The Lessons of History

By: Will, Ariel Durant

Narrated by: Grover Gardner

A concise survey of the culture and civilization of mankind, The Lessons of History is the result of a lifetime of research from Pulitzer Prize–winning historians Will and Ariel Durant.

The authors devoted five decades to the study of world history and philosophy, culminating in the masterful eleven-volume Story of Civilization. In this compact summation of their work, Will and Ariel Durant share the vital and profound lessons of our collective past. Their perspective, gained after a lifetime of thinking and writing about the history of humankind, is an invaluable resource for us today. The rare archival recordings of the Durants in conversation, made from 1957–1977, illuminate our present condition and offer insightful guidance for the future.

©2004 John Little, Monica Ariel Mihell, and William James Durant Easton (P)2004 Durant archival recordings 1957-1977 used with permission of John Little, Monica Ariel Mihell, and William James Durant Easton

Wealth of history analysis in a small package

What made the experience of listening to The Lessons of History the most enjoyable?

The huge coverage in such a short time.

What was the most compelling aspect of this narrative?

Probably the vast knowledge on very broad subject by the authors.

Did the narration match the pace of the story?

The pace of the narration sometimes was too fast for my 76 year old brain to keep up with
considering the brevity of text in covering complex situations.

Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?

The last 3 minutes

Any additional comments?

Just the sort of information that I was looking for. Not disappointed.

Very Interesting and brilliant perspective

What made the experience of listening to The Lessons of History the most enjoyable?

The point of view of the author. Quite brilliant and reasonable.

What did you like best about this story?

It gives one perspective on what reason is and what experience has taught us.

Did Grover Gardner do a good job differentiating all the characters? How?

There were no characters. Just question and answer.

Was this a book you wanted to listen to all in one sitting?

No

Any additional comments?

The raspy voice of the author was unpleasant.

Wow

This is an astonishing work which is able to boil down a wide sweep of history into its core elements.

I have read and enjoyed many fine works of history. I’ve never had one book explains all of the other books in a universal way.

Wow.

My first Durant book, won’t be my last

This was my first Durant book and I’m looking forward to reading many more. Excellent read.

Good Perspective

Kind of hard to listen when the actual author speaks but the book has great perspective on the journey of humanity.