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Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans
- Narrated by: Charlton Griffin
- Length: 83 hrs and 11 mins
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Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans
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- Length: 26 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 20
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 16
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 16
Historians universally agree that Thucydides was the greatest historian who has ever lived, and that his story of the Peloponnesian conflict is a marvel of forensic science and fine literature. That such a triumph of intellectual accomplishment was created at the end of the fifth century B.C. in Greece is, perhaps, not so surprising, given the number of original geniuses we find in that period. But that such an historical work would also be simultaneously acknowledged as a work of great literature and a penetrating ethical evaluation of humanity is one of the miracles of ancient history.
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2 out of 5 stars
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labeling of chapters is poor.
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Here in a single volume is the entire, unabridged recording of Gibbon's masterpiece. Beginning in the second century A.D. at the apex of the Pax Romana, Gibbon traces the arc of decline and complete destruction through the centuries across Europe and the Mediterranean. It is a thrilling and cautionary tale of splendor and ruin, of faith and hubris, and of civilization and barbarism. Follow along as Christianity overcomes paganism... before itself coming under intense pressure from Islam.
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- Unabridged
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 20
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 16
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 16
Historians universally agree that Thucydides was the greatest historian who has ever lived, and that his story of the Peloponnesian conflict is a marvel of forensic science and fine literature. That such a triumph of intellectual accomplishment was created at the end of the fifth century B.C. in Greece is, perhaps, not so surprising, given the number of original geniuses we find in that period. But that such an historical work would also be simultaneously acknowledged as a work of great literature and a penetrating ethical evaluation of humanity is one of the miracles of ancient history.
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2 out of 5 stars
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labeling of chapters is poor.
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Written by: Thucydides
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- Length: 126 hrs and 31 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 50
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 33
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 33
Here in a single volume is the entire, unabridged recording of Gibbon's masterpiece. Beginning in the second century A.D. at the apex of the Pax Romana, Gibbon traces the arc of decline and complete destruction through the centuries across Europe and the Mediterranean. It is a thrilling and cautionary tale of splendor and ruin, of faith and hubris, and of civilization and barbarism. Follow along as Christianity overcomes paganism... before itself coming under intense pressure from Islam.
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5 out of 5 stars
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It almost killed me!
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 45
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Performance4.5 out of 5 stars 41
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Story4.5 out of 5 stars 42
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5 out of 5 stars
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Overall3.5 out of 5 stars 3
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Performance3.5 out of 5 stars 3
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Story3.5 out of 5 stars 3
Titus Livy's only known surviving work is a monumental history of Rome that was originally written in Latin. It is estimated that Livy's The History of Rome was written between 27 and 9 BC and covers the legends of Aeneas, the fall of Troy, the city's founding in 753 BC, and Livy's account ends with the reign of Emperor Augustus. The History of Rome is a must-have for anyone interested in ancient history and the Roman era. With colorful detail and intriguing insight, Titus brings to life some of the most turbulent times in human history.
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4 out of 5 stars
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A classic but had errors
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Written by: Titus Livy, and others
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The Iliad & The Odyssey
- Written by: Homer
- Narrated by: John Lescault
- Length: 28 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 14
-
Performance5 out of 5 stars 12
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Story5 out of 5 stars 12
Little is known about the Ancient Greek oral poet Homer, the supposed 8th century BC author of the world-read Iliad and his later masterpiece, The Odyssey. These classic epics provided the basis for Greek education and culture throughout the classical age and formed the backbone of humane education through the birth of the Roman Empire and the spread of Christianity.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Great classic to revisit in audio format
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Written by: Homer
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The Commentaries
- Written by: Julius Caesar
- Narrated by: Charlton Griffin
- Length: 14 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 32
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 29
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Story5 out of 5 stars 29
Julius Caesar wrote his exciting Commentaries during some of the most grueling campaigns ever undertaken by a Roman army. The Gallic Wars and The Civil Wars constitute the greatest series of military dispatches ever written. As literature, they are representative of the finest expressions of Latin prose in its "golden" age, a benchmark of elegant style and masculine brevity imitated by young schoolboys for centuries.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Must read for Roman history buffs
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Overall0 out of 5 stars 0
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 59
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Overall4.5 out of 5 stars 20
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Initially, the Thirty Years War was precipitated in 1618 by religious conflicts between Protestants and Catholics in the Holy Roman Empire. But the conflict soon spread beyond religion to encompass the internal politics and balance of power within the Empire, and then later to the other European powers. By the end, it became simply a dynastic struggle between Bourbon France and Habsburg Spain. And almost all of it was fought out in Germany. Entire regions were depopulated and destroyed.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 11
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Here are the Socratic Dialogues presented as Plato designed them to be - living discussions between friends and protagonists, with the personality of Socrates himself coming alive as he deals with a host of subjects, from justice and inspiration to courage, poetry and the gods. Plato's Socratic Dialogues provide a bedrock for classical Western philosophy. For centuries they have been read, studied and discussed via the flat pages of books, but the ideal medium for them is the spoken word.
