The Discoverers: A History of Man's Search to Know His World and Himself (Abridged Nonfiction)
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4.1 • 14 Ratings
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- $11.99
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- $11.99
Publisher Description
The Discoverers is a vivid, sweeping and original history of man's greatest adventure: his search to discover the world around him - the relationship of the heavens to his own planet, the elusive and mysterious dimension of time, the vast and colorful range of plants and animals, the intricate workings of his own body, the surprising variety of human societies past and present. Boorstin's flair for the vivid anecdote, for fresh points of view, and for the dramatic relationship of ideas has made him the most readable of our eminent historians.
The story of our world is not the usual succession of battles and empires and political leaders, but a tale of discoveries and beginnings. The long human quest for what man does not yet know becomes a mystery story played by a vast cast on an ever-changing stage. The heroes of this saga are men with an insatiable hunger for knowledge and the courage to venture into the unknown.
Why didn't the Chinese discover America? Why were people so slow to learn the earth goes around the sun? How and why did we begin to think of "species" of plants and animals? How, when, and why did people begin digging in the earth to learn about the past? How did the study of economics begin? These are but a few of the fascinating questions answered by Dr. Boorstin, Librarian of Congress Emeritus.
Customer Reviews
The unabridged book is better.
I would like to listen to this book unabridged. I have read the unabridged book and it is amazing. I was surprised of how little I knew of humans' discovery of time, geography, anatomy, etc.. I felt this audio book left out too much of the origrinal book. I hope someone will redo this book in it's entirety. It is still worth the listen.
Outstanding Information & Story Telling -- Poor Audio Though
I drive about 50 minutes each way to and from work each day so I was looking for something to "do" during the drive. I have always been interested in history and this audio book covers pretty much everything from Christ to Dalton - one of the pioneers of atom science. Talking about foreshadowing! Anyway, the information is fantastic but the audio quality of the copy I downloaded from iTunes was horrible. It was like listening through one of those horn-like a mono-speakers straight out of the 1920's. So if you don't mind non-stereo readings, then this is worth it. Would I recommend it? Also being an audiophille it's hard to do that but the content contained makes up for it.
If you like History, and you like to know WHY things happened
This book is remarkable in its breadth. Boorstin explains the origins of almost everything. Why there are 7 days in the week, and why they are named as they are. Why the Portuguese were the first to sail around Africa. On and on. Incredible book for those who enjoy piecing everything together and understanding how it all happened way back when.
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