13 Best Italy, History Books
Italy, History is a popular category for many book lovers. Our team at Speechify has curated a list of the top Italy, History audiobooks everyone must read.
See the top 13 Italy, History audiobooks below.
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The Europeans
- By: Orlando Figes
- Narrator: James Langton
- Length: 21 hours 39 minutes
- Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
- Publish date: January 01, 2020
- Language: English
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4.25(346 ratings)
4.25(346 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0029.95 USDFrom the “master of historical narrative” (Financial Times), a dazzling, richly detailed, panoramic work—the first to document the genesis of a continent-wide European culture The nineteenth century in Europe was the first age ofFrom the “master of historical narrative” (Financial Times), a dazzling, richly detailed, panoramic work—the first to document the genesis of a continent-wide European culture
The nineteenth century in Europe was the first age of cultural globalization—an epoch when mass communications and high-speed rail travel brought Europe together, overcoming national barriers and creating a truly pan-European canon of artistic, musical, and literary works. By 1900, people across the continent were reading the same books, looking at the same art, and attending the same opera performances.
Acclaimed historian Orlando Figes moves from Parisian salons to German spa towns to Russian country houses, exploring the interplay of money and art that made this unification possible. At the book’s center is an intimate love triangle: the Russian writer Ivan Turgenev; the Spanish prima donna Pauline Viardot; and her husband Louis Viardot, a connoisseur and political activist. Their passionate, ambitious lives caught up an astonishing array of artists and princes, poets, composers, and impresarios—Delacroix, Chopin, the Schumanns, Hugo, Flaubert, Dickens, and Dostoyevsky, among them.
As Figes observes, nearly all of civilization’s great advances have come when people, ideas, and artistic creations circulate freely between nations. Surprising, beautifully written, spanning a continent and a century, The Europeans offers the first international history of European culture—and a compelling argument for the benefits of cosmopolitanism.
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Dominion
- By: Tom Holland
- Narrator: Tom Holland
- Length: 22 hours 18 minutes
- Publisher: Hachette Audio
- Publish date: October 29, 2019
- Language: English
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4.24(3039 ratings)
4.24(3039 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0025.98 USDA “marvelous” (Economist) account of how the Christian Revolution forged the Western imagination. Crucifixion, the Romans believed, was the worst fate imaginable, a punishment reserved for slaves. How astonishing it was, then, thatA “marvelous” (Economist) account of how the Christian Revolution forged the Western imagination.Crucifixion, the Romans believed, was the worst fate imaginable, a punishment reserved for slaves. How astonishing it was, then, that people should have come to believe that one particular victim of crucifixion-an obscure provincial by the name of Jesus-was to be worshipped as a god. Dominion explores the implications of this shocking conviction as they have reverberated throughout history. Today, the West remains utterly saturated by Christian assumptions. As Tom Holland demonstrates, our morals and ethics are not universal but are instead the fruits of a very distinctive civilization. Concepts such as secularism, liberalism, science, and homosexuality are deeply rooted in a Christian seedbed. From Babylon to the Beatles, Saint Michael to #MeToo, Dominion tells the story of how Christianity transformed the modern world. -
Collision Course
- By: Alvin Moscow
- Narrator: Mel Foster
- Length: 11 hours 32 minutes
- Publisher: Dreamscape Media
- Publish date: December 27, 2016
- Language: English
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4.15(572 ratings)
4.15(572 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0017.99 USDOne of the largest, fastest, and most beautiful ships in the world, the Andrea Doria was en route to New York from Italy. Departing from the United States was the much smaller Stockholm. On the foggy night of July 25, 1956, fifty-three milesOne of the largest, fastest, and most beautiful ships in the world, the Andrea Doria was en route to New York from Italy. Departing from the United States was the much smaller Stockholm. On the foggy night of July 25, 1956, fifty-three miles southeast of Nantucket, the Stockholm sliced through the Doria’s steel hull. Within minutes, the sea was pouring into the Italian liner. Eleven hours later, she capsized and sank into the ocean. Associated Press journalist Alvin Moscow recounts the heroic, rapid response of other ships-which averted a catastrophe of the same scale as that of the Titanic-and the official inquest. Moscow delivers a fact-filled, fascinating drama of how a supposedly unsinkable ship ended up at the bottom of the sea.
