-
The Sumerians
- A Complete Guide to Sumerian History and the Sumerian Civilization. Sumer in the Akkadian Empire & the Ancient City of Babylon
- Narrated by: Cheryl May
- Length: 3 hrs and 34 mins
- Unabridged Audiobook
- Categories: History, Ancient History
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy for $14.95
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
The Anunnaki Connection
- Sumerian Gods, Alien DNA, and the Fate of Humanity
- By: Heather Lynn PhD
- Narrated by: Chelsea Stephens
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In The Anunnaki Connection, Heather Lynn connects a diverse range of new and existing theories about the Anunnaki, offering a definitive guide to Mesopotamian gods while exploring what role they might have played in engineering mankind. The Anunnaki Connection traces the evolution of gods throughout the Ancient Near East, analyzing the religion, myth, art, and symbolism of the Sumerians, investigating: Who are the Anunnaki?
-
-
meh
- By Marco on 05-27-20
By: Heather Lynn PhD
-
Greek Mythology
- Classic Stories of the Greek Gods, Goddesses, Heroes, and Monsters (Classic Mythology, Book 1)
- By: Scott Lewis
- Narrated by: Madison Niederhauser
- Length: 3 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This captivating audiobook will take you on a beautiful journey through the fascinating world of Greek mythology. From the beginning of the cosmos to the Odyssey, be ready to venture into an exciting world of love, loyalty, infidelity, vengeance, deception, and intrigue!
-
-
A great way to gain insight to Ancient Greece
- By cosmitron on 07-27-18
By: Scott Lewis
-
Ancient Mesopotamia
- Life in the Cradle of Civilization
- By: The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Professor Amanda H. Podany PhD
- Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mesopotamia is the ancient name for the region that is now Iraq, a remarkably advanced civilization that flourished for two-thirds of the time that civilization has existed on Earth. Mesopotamians mastered irrigation agriculture; built the first complex urban societies; developed writing, literature, and law; and united vast regions through warfare and diplomacy. While civilizations like Greece and Rome have an unbroken tradition of written histories, the rich history of Mesopotamia has only been recently rediscovered, thanks to the decipherment of Mesopotamia's cuneiform writing less than 200 years ago.
-
-
Time with a great scholar & fantastic lecturer
- By John G. Sharp on 07-14-18
-
Sumerian Mythology: Fascinating Myths and Legends of Gods, Goddesses, Heroes and Monster from the Ancient Mesopotamian Sumerian Mythology
- By: Simon Lopez
- Narrated by: Neil Hamilton
- Length: 5 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Do you know that the Sumerians believed that: The moon was actually a god child conceived unintentionally by the God Enlil and a maid? Or that humans were first created to do the chores on earth for the Gods and Goddesses? The ancient Sumerians lived a difficult life, and this is reflected in their myths. However, also reflected in their stories is their love for justice and the values which they most supported, among them beauty, honor, and truthfulness.
-
-
Not a True Mythology
- By Glenda Nichols on 05-21-19
By: Simon Lopez
-
Babylon
- Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization
- By: Paul Kriwaczek
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Civilization was born 8,000 years ago, between the floodplains of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, when migrants from the surrounding mountains and deserts began to create increasingly sophisticated urban societies. In the cities that they built, half of human history took place. In Babylon, Paul Kriwaczek tells the story of Mesopotamia from the earliest settlements seven thousand years ago to the eclipse of Babylon in the sixth century BCE. Bringing the people of this land to life in vibrant detail, the author chronicles the rise and fall of power during this period.
-
-
Solid overview 3000 years of history
- By Alsor2000 on 07-19-20
By: Paul Kriwaczek
-
Sumerians: A History from Beginning to End
- By: Henry Freeman
- Narrated by: Christopher Boozell
- Length: 2 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A legendary civilization vanished under the Fertile Crescent and escaped a fate worse than death until Sumerologists questioned widely accepted truths. The Sumerians reemerged onto the extraordinary timeline of human history. Their tales of kings and gods, including the Epic of Gilgamesh, and their fearless trade in distant lands, during the remarkable Bronze Age, centered in the world’s first city-states that chronicled ancient rivalries and their enduring impact.
-
-
The writing is so poor I could not listen.
- By Erin on 12-04-21
By: Henry Freeman
-
The Anunnaki Connection
- Sumerian Gods, Alien DNA, and the Fate of Humanity
- By: Heather Lynn PhD
- Narrated by: Chelsea Stephens
- Length: 7 hrs and 43 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In The Anunnaki Connection, Heather Lynn connects a diverse range of new and existing theories about the Anunnaki, offering a definitive guide to Mesopotamian gods while exploring what role they might have played in engineering mankind. The Anunnaki Connection traces the evolution of gods throughout the Ancient Near East, analyzing the religion, myth, art, and symbolism of the Sumerians, investigating: Who are the Anunnaki?