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4 out of 5 stars
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surprisingly comprehensible
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The March of the Ten Thousand
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- Narrated by: Charlton Griffin
- Length: 7 hrs and 32 mins
- Unabridged
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Overall5 out of 5 stars 26
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Performance5 out of 5 stars 21
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Story5 out of 5 stars 20
Translated by W. E. D. Rouse, The March of the Ten Thousand is one of the most admired and widely read pieces of ancient literature to come down to us. Xenophon employs a very simple, straightforward style to describe what is probably the most exciting military adventure ever undertaken. It is an epic of courage, faith and democratic principle.
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5 out of 5 stars
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Can listen to this again and again
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Publisher's Summary
Plutarch (c. AD 46-AD 120) was born to a prominent family in the small Greek town of Chaeronea, about 20 miles east of Delphi in the region known as Boeotia. His best known work is Parallel Lives, a series of biographies of famous Greeks and Romans, arranged in pairs to illuminate their common moral virtues and vices. The surviving Lives contain 23 pairs, each with one Greek life and one Roman life as well as four unpaired single lives. Currently only 19 of the parallel lives end with comparisons while possibly all of them did at one time.
Plutarch was not concerned with history so much as the influence of character, good or bad, on the lives and destinies of men. Whereas sometimes he barely touched on epoch-making events, he devoted much space to charming anecdotes and incidental triviality, reasoning that this often revealed far more about his subjects than even their most famous accomplishments. In many ways he must be counted among the earliest moral philosophers.
This volume follows the translation of Arthur Hugh Clough and John Dryden. Please see the accompanying PDF file for duration and starting times of all biographies.
PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.
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What listeners love about Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- John Pinkerton
- 2018-03-13
For the Very Dedicated
This is an outstanding historical text with the quality of narration that one comes to appreciate from Charlton Griffin after listening to him. The presentation is great and the reading is as engaging as you're going to get from the fairly "dry" text.
I would warn that this book is extremely dense and can be difficult to keep up with without fairly extensive background knowledge. If you are interested in learning more about history and are fairly new to it, I highly recommend the Great Courses titles on the subject, and to come to this after experience with some of the figures and chronology. If you know what you're getting into, Plutarch is a tremendous source of information who presents excellent but a sometimes overwhelming amount of information. I loved this audio book and the chance to listen to the source material for quite a lot of what we know of many figures in the ancient world.
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46 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- CB
- 2019-11-21
No chapter names???
Great stories and narration, but in a collection of biographies why the heck would you just have chapter numbers instead of names? It's now a matter of ten minutes to find the life I'm looking for. FIX THIS.
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38 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- alex
- 2016-07-24
Charlton Griffin is the best!
If you could sum up Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans in three words, what would they be?
A crazy amount of stuff happened before Jesus was even born y'all!
Who was your favorite character and why?
I don't play favorites.
What about Charlton Griffin’s performance did you like?
Can't recommend Charlton Griffin enough- check out all his work! He is a world-class storyteller, really knows when to slow things down or speed it up, using his voice like a finely-tuned instrument.
Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?