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Botticelli’s Secret
- By: Joseph Luzzi
- Narrator: Keith Szarabajka
- Length: 6 hours 54 minutes
- Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
- Publish date: January 01, 2022
- Language: English
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4(81 ratings)
4(81 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0016.95 USDA true historical “detective story” full of insight about how we look at art–and the artists and eras that produced it Some five hundred years ago, Sandro Botticelli, a painter of humble origin, created work of unearthly beauty. AnA true historical “detective story” full of insight about how we look at art–and the artists and eras that produced it
Some five hundred years ago, Sandro Botticelli, a painter of humble origin, created work of unearthly beauty. An intimate associate of Florence’s unofficial rulers, the Medici, he was commissioned by a member of their family to execute a near-impossible project: to illustrate all one hundred cantos of The Divine Comedy by the city’s greatest poet, Dante Alighieri.
A powerful encounter between poet and artist, sacred and secular, earthly and evanescent, these drawings produced a wealth of stunning images but were never finished. Botticelli declined into poverty and obscurity, and his illustrations went missing for four hundred years.
The nineteenth-century rediscovery of Botticelli’s Dante drawings brought scholars to their knees: this work embodied everything the Renaissance had come to mean. Today, Botticelli’s Primavera adorns household objects of every kind.
This book is essential to explain not only how and why this artist became iconic but why we still need his work–and the spirit of the Renaissance–today.
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A Grand Tour of Italy
- By: Joseph Luzzi
- Narrator: Joseph Luzzi
- Length: 2 hours 6 minutes
- Publisher: Dreamscape Media
- Publish date: August 03, 2021
- Language: English
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4(8 ratings)
4(8 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0017.99 USDOne Day University presents a series of audio lectures recorded in real-time from some of the top minds in the United States. Given by award-winning professors and experts in their field, these recorded lectures dive deep into the worlds ofOne Day University presents a series of audio lectures recorded in real-time from some of the top minds in the United States. Given by award-winning professors and experts in their field, these recorded lectures dive deep into the worlds of religion, government, literature, and social justice. “You may have the universe, if I may have Italy.” – Giuseppe Verdi. Anyone who is familiar with Italy–its glorious architecture, epic history, exquisite fine arts, and majestic landscape–understands Verdi’s passionate words above. For centuries, Italy has been an irresistible magnet for people from all corners of the world, attracting the most illustrious men and women of every age as well as visitors from every walk of life. Today, it remains a very special mecca–uplifting, fascinating, and enchanting all who travel there. But what is behind Italy’s remarkable appeal? What makes this country such an inexhaustible place of discovery, unforgettable to so many? Award-winning author, teacher, and Italian scholar Joseph Luzzi leads participants on a whirlwind tour of Italy’s “greatest cultural hits,” as we explore the fascinating world of Italian art, music, film, and literature. We will learn how Italy has been a “grand tour” travel destination for centuries as we discover the fine art of living Italian style, and Italy is most known for. This audio lecture includes a supplemental PDF.
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The Pity of War
- By: Niall Ferguson
- Narrator: Graeme Malcolm
- Length: 21 hours 38 minutes
- Publisher: Hachette Audio
- Publish date: June 23, 2020
- Language: English
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3.86(2346 ratings)
3.86(2346 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0025.98 USDFrom a bestselling historian, a daringly revisionist history of World War IThe Pity of War makes a simple and provocative argument: the human atrocity known as the Great War was entirely England’s fault. According to Niall Ferguson, EnglandFrom a bestselling historian, a daringly revisionist history of World War I
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The Pity of War makes a simple and provocative argument: the human atrocity known as the Great War was entirely England’s fault. According to Niall Ferguson, England entered into war based on naive assumptions of German aims, thereby transforming a Continental conflict into a world war, which it then badly mishandled, necessitating American involvement. The war was not inevitable, Ferguson argues, but rather was the result of the mistaken decisions of individuals who would later claim to have been in the grip of huge impersonal forces.