-
-
meh
- By Marco on 05-27-20
By: Heather Lynn PhD
-
Greek Mythology
- Classic Stories of the Greek Gods, Goddesses, Heroes, and Monsters (Classic Mythology, Book 1)
- By: Scott Lewis
- Narrated by: Madison Niederhauser
- Length: 3 hrs and 22 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This captivating audiobook will take you on a beautiful journey through the fascinating world of Greek mythology. From the beginning of the cosmos to the Odyssey, be ready to venture into an exciting world of love, loyalty, infidelity, vengeance, deception, and intrigue!
-
-
A great way to gain insight to Ancient Greece
- By cosmitron on 07-27-18
By: Scott Lewis
-
Ancient Mesopotamia
- Life in the Cradle of Civilization
- By: The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Professor Amanda H. Podany PhD
- Length: 11 hrs and 16 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Mesopotamia is the ancient name for the region that is now Iraq, a remarkably advanced civilization that flourished for two-thirds of the time that civilization has existed on Earth. Mesopotamians mastered irrigation agriculture; built the first complex urban societies; developed writing, literature, and law; and united vast regions through warfare and diplomacy. While civilizations like Greece and Rome have an unbroken tradition of written histories, the rich history of Mesopotamia has only been recently rediscovered, thanks to the decipherment of Mesopotamia's cuneiform writing less than 200 years ago.
-
-
Time with a great scholar & fantastic lecturer
- By John G. Sharp on 07-14-18
-
Sumerian Mythology: Fascinating Myths and Legends of Gods, Goddesses, Heroes and Monster from the Ancient Mesopotamian Sumerian Mythology
- By: Simon Lopez
- Narrated by: Neil Hamilton
- Length: 5 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Do you know that the Sumerians believed that: The moon was actually a god child conceived unintentionally by the God Enlil and a maid? Or that humans were first created to do the chores on earth for the Gods and Goddesses? The ancient Sumerians lived a difficult life, and this is reflected in their myths. However, also reflected in their stories is their love for justice and the values which they most supported, among them beauty, honor, and truthfulness.
-
-
Not a True Mythology
- By Glenda Nichols on 05-21-19
By: Simon Lopez
-
Babylon
- Mesopotamia and the Birth of Civilization
- By: Paul Kriwaczek
- Narrated by: Derek Perkins
- Length: 12 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Civilization was born 8,000 years ago, between the floodplains of the Tigris and Euphrates rivers, when migrants from the surrounding mountains and deserts began to create increasingly sophisticated urban societies. In the cities that they built, half of human history took place. In Babylon, Paul Kriwaczek tells the story of Mesopotamia from the earliest settlements seven thousand years ago to the eclipse of Babylon in the sixth century BCE. Bringing the people of this land to life in vibrant detail, the author chronicles the rise and fall of power during this period.
-
-
Solid overview 3000 years of history
- By Alsor2000 on 07-19-20
By: Paul Kriwaczek
-
Sumerians: A History from Beginning to End
- By: Henry Freeman
- Narrated by: Christopher Boozell
- Length: 2 hrs and 48 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
A legendary civilization vanished under the Fertile Crescent and escaped a fate worse than death until Sumerologists questioned widely accepted truths. The Sumerians reemerged onto the extraordinary timeline of human history. Their tales of kings and gods, including the Epic of Gilgamesh, and their fearless trade in distant lands, during the remarkable Bronze Age, centered in the world’s first city-states that chronicled ancient rivalries and their enduring impact.
-
-
The writing is so poor I could not listen.
- By Erin on 12-04-21
By: Henry Freeman
-
The Sumerians: A History from Beginning to End
- By: Hourly History
- Narrated by: Stephen Paul Aulridge Jr.
- Length: 1 hr and 6 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The Sumerians settled in the area known as Mesopotamia, between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers, around 5,000 years ago. They produced many fundamental changes to the way in which human societies developed - these were the first city-builders, the first people to use wheeled vehicles, the first methodical astronomers, and the first people to develop a sophisticated written language. The Sumerians also produced art, music, and literature as well as created some of the first professional soldiers the world had ever seen.
-
-
An exploration to the distant past.
