Take a photo of a barcode or cover
4.04 AVERAGE
4.04 AVERAGE
informative
reflective
slow-paced
Rating: 3.5/5
I found The Silk Roads by Peter Frankopan to be an engaging high-level overview of the Silk Road region, spanning an impressive historical timeline. The book provides valuable insights and a broad perspective on the area’s historical significance.
However, I did feel that the author seemed to harbor a general critique of the West. While some of this criticism is likely warranted, especially when considering events of the past 80 years, there were moments where it felt like he attributed negativity to the West even in ancient history, which seemed less justified. This may reflect my own biases, but it occasionally felt a bit overstated.
That said, I’d still recommend this book for anyone seeking a comprehensive, bird’s-eye view of the Silk Road region and its historical importance over the centuries. It’s a thought-provoking read that offers a unique perspective, even if it may spark some debate.
I found The Silk Roads by Peter Frankopan to be an engaging high-level overview of the Silk Road region, spanning an impressive historical timeline. The book provides valuable insights and a broad perspective on the area’s historical significance.
However, I did feel that the author seemed to harbor a general critique of the West. While some of this criticism is likely warranted, especially when considering events of the past 80 years, there were moments where it felt like he attributed negativity to the West even in ancient history, which seemed less justified. This may reflect my own biases, but it occasionally felt a bit overstated.
That said, I’d still recommend this book for anyone seeking a comprehensive, bird’s-eye view of the Silk Road region and its historical importance over the centuries. It’s a thought-provoking read that offers a unique perspective, even if it may spark some debate.
a wonderful history of a part of the world that i dont often learn about. thank you for educating me.
informative
medium-paced
informative
reflective
medium-paced
An extremely dense and well researched book. Giving context to the exchange of ideas, items and wealth along the silk roads over a vast period of time. I ended up going down so many research rabbit holes while reading the book that it took me almost a year to complete.
This was frankly quite disappointing. Maybe it's just because I looked forward to this for months, but Frankopan's work here is just too diffuse and broad to satisfy me. I would not have guessed that after 100 pages, though. I LOVED learning about the ancient and medieval trade routes and empires that have been overwritten by the Western triumphal narrative of history. Shit like Kashgar having a bishopric before Canterbury or the Khazars converting to Judaism while ruling the Russian steppe is amazing. Unfortunately, Frankopan slowly morphs the focus from Central Asian trade and state-building to European imperialism that's soooooorta related to Central Asia. I started skimming wildly when he got to European exploration and the English commercial empire and, ya know, the shit every other Euro-centric world history book has covered. It's impressive how much work Frankopan put in, but it was a very frustrating experience by the end.
It's great to understand history of the world from different perspectives. And that is exactly what this book is doing. Telling us the history and putting it in trade-spefic context. I wouldn't call it revolutionary, but a solid and enlightening read - definitely.
slow-paced
hopeful
informative
reflective
medium-paced