That the war was wicked, horrific, and inhuman is memorialized in part by the poetry of men like Wilfred Owen and Siegfried Sassoon, but also by cold statistics. Indeed, more British soldiers were killed in the first day of the Battle of the Somme than Americans in the Vietnam War. And yet, as Ferguson writes, while the war itself was a disastrous folly, the great majority of men who fought it did so with little reluctance and with some enthusiasm. For anyone wanting to understand why wars are fought, why men are willing to fight them and why the world is as it is today, there is no sharper or more stimulating guide than Niall Ferguson’s The Pity of War. -
Rome
- By: Matthew Kneale
- Narrator: Neil Gardner
- Length: 12 hours 41 minutes
- Publisher: Simon & Schuster Audio
- Publish date: January 01, 2018
- Language: English
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3.86(854 ratings)
3.86(854 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0023.99 USD“This magnificent love letter to Rome” (Stephen Greenblatt) tells the story of the Eternal City through pivotal moments that defined its history–from the early Roman Republic through the Renaissance and the Reformation to the“This magnificent love letter to Rome” (Stephen Greenblatt) tells the story of the Eternal City through pivotal moments that defined its history–from the early Roman Republic through the Renaissance and the Reformation to the German occupation in World War Two–“an erudite history that reads like a page-turner” (Maria Semple).
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Rome, the Eternal City. It is a hugely popular tourist destination with a rich history, famed for such sites as the Colosseum, the Forum, the Pantheon, St. Peter’s, and the Vatican. In no other city is history as present as it is in Rome. Today visitors can stand on bridges that Julius Caesar and Cicero crossed; walk around temples in the footsteps of emperors; visit churches from the earliest days of Christianity.
This is all the more remarkable considering what the city has endured over the centuries. It has been ravaged by fires, floods, earthquakes, and–most of all–by roving armies. These have invaded repeatedly, from ancient times to as recently as 1943. Many times Romans have shrugged off catastrophe and remade their city anew.
“Matthew Kneale [is] one step ahead of most other Roman chroniclers” (The New York Times Book Review). He paints portraits of the city before seven pivotal assaults, describing what it looked like, felt like, smelled like and how Romans, both rich and poor, lived their everyday lives. He shows how the attacks transformed Rome–sometimes for the better. With drama and humor he brings to life the city of Augustus, of Michelangelo and Bernini, of Garibaldi and Mussolini, and of popes both saintly and very worldly. Rome is “exciting…gripping…a slow roller-coaster ride through the fortunes of a place deeply entangled in its past” (The Wall Street Journal). -
A House in the Mountains
- By: Caroline Moorehead
- Narrator: Derek Perkins
- Length: 13 hours 43 minutes
- Publisher: HarperAudio
- Publish date: January 28, 2020
- Language: English
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3.76(286 ratings)
3.76(286 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.004.99 USDThe acclaimed author of A Train in Winter returns with the final volume in her Resistance Quartet–the powerful and inspiring true story of the women of the partisan resistance who fought against Italy’s fascist regime during World WarThe acclaimed author of A Train in Winter returns with the final volume in her Resistance Quartet–the powerful and inspiring true story of the women of the partisan resistance who fought against Italy’s fascist regime during World War II.
In the late summer of 1943, when Italy broke with the Germans and joined the Allies after suffering catastrophic military losses, an Italian Resistance was born. Four young Piedmontese women–Ada, Frida, Silvia and Bianca–living secretly in the mountains surrounding Turin, risked their lives to overthrow Italy’s authoritarian government. They were among the thousands of Italians who joined the Partisan effort to help the Allies liberate their country from the German invaders and their Fascist collaborators. What made this partisan war all the more extraordinary was the number of women–like this brave quartet–who swelled its ranks.
The bloody civil war that ensued pitted neighbor against neighbor, and revealed the best and worst in Italian society. The courage shown by the partisans was exemplary, and eventually bound them together into a coherent fighting force. But the death rattle of Mussolini’s two decades of Fascist rule–with its corruption, greed, and anti-Semitism–was unrelentingly violent and brutal.
