gave way to intra and inter religious violence in the name of God yet again in the middle ages. The Islamic rulers dominated from Spain to Himalayas. Nobody had envisioned this rise of Islam from a cave near Mecca. The period also witnessed the renaissance of ancient knowledge and exploration of new. For a few centuries, Islamic world-Asia shone through exchange of knowledge and maritime trade as Europe faded to the scene.
With surge in demand for goods, one more item was added to the list-humans. The most prominent traders of humans were the Norsemen-Vikings. With changing winds another war in the name of God blew with promises of rewards in afterlife, thus began the Crusades. With the first crusade, Jerusalem was captured by the Byzantine which led to a series of more gore to keep the holy city to themselves. On the other hand, the Christian base in Holy Land opened an opportunity of trade with East & South Asia. Soon a storm hit this local feud on claim to God’s land. The storm was Genghis Khan. If one would compare, Attila’s army was a wind compared to the Mongol storm under the great Khan. Guided neither by faith nor law the Mongols swiftly appeared triumphant over the territory they eyed. However, were tolerant to religion and sensible to trade and taxation. As the words spread of this mysterious army, people over the known world were excited to gather more information about which improved the connections between the lands further. Unfortunately, black death plague thwarted the developments killing millions.
A new dawn came up in the landscape with new culture and a new conquerer. Christopher Columbus set sail in 1492 seeking the Golden Bird. But instead he paved the way to the isolated lands of Aztecs and the Incas. Now the Europeans were the barbarians in foreign lands. They took everything (mostly minerals) from natives and in return gifted them diseases they were not immune to. This is how the discovery of the new world came to be known as the greatest event since the Creation. If not for the looted riches of Americas, Europe would never be where it is now. The thirst for riches was never to supposed to quench with that, Portuguese Vasco da Gama sailed in the opposite direction and ended up in India. This opened up a maritime route for goods to be transported to numerous European cities. This had a crucial impact on the geopolitics, the centre of the continent moved to the Atlantic coast and soon it became the centre of world affairs till the modern era. The more the Europe benefitted the more the Africa and America suffered. And all the wealth of the world was poured in into Asia. This was a bad news, because the Europeans now started wondering whether they could replicate their American action in Asia as well. England was burning out of jealousy of the flipped fortune of Spain and Portugal. Internal religious turmoil led it to strengthen itself naval defences awaiting vultures from neighbourhood. Which started as self defence transformed into piracy and bullying. Following the example, Holland too poured in resources to strengthen its fleet and also started one of the richest companies in the history, the Dutch East India Company or VOC. Hence, the continental feud was now upscaled to global level. As the British East India company secured its foothold in India, billions of pounds worth was transferred to England while the population was dying of exploitation and starvation. Fearing the same fate, the North Americans started revolution which led to the formation of the United States in 1776.
Winds of change started blowing all over the world after the American war of Independence. France followed a similar revolution. 19th century was dominated by territorial warfare between Britain and Russia. Meanwhile all were trying to be in good books with Persia which maintained its crucial position in world trade, but the discovery of oil reserves brought it into a dangerous position in 20th century. With emerging German Reich, Russia, Britain and France came together to form a counterbalance named Triple Entente. During such period of built up tension, the anticipation of war led to war. The war we call World War I. As we know war comes with a heavy price tag, literally and figuratively. This time it was the wrath of the common folk that rained on the rulers in form of Russian revolution; broke and indebted Britain along with France put the blame on Germany. Treaty of Versailles put a hefty war reparation on Germany which led to hyperinflation in the economy. This humiliation of treaty terms anguished the Germans to rebuilt and avenge. Thus was the premise of the Nazis and rise of Adolf Hitler. France and Britain started allocating Middle East region among themselves, to exploit the oil resources and secure the Suez Canal region. The reshaping of regional boundaries by foreigners and their puppet rulers was never to suit the local population who were keen on driving the foreigners out of their land. The following decades the winds of independence blew all over the world. While others were busy Germany had revived and Hitler had amassed power to make Germany great again. Swiftly, Hitler had conquered Poland, Belgium, Netherlands and France to become the master of Europe. But yet again, war had come with price tag of agricultural output. To solve the food problem Hitler attacked the Soviet fields of wheat to the south. Nazi had drawn closer to Moscow the Soviet resisted with force. And soon Hitler’s plans were ruined by efforts of the Allies. To address the food shortage Nazi devised a genocidal solution which we know as holocaust. Finally the world war ended with USA using a new weapon developed for mass extinction which produced lot of energy with mushroom cloud on Japanese cities of Hiroshima and Nagasaki.
Later Winston Churchill, Franklin D Roosevelt and Stalin met to discuss the fate of the whole world. The following decades saw another rivalry after so much destruction and yet no lessons learnt, USA and USSR emerged as superpowers and kickstarted the cold war. The two powers competed to gain influence over the Middle East which was the region of black gold. The politically unstable region engaged in war with neighbours benefitted the US and UK companies who supplied them with weapons. The US funded the insurgent Mujahideen or say Taliban to fight against the USSR. With the fall of Berlin wall, the Soviet Union collapsed marking the end of cold war. As the USA hegemony grew with the dawn of millennium, it faced another challenge in the name of Osama bin Laden. Immediately after the 9/11 USA declared global war on terrorism. The war on terrorism didn’t end with the killing of Osama in 2011, neither with the recent withdrawal of US army from Afghanistan in 2021 which helped Taliban to establish control in the country. Though the west failed in attempt to control the heart of the world, the east (China) now is putting efforts to revive the old silk route through it’s Belt and Road initiative. With hopes of opportunity in future let’s see how if the silk roads are re-emerging or ulterior motives are at play.

