World Civilizations

From the moment Spanish conquistador Hernan Cortes first found and confronted them, the Aztecs have fascinated the world, and they continue to hold a unique place both culturally and in pop culture. Ironically, and unlike the Mayans, the Aztecs are not widely viewed or remembered with nuance, in part because their own leader burned extant Aztec writings. The World's Greatest Civilizations: The History and Culture of the Aztecs attempts to portray the Aztecs as they actually were.

In this remarkable book, Kenan Malik explores the history of moral thought as it has developed over three millennia, from Homer's Greece to Mao's China, from ancient India to modern America. It tells the stories of the great philosophers, and breathes life into their ideas, while also challenging many of our most cherished moral beliefs. Engaging and provocative, The Quest for a Moral Compass confronts some of humanity's deepest questions.

Our understanding of the Persian Empire has traditionally come from the histories of Greek writers such as Herodotus—and as such, over many centuries, our perspective has been skewed by ancient political and cultural agendas. Professor Llewellyn-Jones, however, calls upon original Achaemenid sources, including inscriptions, art and recent archaeological discoveries in Iran, to create an authentic 'Persian Version' of this remarkable first great empire of antiquity—the Age of the Great Kings.

Meet our fearless adventurers Cassandra, Otto and Missy AKA the smartest raven in the universe as they set out on their next action-packed Ladybird Audio Adventure! On this adventure, we're travelling back in time on our chariot to Ancient Rome! We will learn about Romulus and how he founded Rome, and the importance of the senate in this powerful empire.

The early modern era in Europe set the mold for the Western world today. It was a complex, tragic, yet pivotal time. It marked the transition between the dominance of the Catholic church throughout Western Europe and the present age of science, reason, and skepticism. The path through this transition was an exciting yet bloody and sorrowful one. The wars between Catholics and Protestants in the seventeenth and eighteenth centuries rivaled those of the present in cruelty and atrocity. Durant takes us through the religious wars between Catholics and Protestants in France.

It goes without saying that the Goths played an integral part in the history of Europe during this time, and they remain among the most notorious and controversial groups in history. By the 4th century CE, The Goths were among the prominent barbarian groups who became a threat to the Roman Empire, but they also had contacts with the Romans well before then, and they even traded for awhile.

No need to spend the day at an archaeological dig when you can simply make a cup of tea, clamber into your comfiest chair, and settle in with The Encyclopedia of the Weird and Wonderful, a compilation of 92 funny, strange, and strangely funny tales throughout human history.

We promise that once you’ve finished the audiobook, you’ll not only take away a wealth of information, but you’ll own the experience as if you’ve lived it yourself! Allow us then to guide you through the mysterious, fascinating and magnificent histories of Ancient Greece, Mesopotamia, Egypt, and Rome and explore the gods, goddesses, kings, queens, mythology, culture, battles, beliefs, love, war, and more.

Rock legend, best-selling author, reality television star, accomplished entrepreneur, and renowned ladies' man Gene Simmons presents an original take on a taboo topic—prostitution. In this informative and entertaining mix of narrative history and Simmons' unique philosophy, the Kiss frontman delves deep into the legacy of the oldest profession in the world. From the very first cavewoman to the brothel-women of Rome; from the geishas of Japan to the courtesans of Europe's Renaissance; and from the saloon ladies of the Wild West to today's high-end call girls, Gene covers it all.

Archaeology for Beginners offers a crash course in the fundamentals of archaeological work. It is the go-to place for student and volunteer archaeologists attending their first dig, or for anyone with a passion for human history who wants to find out more about what archaeology is all about.

Civilization and Its Enemies is an extraordinary tour de force by America's reigning philosopher of 9/11, Lee Harris. In it, Harris focuses on the next great conflict: the war between the civilized world and the international terrorists who wish to destroy it.

"Let me tell you how I died."A spate of murders in Rome's libraries turns a rare book expert (and ex-con) into a reluctant detective and sends him on the trail of the legendary Bibliotheca Æterna – an ancient library hiding 3500 years of secret knowledge and the key to immortality. If only the mafia and the Vatican weren't also hell-bent on finding it...

Durante séculos, nossos ancestrais foram considerados primitivos e infantis, sendo divididos em duas categorias: iguais, livres e inocentes ou guerreiros e brutais. Com base no pensamento de Jean-Jacques Rousseau e de Thomas Hobbes, a ideia que perdurou ao longo dos anos foi a de que só poderíamos alcançar a civilização sacrificando essas liberdades ou domesticando nossos instintos mais básicos. O antropólogo David Graeber e o arqueólogo David Wengrow demonstram como essas teorias que emergiram no século XVIII foram uma reação à crítica feita por povos indígenas à sociedade europeia.

In Hearts Beneath the Ashes of Pompeii, healer Lucia Valerius and Egyptian physician Khai risk everything to uncover a deadly secret—and protect a love society forbids. As Pompeii teeters on the brink, they must fight prejudice, passion, and time itself in a race to heal a city—and their hearts.

The morning of August 24, AD 79, seemed like any other in the Roman city of Pompeii. So no one was prepared when the nearby volcano Mount Vesuvius suddenly erupted, spouting ash that buried the city and its inhabitants. The disaster left thousands dead, and Pompeii was no more than a memory for almost 1,700 years. In 1748, explorers rediscovered the port city with intact buildings and beautiful mosaics.

In the late 1800s, British engineers building some of the first railways in the Dominion of India discovered large numbers of bricks buried in the dusty plains of the Punjab. This was odd because historians were not aware of any cities or civilizations which might have constructed buildings in this area. It wasn’t until archeological expeditions in the 1920s that it was finally realized that these bricks were the remains of mighty cities built by a previously unknown ancient civilization.

When Richard Fidler came across the account of Ibn Fadlan—a tenth-century Arab diplomat who travelled all the way from Baghdad to the cold riverlands of modern-day Russia—he was struck by how modern his voice was, like that of a 21st century time-traveller dropped into a medieval wilderness. On further investigation, Fidler discovered this was just one of countless reports from Arab and Persian travellers of their adventures in medieval China, India, Africa and Byzantium. Put together, he saw these stories formed a crazy quilt picture of a lost world.

Through 10 unique cities, from the founding of ancient capitals to buzzing modern megacities, Paul Strathern explores how urban centres lead civilisation forward, enjoying a moment of glory before passing on the baton. We journey back to discover Babylonian mathematics, Athenian theatre and intellectual debate, and Roman construction that has lasted millennia. We see Constantinople evolve into Istanbul, revolutionary sparks fly in Enlightenment Paris, and the railways, canals and ships that built Imperial London.

Hape Kerkeling ist wieder unterwegs: Durch die Geschichte der Menschheit von den Anfängen bis heute...

Famous for its unflagging narrative power, fine organization, and irresistibly persuasive arguments, The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire has earned a permanent place of honor in historical literature. Gibbon's elegantly detached erudition is seasoned with an ironic wit, and remarkably little of his work is outdated.