Description
By (author) King, Ross
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Discover the prodigious global influence of il bel paese in this star-studded retelling of Italy’s past—from a foremost author of historic Italy. The Shortest History books deliver thousands of years of history in one riveting, fast-paced read.
“Each page brims with Bill Bryson-like trivia that is sure to delight.”—Booklist, starred review
Table of contents:
“That People in Togas”: Ancient Italy and the Roman Republic“Let the Die Be Cast”: The Crisis of the Roman Republic“Masters of All in Existence”: The Roman Empire“From a Kingdom of Gold to One of Iron and Rust”: Decline and Fall of the EmpireGoths, Longbeards, Franks, Saracens, and Normans: Italy Under the “Barbarians”“All the Cities of Italy”: The Middle AgesItaly’s Age of Gold: The Renaissance“Go, Thought, on Golden Wings”: Italy in the Illuminismo“Here We Make Italy”: The Risorgimento“Dov’è La Vittoria?”: The Kingdom of ItalyThe “Putrid Corpse” of Liberty: Italy Under Fascism“Andrà Tutto Bene”: Italy Since the War
Review quote:
“Known for his impeccable research and engaging style, King is the perfect Virgil to guide us from The Aeneid to COVID-19 in this densely packed volume of tantalizing details. . . . King has a keen eye for the provocative anecdote, ranging from the debauchery of the emperors to papal history and the origins of the Mafia. . . . Each page brims with Bill Bryson-like trivia that is sure to delight.”
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“Terrific . . . a lucid, riveting history of a country that is both exquisitely old and painfully young at the same time.”
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“A remarkably readable whirlwind tour of Italian history over the millennia, replete with conquerors, emperors, slaves, popes, assorted invaders, and filled with juicy historical nuggets. There’s nothing quite like it.”
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“A rollicking introduction to the history of a country that, until barely 150 years ago, was not one. Vibrant, admirably clear, and often wryly amusing, Ross King’s narrative benefits again and again from his eye for the telling detail—a splendid achievement.”
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“Jump into the Alfa Romeo and hold tight as Ross King speeds through Italian history with this effervescent and entertaining guide to the peninsula’s past.”
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“History exerts a force [in Italy] that is multifaceted and ambiguous, especially to the outsider—but The Shortest History of Italy helps to render the country coherent.”
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“Few have as much insight into the history of Italy as the author of Brunelleschi’s Dome, and here Ross King offers a masterful and perceptive account of Italian virtues—and sins—from the Romans to Berlusconi, as well as the country’s inimitable art and architecture. An ideal handbook for anyone who loves Italy and wants to dig a little deeper into the past of what Dante called il bel paese, or as Ross King puts it, Italy’s history of ‘resilience and rebirth.'”
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“Praise for Ross King”King has made a career elucidating crucial episodes in the history of art and architecture.”
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“King has the gift of clear, unpretentious exposition, and an instinctive narrative flair.”
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“[King’s] scrupulous excavation of social, political and religious texts, as well as art historical sources, permits him to tell a familiar story as though it had never been told before.”
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“King is a deft storyteller.”
Biographical note:
Ross King is the author of The Shortest History of Italy and The Shortest History of Ancient Rome, along with many bestselling books on Italian art and history, including Michelangelo and the Pope’s Ceiling and Brunelleschi’s Dome. He lectures widely on
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