[Ophelia · Rating 5 out of 5]

A superb introduction to history for 11+ year olds. Depth and breadth achieved. Fantastic vocabulary and definitely provokes assumptions

[Sibrich van Baalen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Denk niet dat dit een kinderboek is omdat het de verkorte, geïllustreerde versie van De zijderoutes is. De materie en de zinnen zijn van een hoog niveau, maar nu bieden de tekeningen troost.

[Peter Saunders · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a short easy read (only 128pp including illustrations) and a cut-down version of Frankopan's 650+pp book of the same name published a few years ago, which I have not yet read. It is a useful big-picture overview of world history from the Persian Empire to the rise of ISIS but the lack of detail in such a short book and the disproportionate focus on some parts of history with short skims over the rest was perhaps inevitable. I'll certainly go back to it again and again but want now to read the original Silk Roads.

[A Severs · Rating 5 out of 5]

A brilliant history of the world for Upper primary and secondary aged children. Using this as a basis for teaching will certainly put a different spin on Britain's so-called greatness.

[Ariya · Rating 3 out of 5]

ตื่นเต้นตอนแกะซีลเปิดหนังสือเพราะไม่ค่อยได้ซื้อหนังสือ hardcover กระดาษแข็งสีในเล่มขนาดนี้ ซื้อเล่มภาษาไทยเพราะกะว่าน่าจะส่งต่อหนังสือง่ายหน่อย อ่านจบแล้วยังเอาไปให้หลานที่เรียนชั้นประถมอ่านต่อได้ แล้วก็เป็นเล่มที่ไฮป์กันมากจากรางวัลต่างๆ มากมายรวมไปถึงหนังสืออ่านสำหรับเด็ก ซึ่งก็ตามนั้น ภาพประกอบและการออกแบบเลย์เอาท์ดูมีลูกเล่นประณีตเพลินตาเหมาะกับการเปิดโลกทัศน์เยาวชนจริงๆ

แต่เนื้อหามันกว้างไพศาลมหาสมุทรมาก เพราะเป็นการเล่าเรียงลำดับเหตุการณ์ที่เกิดขึ้นบริเวณเอเชียกลางตั้งแต่ยุคเริ่มต้นของการทำสงครามในอ่าวเปอร์เซียระหว่างอาหรับกับกรีกโบราณไปจนถึงยุคปัจจุบัน เหตุการณ์ในเรื่องเรียงตามไทม์ไลน์ก็จริงแต่มันไม่ได้มี scope ชัดเจนว่าเหตุการณ์แต่ละครั้งสร้างการเปลี่ยนแปลงสำคัญยังไงบ้าง หนังสือมาทรงเล่าไปเรื่อยไปเปื่อย มีตัวละครและคนสำคัญโผล่มาเรื่อยๆ ให้พอสนุก เนื้อเรื่องมีบทพรรณนาบ้างประปรายแต่กัดไม่ค่อยได้เนื้อได้หนังเท่าไหร่ อย่างตอนกำลังเริ่มตื่นเต้นกับเรื่องการครอบครองดินแดนของพวกมองโกลหรือการเข้ามาของไวกิงโพ้นทะเล หรือทึ่งตอนที่รู้ว่ามีการเอาคนตะวันตกมาเป็นทาสให้เศรษฐีในตัวตะวันออก พี่คนเขียนก็เปลี่ยนไปพูดเรื่องอื่นแล้ว

