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 enlarge | Authors: Menzies, Gavin
Creator: Reader: To Be Announced
Publisher: Blackstone Audiobooks, Inc.
Category: Book
List Price: $29.95
Buy New: $18.57
You Save: $11.38 (38%)
New (22) Used (8) from $17.49
Rating:  33 reviews
Sales Rank: 571414
Media: Audio CD
Edition: Unabridged
Pages: 10
Number Of Items: 10
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.5
Dimensions (in): 5.7 x 5.2 x 1.1
ISBN: 1433214644
Dewey Decimal Number: 945.05
EAN: 9781433214646
ASIN: 1433214644
Publication Date: June 3, 2008
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Shipping: International shipping available
Condition: Brand New, Perfect Condition, Please allow 4-14 business days for delivery. 100% Money Back Guarantee, Over 1,000,000 customers served.
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| Customer Reviews:
 Fascinating Book About a Little Known Chapter of History. September 27, 2008
Steven Woodcock (Colorado Springs, CO United States)
1 out of 3 found this review helpful
Like his previous book, 1421, this book focuses on the exploits of the Chinese treasure fleets and how they explored the world (1421) and helped spark the European Renaissance (1434). Fascinating stuff, extremely well documented, a great read much like a good mystery. br / br /This book is perhaps a bit "denser" than the earlier book and not as well written, in my opinion. Part of that is the subject matter--it's simply not as "grand" as the first book--and part of that is that the book feels somewhat rushed. br / br /Nevertheless this is an EXCELLENT book about a little known chapter of history. VERY RECOMMENDED!
 Really, really bad! September 17, 2008
HollisterBulldawg (Tres Pinos, CA)
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
This book is not only a very boring slog through swamp mud, it pupports to show facts that are not substantiated. And the author never does anything in a chronological order, he constatnly skips around through the centuries so it is very difficult to follow. He then makes unsupported statements in one chapter that suddenly becomes the basis for findings in a much later chapter. I truly believe if this book had had authentic facts, not pipedreams, it would have been very easy to write from Point A to Point Z, instead it is a scrambled mess. He also fails to follow Admiral Zeng He's voyage from China to Italy. The voyage is never chronicled from beginning to end, but uses other piecemeal voyages to show that Admiral He COULD have made such a voyage. Then he says the Chinese were great chroniclers of facts, but never shows where the 1434 voyage was chronicled anywhere. I think this whole book, like Carlos Castaneda's books a generation ago, is a bunch of myth, hyperbole, and false information. Too bad, the premise would have made a great movie.
Dispelling Myths of History September 8, 2008
J. S. Leffel (Indianapolis, IN, USA)
3 out of 5 found this review helpful
This book is an excellent presentation of fact, conjenture, and connections that dispel much of the myths foisted upon much of western history. For those who are open minded, it is a must read especially for those who have had the foresight to read two other books;1491: New Revelations of the Americas Before Columbus by Charles C. Mann and br /1421: The Year China Discovered America (P.S.) by Gavin Menzies. Much of the conjecture in these three books has now been proved by research since publication dates. br /
 how ideas spread September 8, 2008
Ragnar Rylander (Sweden)
2 out of 6 found this review helpful
1434: The Year a Magnificent Chinese Fleet Sailed to Italy and Ignited the Renaissance br /As usual in science new ideas will create havoc and will be heavily scrutinized. The concept presented here is certainly revolutionary but the evidence presented is suggestive and once the typical concept of European supremacy is abandoned, the sequences presented seem logical and trustworthy. Thrilling to say the least and highly recomendable.
Dangerous Revisionist Tripe August 25, 2008
TYR (USA)
7 out of 11 found this review helpful
I'm glad I borrowed this book instead of buying it. I wouldn't want to contribute in any way to the enrichment of this crook. As other reviewers have pointed out, a review of the original Chinese sources themselves shows that they lend no support to the author's premise at all. Most of this, the author has simply made up. What wasn't made up consists of carefully selected facts presented in a very misleading light. br / br /This is propaganda of a caliber that would have made the Nazis proud. I might even be tempted to laugh, but for the truth that many people will take this "book" at face value. Due to the current PC mind virus which states that it's wrong to question any anti-western fantasy that comes along, many historians who know the truth will be hesitant to argue otherwise. This reminds me of Bernal's "Black Athena" and other afrocentrist silliness which was heavily propagated in the 80's and 90's. Most serious historians, archaeologists, and linguists were scared to death that if they pointed out how absurd some of these claims were, they would be labeled as "Racist," ruining their academic careers or worse. Such is the situation now with China and Islam. Oh well... br / br /Just to be clear, I have the highest regard for Chinese civilization, its history, and its current potential (in fact, I have quite a bit of my stock portfolio betting on Chinese civilization to thrive). China has made many important contributions through history. It's just a shame that books such as this have to cheapen it. This charade of a book is deeply disrespectful of the great minds of both China and Europe, and the REAL things they accomplished.
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