Drawing on a rich cache of previously untranslated sources, prize-winning historian Caroline Moorehead illuminates the experiences of Ada, Frida, Silvia, and Bianca to tell the little-known story of the women of the Italian partisan movement fighting for freedom against fascism in all its forms, while Europe collapsed in smoldering ruins around them.
Supplemental enhancement PDF accompanies the audiobook.
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A Bold and Dangerous Family
- By: Caroline Moorehead
- Narrator: John Lee
- Length: 14 hours 30 minutes
- Publisher: HarperAudio
- Publish date: October 03, 2017
- Language: English
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3.73(216 ratings)
3.73(216 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0031.99 USDThe acclaimed author of A Train in Winter and Village of Secrets delivers the next chapter in “The Resistance Quartet”: the astonishing story of the aristocratic Italian family who stood up to Mussolini’s fascism, and whose effortsThe acclaimed author of A Train in Winter and Village of Secrets delivers the next chapter in “The Resistance Quartet”: the astonishing story of the aristocratic Italian family who stood up to Mussolini’s fascism, and whose efforts helped define the path of Italy in the years between the World Wars–a profile in courage that remains relevant today.
Members of the cosmopolitan, cultural aristocracy of Florence at the beginning of the twentieth century, the Rosselli family, led by their fierce matriarch, Amelia, were vocal anti-fascists. As populist, right-wing nationalism swept across Europe after World War I, and Italy’s Prime Minister, Benito Mussolini, began consolidating his power, Amelia’s sons Carlo and Nello led the opposition, taking a public stand against Il Duce that few others in their elite class dared risk. When Mussolini established a terrifying and brutal police state controlled by his Blackshirts–the squaddristi–the Rossellis and their anti-fascist circle were transformed into active resisters.
In retaliation, many of the anti-fascists were arrested and imprisoned; others left the country to escape a similar fate. Tragically, Carlo and Nello were eventually assassinated by Mussolini’s secret service. After Italy entered World War II in June 1940, Amelia, thanks to visas arranged by First Lady Eleanor Roosevelt herself, fled to New York City with the remaining members of her family.
Renowned historian Caroline Moorehead paints an indelible picture of Italy in the first half of the twentieth century, offering an intimate account of the rise of Il Duce and his squaddristi; life in Mussolini’s penal colonies; the shocking ambivalence and complicity of many prominent Italian families seduced by Mussolini’s promises; and the bold, fractured resistance movement whose associates sacrificed their lives to fight fascism. In A Bold and Dangerous Family, Moorehead once again pays tribute to heroes who fought to uphold our humanity during one of history’s darkest chapters.
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The Great Fire of Rome
- By: Stephen Dando-Collins
- Narrator: John Lescault
- Length: 8 hours 57 minutes
- Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
- Publish date: January 01, 2010
- Language: English
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3.71(179 ratings)
3.71(179 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0019.95 USDIn 64 AD, on the night of July 19, a fire began beneath the stands of Rome’s great stadium, the Circus Maximus. The fire would spread over the coming days to engulf much of the city of Rome. From this calamity, one of the ancient world’sIn 64 AD, on the night of July 19, a fire began beneath the stands of Rome’s great stadium, the Circus Maximus. The fire would spread over the coming days to engulf much of the city of Rome. From this calamity, one of the ancient world’s most devastating events, legends grew: that Nero had been responsible for the fire, and fiddled while Rome burned, and that Nero blamed the Christians of Rome, burning them alive in punishment, making them the first recorded martyrs to the Christian faith at Rome.
The Great Fire of Romeopens at the beginning of 64 AD and follows the events in and around Rome as they unfold in the seven months leading up to the great fire. As the year progresses we learn that the infamous young emperor Nero, who was twenty-six at the time of the fire, is celebrating a decade in power. Yet the palace is far from complacent, and the streets of Rome are simmering with talk of revolt.
Dando-Collins introduces the fascinating cavalcade of historical characters who were in Rome during the first seven months of 64 AD and played a part in the great drama. Using ancient sources, as well as modern archaeology, Dando-Collins describes the fire itself and its aftermath, as Nero personally directed relief efforts and reconstruction.