หนังสือมีแบ่งเป็นตอนก็จริงแต่เนื้อหามันคาบเกี่ยวกันไปหมด เช่นตอนที่จั่วหัวว่าเป็นยุครุ่งโรจน์ ก็มีเล่าแทรกถึงภัยพิบัติสงครามไปด้วยเลยไม่เข้าใจว่าจะแบ่งชื่อตอนเอากิมมิคอะไร เล่าไปเรื่อยๆ ก็ได้ ที่ใช้คำว่า "เล่า" เพราะรู้สึกว่าหนังสือเล่าให้คนอ่านฟังจริงๆ ตอนอ่านก็เพลิดเพลินดีตามท้องเรื่องเลย ช่วงที่เน้นมากหน่อยและรู้สึกว่าพอกัดถึงหนังเข้าถึงกระดูกคงเป็นตอนสงครามอิรักอิหร่าน กับการเข้าแทรกแซงของอังกฤษซึ่งดูเป็นประเด็นที่คนเขียนเน้นย้ำมาก เหมือนเก็บกดอยากเล่าอยากด่าประเทศตัวเอง ซึ่งก็เข้าใจได้ในจุดนี้ อาจเป็นได้ว่าการศึกษาประวัติศาสตร์ในโลกตะวันตกกระแสหลักไม่ค่อยได้ปะติดปะต่อภาพอำนาจตะวันตกที่ฉ้อฉล หรือแทบไม่ได้โยงใยปัญหาที่เกิดในแถบตะวันออกกลางเข้ากับอิทธิพลมหาอำนาจตะวันตกมากเท่าที่ควร ก็ดีที่ว่าหนังสือเล่มนี้พยายามอย่างจริงจังที่จะทำให้เห็นปัญหาการเมืองระหว่างประเทศที่ซับซ้อนและเผยโฉมหน้าผู้ชักใยอยู่เบื้องหลังในหลายๆ ช่วงศตวรรษ

[Yvonne · Rating 5 out of 5]

I have a hardback version of this book but as yet have not read it. When I saw there was an audio version I thought this might be the ideal time to listen instead. I was aware that this is a version that is abridged and aimed at t teen audience and so shorter in length than the actual book.

This narration is excellent to listen to, my only issue was that it finished far too quickly! I was really enjoying the book and I could have listened for a lot longer.

This is the story of the Silk Road, from the first recognition and use of this route to modern-day use. Not only does the author deal with important events on the Silk Road, but he also uses these events to mention other events in the world. This works really well as there are various reference points so you are aware of what else was going on at the time.

So while this is primarily about the Silk Road it is also a world history book. Cross-referencing like this means you get glimpses of social events, cultures, histories. The author explores how political decisions, trade decisions are all part of how we see different countries and their rulers in the world. How money and politics are more important than the people.

Condensing world history down into this version is excellent. It makes this a fascinating listen for those who like history but want a more manageable version. After listening to this I do think I will be picking up my physical copy of the book and also the follow-on book.

A fabulous listen and one I would definitely recommend.

[Bleep · Rating 3 out of 5]

Loved the first half and the conceptual layout of silk roads as a series of networks formed to exploit territories and build empires - but also spread ideas/medical technology, and of course religion. The Middle Ages is clearly where Frankopan’s expertise is - it’s where he is most compelling, clear and nuanced for me.

