About this title: Weatherford resurrects the true history of Genghis Khan, from the story of his relentless rise through Mongol tribal culture to the waging of his devastatingly successful wars and the explosion of civilization that the Mongol Empire unleashed.
Note: This is a general synopsis. Each listing is described below.
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Date Published: 2005-03-22
ISBN-13:9780609809648ISBN:0609809644
Description: Very Good in None jacket. Almost like new paperback. No markings. Light cover wear only including mild corner rubbing. Tight square binding with no spine creases. Three Rivers Press, New York, 2004. xxxv, 312 pages. read more
Description: Good. Used copy-Because of our high volume, we can not accurately describe each book, so we list the MINIMUM condition you can expect; most are better than the condition listed. read more
Description: Like New. Three Rivers Press, TPB, 2005. Appears never read, clean, tight binding, no markings or highlighting, minimal shelf wear. read more
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Three Rivers Press
Date Published: 2005-03-22
ISBN-13:9780609809648ISBN:0609809644
Description: Like New. Like new softcover in excellent condition, no writing, non-smoking home, clean text, binding tight, Christian business. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Crown
Date Published: 2004
ISBN-13:9780609610626ISBN:0609610627
Description: A wonderful copy with some minor edgewear to the cover. Dust Jacket has some edgewear present. -, Hard Cover, Very Good / Very Good. read more
Binding: Hardcover
Publisher: Crown
Date Published: 2004-03-16
ISBN-13:9780609610626ISBN:0609610627
Description: Used-Like New. LIKE NEW-Looks almost new, tight and solid, has very light shelfwear. Very clean with no markings or writing. Hardcover. read more
Edition: Reprint
Binding: Paperback
Publisher: Random House Inc
Date Published: 2005
ISBN-13:9780609809648ISBN:0609809644
Description: New. The Mongol army led by Genghis Khan subjugated more lands and people in twenty-? ve years than the Romans did in four hundred. In nearly every country the Mongols conquered, they brought an unprecedented rise in cultural communication, expanded trade, ... read more
"Great book- Weatherford makes history intriguing and relevant. I found that the book became more interesting with every chapter that went by. The Mongol Empire during Khubilai Khan's reign was even more fascinating to read about that Genghis's conquests and formation of the empire. The last two chapters highlighted the Mongol influence on the world today!
One part I found particularly interesting (especially after just watching the movie Gandhi) in the concluding pages of the book were Jawaharlal Nehru's remarks to his daughter Indira about Genghis Khan. Khan greatly impacted Nehru, who in turn more recently greatly impacted India. Good stuff!"
"This book had some very interesting and argumentative views about the normal view of the Mongols. But the author goes way overboard on his biased account of the mongols. Most of the information he uses to support his book comes from one source called The Secret History and in the introduction he even discredits this source giving the reader the impression that everything he wrote about in his book could be way of base. He even goes as far into his biased account to contribute the happening of the renaissance (spelling) to the Mongols wich is unbelievably ridiculous. Overall though this book was an ok read but if it wasnt required for me to read it for school i would have never have opened it."
"This is a well written, nicely flowing work. The author, Jack Weatherford, traces the life and time of Genghis Khan, born as Temujin, and his descendants. He notes the impact of the plague on the Mongols and how that plague spread, to some extent by the Mongols. And he makes the claim that the Mongols had an appreciable impact on the West's Renaissance.
Weatherford begins by noting the purpose of his book (Page xxxv): "The focus remains on the mission of our work: to understand Genghis Khan and his impact on world history." The book is in three parts: first, Genghis Khan's rise to power and the development of the Mongol Empire; second, the period when the Mongols became a major world player, until the empire began devouring itself with internecine warfare; third, the effect of the Mongols on the development of modern society. There is a useful genealogy at the start of the book; however, the book would have benefited greatly with an ample supply of maps, so that the reader could trace developments geographically.
The book does a terrific job of describing Khan's background--from his youth until he began developing a powerhouse, to his death. His military forces used innovative tactics that baffled his opponents, adapting Mongol warriors' mobility to advantage. The Mongols expanded their sway until--at its greatest point, it was larger than the Roman Empire at its height. It stretched, in 1260, from China to Moscow and Kiev, and to the doorsteps of Vienna, from Baghdad to Samarkand.
Weatherford goes on to discuss the Empire after Genghis Khan's death. It continued to function until the combat among his sons led to more and more internal troubles. This depiction of internal problems, again, is well done.
It amazes me how detailed is the discussion of people and events from so long ago.
However, when he comes to argue that the Mongol Empire sparked the Renaissance and later European history, It appears to me that his grasp exceeds his reach. I am not certain that quoting Chaucer's "The Canterbury Tales" with references to Genghis Khan (as part of his argument) is compelling. Nonetheless, while I did not find his case so convincing, it did cause me to reflect on important historical issues, and that--in itself--is a contribution.
In short, a well done book on the Mongol Empire and its founder. Worth taking a look at. . . ."
"This is a sensational read. Mr. Weatherford is a gifted historian/storyteller. He makes a convincing case for reanalyzing the role Genghis Khan and the Mongolian empire that followed him played in subsequent regional and global trends in trade, art, architecture and war. I didn't realize that the Mongolian Empire stretched from nearly as far west as Vienna for chrissakes to Beijing. And this area was largely controlled by nomads without a permanent city for much of the time, from horseback. The Khans (at least early on) embraced all religions, encouraged law and education, were highly adaptable and mutable in engineering, culture and governance, and of course extremely successful in warfare. The continued growth of the empire was done in by water (they couldn't succeed in Japan), family squabbles among the descendants of Genghis, and the plague, which cut off important trade routes. A very interesting book. I bet Weatherford, who is a professor at Macalaster, is a great teacher.
Also, the Coleridge poem that we had to learn in college was about Khubilai Khan, grandson of Genghis, and the first non-Chinese Emperor to rule China.
In Xanadu did Kubla Khan A stately pleasure-dome decree: Where Alph, the sacred river, ran Through caverns measureless to man Down to a sunless sea.
Great summer read. And check out the new-ish movie Mongol, part one of a three part re-telling of Temujin's (GK) life."
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