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Terry Jones' Barbarians

Authors: Terry Jones, Alan Ereira
Publisher: BBC Books
Category: Book

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Rating: 4.0 out of 5 stars

8 reviews
Sales Rank: 36486

Media: Paperback
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 320
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.8
Dimensions (in): 7.7 x 5 x 1

ISBN: 056353916X
Dewey Decimal Number: 937.06
EAN: 9780563539162
ASIN: 056353916X

Publication Date: June 7, 2007
Availability: Usually dispatched within 1-2 business days
Condition: Brand new book dispatched from stock in the UK

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Customer Reviews: Read 3 more reviews...

5 out of 5 stars

An entertaining and interesting account of the parts of history you don't normally hear February 29, 2008
1 out of 1 found this review helpful

I have to say that this was probably the best book I read last year. You obviously need to have some interest in history to get everything out of it but it is still extremely accessible. It is apparently a companion to a BBC TV series, but it can't have been advertised very much as I don't recall it. You certainly don't miss anything by not having seen it.

It is a history of what happened outside the Roman Empire and thus doesn't concentrate on the Empire itself (though it has fair bit of information to provide the backdrop) and sometimes comes across as biased against the Romans. However as it says in the intro, this is a concious stance taken to highlight the fact that most accounts of the period, and thus accepted "standard" history, are based on Roman writings very often full of contemporary Roman propaganda and so are themselves heavily biased in favour of the Romans.
The authors also highlight the unconcious prejudice of many modern historians in dealing with the period, particularly the technological achievements of non-Romans.

Aside the technical details this was just a great read, with many illuminating facts on people and races that are often portayed wrongly (The Vandals) or simply ignored (The Dacians). The occasional digressions were always interesting (the Roman legion captured and sent to Mongolia; the finds of clothing in ancient Chinese graves that were identical to Celtic clothing of a much later date), and the general style of the writing is as entertaining as Terry Jones always is. He also gives you a great historical overview of a period you won't have learnt about in school.

I can't recommend this book highly enough.

4 out of 5 stars

What the Romans didn't do for us February 19, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

Contrary to the absurd statement of one reviewer here, the reason why the barbarians "did not leave so much of a mark as the Romans" had nothing do with them being "better" (whatever that means) and a lot to do with the Roman habit of annihilating entire cultures - witness Gaul, Carthage & Dacia. The other big reason is of course literacy, or lack of it, which meant the Romans were able to put their side of the story while most of their enemies were not.

Terry Jones is not the first person to suggest that maybe the Romans - and not the 'barbarians' - were the really barbaric ones. Indeed there was a TV series & associated book, a few years back on Channel 4 (by Richard Rudgley) that did exactly that. However Jones & Ereira's book is both more entertaining & more convincing than Rudgley's. I can't imagine any fan of ancient history could fail to get something out of this scurrilous and challenging historical essay.

5 out of 5 stars

Wonderful reversal of perspective October 3, 2007
0 out of 1 found this review helpful

Roman history from the barbarians' point of view is itself an interesting idea. Add to this the fun tone of delivery and plenty of information that will offer something new to everyone. But it is not novelty that justifies the highest rating on this book but the mature and wise thoughts about it all on offer.Suitable age 10 upwards. This is not really pop history at all. Loved it.

3 out of 5 stars

A Fresh Perspective That Overstates Its Case March 10, 2007
4 out of 5 found this review helpful

Does to the Roman Empire what Howard Zinn's works do to America, in that it isn't necessarily a fair-minded appraisal of Rome and the contributions of Barbarians to civilisation but it is a fresh angle to consider Rome from. I suspect he overplays the advancement of some Barbarians such as the Celts and Thracians, but there is not doubt that the traditional view of Persia has been far too negative in the West and Terry Jones provides a useful correction. The discussion of Greek technology before the arrival of Rome is similarly refreshing but again it is clear that he is trying too hard to portray the Romans as thick skulled phillistines who ushered in a dark age wherever the went.

The heavy handed analogies to the USA and the war on terror suggest that the book and series are firmly aimed at the chattering classes and I found it to be a source of irratation but is just about tolerable.

4 out of 5 stars

Its all a matter of perspective. February 19, 2007
5 out of 5 found this review helpful

The Romans were the all conquering, civilising super-heroes of ancient history. Or at least that is pretty much what we have all been brought up to believe. This book is an enjoyable and very readable counterpoint to that hypothesis.

Perhaps the key point to this book is not whether it is completely correct in all its assertions, but that this gives an alternative option to how the world was in those distant days. I have never considered the point of view of a Celt having his life turned upside down by some very violent chaps in togas. I did not realise that the Dacians were very happy in their peaceful world with its manufactured religion that gave them the basis for political stability and a hugely wealthy economy.

The explanation of the demise of the Roman Emoire into two parts, sometimes three or four, was useful and revealing. It actually makes you realise that the Romans were the same as all the other empires that came and went in those tumultuous ancient times, except that the Roman story survives.

The emergence of Christianity, particularly Roman Catholicism (the Arians never stood a chance!) is, in my opinion, probably the real reason that the history of Rome has endured as such a bright star. The Church selected certain customs and elements of the culture and preserved a selective history.

This book is a very welcome view from the recieving end of the Legions.