This seriously flops in the second half though, it gets very “and this happened here, and this happened there” with no explanation of how one event/place relates to the other (which presumably is the point of the silk roads lens!). The writing loses steam and gets cringier and more Eurocentric too, major red flag to talk of Europe as the centre of anything. Given that this is a book for children we need to rly poo poo this discourse pls. Also he mentions something about the entire Muslim world being antisemitic which is obviously great for children to read about 🤪. And then randomly he ends up at 9/11 with no account of how or why the events preceding were causal to it in anyway, or at least in a way that would be useful for the kids. Just something about Saddam and weapons and yadda yadda. I think this is a v high stakes period of recent history that needed a much more thoughtful editor to prod Peter here. Second half felt very Francis Fukuyama end of history vibes to me 😅

But I did love the bit about how the plague reshaped the European economy and the bargaining power of workers v feudal lords. I did not know feudal lords were also matchmakers!!

Anyway I would say this is a book for adults not kids and I’m glad I read it.

[Beth N · Rating 5 out of 5]

I bought the pretty pretty book not realising it was for a younger audience. Honestly, though, I think I got the better deal. In this short book, Frankopan gives us what is essentially a potted history of the entire last two millennia, centring on the Silk Roads that span Europe and Asia but incorporating salient points from the rest of world history. The information is presented in crystal clear language which, though aimed at older children, is never patronising and is frequently illuminating. I learnt so much about events I thought I understood, just from reading Frankopan's simplified explanations. Neil Packer's illustrations are a delight and I spent almost as much time gazing at them as I did reading the text.

If you know a child remotely interested in history, or if you yourself want to know more about how international movement and trade has shaped the world you live in, do yourself a favour and pick up this stunning book.

[Sailinginwords · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book going to be on the must-read in once in a lifetime list.

[Aom Ruka · Rating 5 out of 5]

เล่มนี้ไม่ได้ลงเรื่องประวัติศาสตร์แบบเชิงลึก แต่เป็นเรื่องราวประวัติศาสตร์แบบสรุป อ่านเข้าใจง่าย ภาพสีตลอดทั้งเล่ม(ชอบมาก อ่านเพลิน) รู้สึกดื่มด่ำเหมือนกำลังท่องโลกสารคดีประวัติศาสตร์ สนุก

[Ian Castricum · Rating 5 out of 5]

Cute!

[Adarsh · Rating 4 out of 5]

From ancient world laws laid down by King Hammurabi to the rise of Alexander, two World Wars and modern politics today, The Silk Roads moves through time and history sewing together the threads from different empires into a concise history of our planet. While I haven’t read the non-illustrated edition (which is well over 600 pages), this gorgeous edition illustrated by Neil Packer is a must-have coffee table book for history buffs.

Peter Frankopan makes a fine case for the ancient (and modern) Silk Roads as the heart of the world, citing various examples of intellectual and goods exchange across the Silk Roads of Persia for two millennia. He argues that globalisation did not begin in 1492 with the European voyages of discovery and that it actually began long before Columbus and his contemporaries set sail.

The book begins with the words – “The heart of Asia is where civilization was born”, and continues to talk about ancient Mesopotamia, along the banks of the mighty Tigris and Euphrates, and the Indus Valley civilization where the very first cities known to mankind were founded. It also gives a primer on how interconnected the ancient world was, with Romans buying pepper in Indian shores, pots from North Africa being used thousands of miles away in Scotland, and ceramics from Persia being transported to Sri Lanka, South East Asia and China. The book continues to travel rapidly across time, covering the major events from the rise and fall of Rome, rise of Islam, the dark ages, colonial era, the two World Wars, and concludes rather fittingly with China’s ambitious Belt and Road Initiative (BRI) project.

“History reminds us how changes have occurred in the past and helps us understand why change is taking place today. The Silk Roads have always been important. And today is no different; the Silk Roads are rising again.”

[The Humpo Show [ Richard ] · Rating 4 out of 5]

A clear and concise reassessment of world history, The Silk Roads is a wonderful exploration of the events, people, movements and forces that have played an important role in the rise and fall of empires, determined the flow of ideas and goods and are now heralding a new dawn in international affairs.

The aim for Silk Roads was to shine a light on the historical route between East and West, Asia and Europe, and to forego the usual versions espoused by Europeans and Americans, which are widely prevalent.

Frankopan has written a lively book that covers everything from Ancient Persia and the Byzantine Empire, to the Renaissance and the slave trade, as well as evens following the second world war and even recent events in the Middle East, the repetition of themes and events throughout civilization. He writes without bias, while remaining faithful to the facts.