If you are physically capable of listening to this book in one sitting only, you might want to consult your doctor
Any additional comments?
Shout out again to Charlton Griffin- I'm slowly making my way through your audio connoisseur library and loving it... (as a lifelong sufferer of insomnia who "had to" drink heavily to put myself to sleep, listening to your voice has been a big part in me getting sober and adopting healthier nighttime habits; now I actually look forward to going to sleep, because of storytime with you). Anyhow, keep up the great work!
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33 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- SJ
- 2016-09-29
Shakespearean!
Charlton Griffon is Shakespearean in his narration of "Plutarchs Lives." I literally look for books that he has narrated and buy the ones
in my topic area. It's powerful to listen to a man bring back to life words written two thousand years ago. I imagine i am on a porch in the ancient world having this read to me by my grandfather. Quite powerful.
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21 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance4 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Ron Peters
- 2017-06-30
A classic among classics
What does Charlton Griffin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
The narration of Charlton Griffon is good - well-paced and clearly enunciated - though he tends to average about one misread word per page; it's not very distracting.
Any additional comments?
Happily audible.com uses the same edition I own in hard copy - Modern Library, translated by John Dryden, revised by Arthur Hugh Clough. Or luckily, rather, since audible.com is bad about telling you which translation of a classical work you are buying.
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11 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Tom Dolan
- 2016-02-06
PERFECT NARRATOR FOR PLUTARCH'S LIVES
Where does Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans rank among all the audiobooks you’ve listened to so far?
AT OR ABOVE FIRST PLACE. THIS ONE IS A KEEPER.
Who was your favorite character and why?
DEMOSTHENES. GENIUS FOR ORATORY. WHAT A LIFE! A GREAT MAN, BUT WITH CHARACTER FLAWS THAT MAKE HIM IMPERFECT, INTERESTING, HUMAN.
What does Charlton Griffin bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you just read the book?
CHARLTON GRIFFIN BRINGS PLUTARCH'S LIVES TO LIFE. EASY ON THE EARS AND ON THE MIND. I COULD LISTEN TO HIM READING PLUTARCH'S LIVES ALL DAY LONG. NOT TIRESOME AT ALL. PERFECT!
If you were to make a film of this book, what would the tag line be?
SOME LIVES ARE LARGER THAN OTHERS.
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10 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Stephen Hawkins
- 2020-02-18
Great narration
So I want to point out here that this is Plutarch's lives COMPLETE. Other audiobooks break it down into multiple parts but this version has it all and is 83 hours long. I admit that I have not yet finished the entire thing (it's 83 hours long) but the audio quality and the narrator are great. You know how the narrator can really make or break a title? This guy brings it home. If you're a history fan and have 83 hours free this title is probably for you.
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7 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- amie cannon
- 2017-02-19
"A bible for heroes" -Ralph Waldo Emerson
One of the greatest pieces of literature I have read. Plutarch with attention to detail and appreciation for scope catalogues the lives of men we can all learn from.
His anecdotes are memorable gems, and are as relevant today as 2000 years ago. His wit is worth emulating. His contribution is priceless.
I recommend this book to any with even a passing interest in the qualities of virtue, courage, education, or reason. It provides templates off of which to judge our own actions and intentions, and often illuminates parts of ourselves we have not fully understood.
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5 people found this helpful
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Overall5 out of 5 stars
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Performance5 out of 5 stars
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Story5 out of 5 stars
- Oskar
- 2016-10-09
audio conneseur
great collection. fascinating read. many of my favorite historical persons and many new ones. audio conneseur indeed
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4 people found this helpful
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Overall3 out of 5 stars
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Performance2 out of 5 stars
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Story4 out of 5 stars
- Greg and Sara Masarik
- 2016-01-27
Narrator is simply too sing-songy
Would you recommend this book to a friend? Why or why not?
I would recommend Plutarch - but not this narrator. I returned this book because of his style is just high and low, high and low. I had to return his Iliad for the same reason.
Would you be willing to try another one of Charlton Griffin’s performances?
No, thank you.
Was Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans worth the listening time?
It would be with a different narrator.
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4 people found this helpful