The Great Fire of Romeis an unforgettable human drama that brings ancient Rome and the momentous events of 64 AD to scorching life.
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The Birth of the West
- By: Paul Collins
- Narrator: Grover Gardner
- Length: 21 hours 29 minutes
- Publisher: Blackstone Publishing
- Publish date: January 01, 2022
- Language: English
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3.57(309 ratings)
3.57(309 ratings)Regular Price:Try for $0.0029.95 USDThe tenth century dawned in violence and disorder. Charlemagne’s empire was in ruins, most of Spain had been claimed by Moorish invaders, and even the papacy in Rome was embroiled in petty, provincial conflicts. To many historians, it was aThe tenth century dawned in violence and disorder. Charlemagne’s empire was in ruins, most of Spain had been claimed by Moorish invaders, and even the papacy in Rome was embroiled in petty, provincial conflicts. To many historians, it was a prime example of the ignorance and uncertainty of the Dark Ages. Yet according to historian Paul Collins, the story of the tenth century is the story of our culture’s birth, of the emergence of our civilization into the light of day.
The Birth of the West tells the story of a transformation from chaos to order, exploring the alien landscape of Europe in transition. It is a fascinating narrative that thoroughly renovates older conceptions of feudalism and what medieval life was actually like. The result is a wholly new vision of how civilization sprang from the unlikeliest of origins, and proof that our tenth-century ancestors are not as remote as we might think.
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The Eternal City
- By: Fredinand Addis
- Narrator: Pete Cross
- Length: 22 hours 3 minutes
- Publisher: Dreamscape Media
- Publish date: January 21, 2020
- Language: English
Regular Price:Try for $0.0017.99 USDWhy does Rome continue to exert a hold on our imagination? How did the “”Caput Mundi”” come to play such a critical role in the development of Western civilization? Ferdinand Addis addresses these questions by tracing theWhy does Rome continue to exert a hold on our imagination? How did the “”Caput Mundi”” come to play such a critical role in the development of Western civilization?
Ferdinand Addis addresses these questions by tracing the history of the “”Eternal City”” told through the dramatic key moments in its history: the mythic founding of Rome in 753 BC, the murder of Caesar in 44 BC, the coronation of Charlemagne in AD 800, the reinvention of the imperial ideal, the painting of the Sistine chapel, the trial of Galileo, Mussolini’s March on Rome of 1922, the release of Fellini’s La Dolce Vita in 1960, and the Occupy riots of 2011.
City of the Seven Hills, spiritual home of Catholic Christianity, city of the artistic imagination, enduring symbol of our common European heritage–Rome has inspired, charmed, and tempted empire-builders, dreamers, writers, and travelers across the twenty-seven centuries of its existence. Ferdinand Addis tells its rich story in a grand narrative style for a new generation of listeners.
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Sicily: Land of Love and Strife
- By: John Julius Norwich
- Narrator: Pete Cross
- Length: 3 hours 32 minutes
- Publisher: Dreamscape Media
- Publish date: November 06, 2018
- Language: English
Regular Price:Try for $0.004.99 USDIn Sicily: Land of Love and Strife, A Filmmaker’s Journey, the process of capturing the island nation on film is revealed. A country rich with natural beauty and historic sites, and a people distinguished by their passion, struggles,In Sicily: Land of Love and Strife, A Filmmaker’s Journey, the process of capturing the island nation on film is revealed. A country rich with natural beauty and historic sites, and a people distinguished by their passion, struggles, philosophy, and the depth and diversity of their culture, has unfortunately been overshadowed by its association with organized crime. Spano invites the listener to follow him on his journey to celebrate the real Sicily, and to change the public perception of his family’s homeland.
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Cliff Weitzman
Cliff Weitzman is a dyslexia advocate and the CEO and founder of Speechify, the #1 text-to-speech app in the world, totaling over 100,000 5-star reviews and ranking first place in the App Store for the News & Magazines category. In 2017, Weitzman was named to the Forbes 30 under 30 list for his work making the internet more accessible to people with learning disabilities. Cliff Weitzman has been featured in EdSurge, Inc., PC Mag, Entrepreneur, Mashable, among other leading outlets.
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