Selected as one of NPR's Best Books of 2019 Selected by National Geographic as one of 12 "great books for travelers this holiday season" 'The prose is colourful and vigorous ... Jubber's journeying has indeed been epic, in scale and in ambition. In this thoughtful travelogue he has woven together colourful ancient and modern threads into a European tapestry that combines the sombre and the sparkling' Spectator 'A genuine epic' Wanderlust Award-winning travel writer Nicholas Jubber journeys across Europe exploring Europe's epic poems, from the Odyssey to Beowulf, the Song of Roland to theNibelungenlied, and their impact on European identity in these turbulent times. These are the stories that made Europe. Journeying from Turkey to Iceland, award-winning travel writer Nicholas Jubber takes us on a fascinating adventure through our continent's most enduring epic poems to learn how they were shaped by their times, and how they have since shaped us. The great European epics were all inspired by moments of seismic change: The Odyssey tells of the aftermath of the Trojan War, the primal conflict from which much of European civilisation was spawned. The Song of the Nibelungen tracks the collapse of a Germanic kingdom on the edge of the Roman Empire. Both the French Song of Roland and the Serbian Kosovo Cycleemerged from devastating conflicts between Christian and Muslim powers. Beowulf, the only surviving Old English epic, and the great Icelandic Saga of Burnt Njal, respond to times of great religious struggle - the shift from paganism to Christianity. These stories have stirred passions ever since they were composed, motivating armies and revolutionaries, and they continue to do so today. Reaching back into the ancient and medieval eras in which these defining works were produced, and investigating their continuing influence today, Epic Continent explores how matters of honour, fundamentalism, fate, nationhood, sex, class and politics have preoccupied the people of Europe across the millennia. In these tales soaked in blood and fire, Nicholas Jubber discovers how the world of gods and emperors, dragons and water-maidens, knights and princesses made our own: their deep impact on European identity, and their resonance in our turbulent times.
In Indigenous Continent, acclaimed historian Pekka Hämäläinen presents a sweeping counternarrative that shatters the most basic assumptions about American history.
The twenty-five excerpts in this volume have been selected and introduced so as to offer English-speaking readers a broad sample of the extensive epic traditions in Africa.
Sing along with Dr. Jean and Dr. Holly to learn about the continents and keeping the world green.
An adventurer describes his arduous journey across the wilderness of Antarctica, offering a narrative of the physical and mental challenges faced by his expedition
The Epic Story of Love, Loss, and American Royalty in the Nation's Largest Home Denise Kiernan. The Vanderbilts, Jerry E. Patterson (New York: Harry N. Abrams, ... Richard Morris Hunt, Paul R. Baker (Cambridge, MA: MIT Press, 1980).
This epic of adventure, heroism, discovery, exploitation, and almost unimaginable cruelty is perhaps unrivaled in human history.
"Mind Over Matter is the death-defying and bone-chilling account of Fiennes's most remarkable achievement. For 1,350 miles at a rate of 14 miles a day, Fiennes and his partner Dr....
Like the instant classic The Last American Man, Fearless is the story of a remarkable individual who accepts no personal limits—including fear.
The Seven Kingdoms were divided by war, the Kingdom of Islands was the strongest among its neighboring kingdoms.
"--The Philadelphia Inquirer The true story of America's first great explorer and adventurer—an African slave named Esteban Dorantes Crossing the Continent takes us on an epic journey from Africa to Europe and America as Dr. Robert ...