I can’t really fault this edition of the book – others are available – as the essential history of the world is contained within the 128 pages. There is also some fantastic illustrations from Neil Packer – above is the Golden Age for Baghdad. I studied Islam in the Modern World at university, and we comprehensively covered the history of the Muslim world including the Sack of Baghdad, so the illustration above helped to shape my prior knowledge further.

I particularly enjoyed the maps in the book – the others are very good at showing trade routes, etc – but my favourite is the one regarding the twentieth century wars in Europe.

Silk Roads is fantastic history book, which can be read by both adults and children. It is clear, simple and easy to read. The comprehensive nature ensures that you read about countries and events that aren’t usually covered in Western classrooms.

[Jack Greenwood · Rating 5 out of 5]

A shimmeringly beautiful piece of art. I read this illustrated version of Frankopan's titanic Silk Roads original to see what I could glean to use in the classroom and was not dissappointed. During lockdown I recorded excerpts as an audiobook and sent the recordings and pictures to my form group who loved it.

This book would make a great present for any young person who is curious about the world. Not to mention a 55 year old (my dad was enthralled). It's very accessible and hopefully inspires a few to progress on to the more historically dense 500 word version once they've finished.

The illustration is stunning and Frankopan himself must be overjoyed with the result of his words coming to life in such a creative format. Buy it as a present and you won't be dissappointed.

[Gayathiri Rajendran · Rating 4 out of 5]

I had no idea this was supposed to be a children's book when I got it but I enjoyed the illustrations a lot.The prose is easy to understand.This is one of the most beautiful history books I have ever read.
The title is somewhat misleading as it says "New History of the World" but the author mainly deals with the past events.
The book isn't very deep,written for children basically and I will be reading "The New Silk Roads:The Present and Future of the World" by the same author later.
This book is highly readable and it was an enjoyable read and somehow I find it difficult to agree with the author in the last chapter that the Silk Roads are opening up again in the modern world.

[Teresa (tqlikesbooks) · Rating 5 out of 5]

Oh wow. I loved this! I particularly enjoyed learning about certain historical events I leaned about in school from a less Eurocentric lens. Additionally, I have learned so much more about Eastern history- I was particularly fascinated with the chapter about the origins and spread of religion.
I now, more than ever, want to spend years (and lots of money) traveling around Asia and the Middle East!

[Zulekha Saqib · Rating 5 out of 5]

✨ History reminds us how changes have occurred in the past and helps us understand why change is taking place today. The Silk Roads have always been important. And today is no different; the Silk Roads are rising again ✨

so while it is primarily about the Silk Roads, it is also a world history book and condensing world history down into a beautifully illustrated version is just magnificent.. can’t wait to read the follow-on book..
#TheSilkRoads

[Roxana · Rating 4 out of 5]

Abunda in informatii si aduce o perspectiva curioasa asupra lucrurilor. Este interesant sa descoperi cum ochii Europei au fost de fapt mereu spre est, iar interesele lumii au stat meru acolo.
Autorul insista insa sa găsească modele chiar si acolo unde nu sunt, pe final titlurile capitolelor si informariile din ele nu se mai sustin, iar unule citate si amanunte sunt de prisos si incarca inutil.

[Mircea Poeana · Rating 5 out of 5]

Istoria omenirii, de la textele sacre indiene pana la operatiunile militare din Orientul Mijlociu.
O perspectiva inedita asupra cailor care unesc sau, paradoxal, despart culturi, civilizatii, filosofii, politici.
Raspunsuri la cateva momente cruciale care au influentat mersul lumii in care traim.

[Naveen Urmese · Rating 5 out of 5]

Must read concise version of the book with awe inspiring illustrations.

[Lynossa · Rating 5 out of 5]

The illustrated version is an abridged version of the original book. It was short but very informative. The illustration by Neil Packer was feast for the eyes!

[Teja · Rating 4 out of 5]

A brief history of the world with focus on Asia, would have loved if it was more detailed. A short and easy read.

[Rae · Rating 4 out of 5]

Globalization. Historical context. Connections. Lovely illustrations. I love NF meant for children.