- By Lynn Wray on 02-01-22
By: Hourly History
-
Between the Rivers: The History of Ancient Mesopotamia
- By: Alexis Q. Castor, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Alexis Q. Castor
- Length: 18 hrs and 1 min
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
All cultures lie in the shadow of ancient Mesopotamia-the land between the Tigris and Euphrates Rivers that is now mostly encompassed by the borders of modern Iraq. In this fascinating series of 36 lectures, an award-winning teacher leads you on a vivid journey through Mesopotamian history-from Neolithic times to the age of Alexander the Great.
-
-
Kinda Tells you what u need, but not really
- By tamim on 03-11-15
By: Alexis Q. Castor, and others
-
Mesopotamia: A Captivating Guide to Ancient Mesopotamian History and Civilizations, Including the Sumerians and Sumerian Mythology, Gilgamesh, Ur, Assyrians, Babylon, Hammurabi and the Persian Empire
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Richard Savage, Desmond Manny, Duke Holm, and others
- Length: 21 hrs and 33 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Taken together, the civilizations of Sumer, Assyria, and Persia have helped form the modern makeup of Mesopotamia, western Asia, and the world. However, to really understand why things are the way they are, it’s important to break up this historical timeline and spend some time learning about each society. Only by doing this will you be able to fully appreciate the powerful impact these ancient peoples had on our modern world.
-
-
Great material, terrible performance
- By D. G. Florida on 03-05-19
-
Ur: A Captivating Guide to One of the Most Important Sumerian City-States in Ancient Mesopotamia
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Duke Holm
- Length: 3 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This audiobook is about the city which houses the mighty Ziggurat - the Biblical “Ur of the Chaldees” where Abraham was supposedly born. The site near which the earliest human cultures were found. The site which held the most glorious Sumerian Dynasty in ancient history. This is the story of the city that was destined to die and be reborn every millennium or so, a city full of intrigue, magnificence, tragedy, and glory.
-
-
Highly Recommended
- By Wsil Ali on 12-09-18
-
The Rise and Fall of Ancient Egypt
- By: Toby Wilkinson
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 18 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In this landmark work, one of the world's most renowned Egyptologists tells the epic story of this great civilization, from its birth as the first nation-state to its final absorption into the Roman Empire - 3,000 years of wild drama, bold spectacle, and unforgettable characters. Award-winning scholar Toby Wilkinson captures not only the lavish pomp and artistic grandeur of this land of pyramids and pharaohs but for the first time reveals the constant propaganda and repression that were its foundations.
-
-
"2 mins in, & author begins moralizing"
- By Dillird on 12-10-19
By: Toby Wilkinson
-
Forgotten Peoples of the Ancient World
- By: Philip Matyszak
- Narrated by: Michael Page
- Length: 8 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This thorough guide explores those civilizations that have faded from the pages of our textbooks but played a significant role in the development of modern society. Forgotten Peoples of the Ancient World covers the Hyksos to the Hephthalites and everyone in between, providing a unique overview of humanity's history from approximately 3000 BCE-550 CE. Each entry exposes a diverse culture, highlighting their important contributions.
-
-
Gripping and seamless
- By Mike Heim on 05-13-21
By: Philip Matyszak
-
The History of the Ancient World
- From the Earliest Accounts to the Fall of Rome
- By: Susan Wise Bauer
- Narrated by: John Lee
- Length: 26 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This is the first volume in a bold new series that tells the stories of all peoples, connecting historical events from Europe to the Middle East to the far coast of China, while still giving weight to the characteristics of each country. Susan Wise Bauer provides both sweeping scope and vivid attention to the individual lives that give flesh to abstract assertions about human history. This narrative history employs the methods of "history from beneath" - literature, epic traditions, private letters, and accounts - to connect kings and leaders with the lives of those they ruled.
-
-
Fast paced history
- By serine on 01-23-16
By: Susan Wise Bauer
-
The Dead Sea Scrolls
- By: Gary A. Rendsburg, The Great Courses
- Narrated by: Gary A. Rendsburg
- Length: 12 hrs and 21 mins
- Original Recording
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Whether complete or only fragmentary, the 930 extant Dead Sea Scrolls irrevocably altered how we look at and understand the foundations of faith and religious practice. Now you can get a comprehensive introduction to this unique series of archaeological documents, and to scholars' evolving understanding of their authorship and significance, with these 24 lectures. Learn what the scrolls are, what they contain, and how the insights they offered into religious and ancient history came into focus.
-
-
Have Listened to it twice
- By BBraun on 01-15-15
By: Gary A. Rendsburg, and others
-
Gilgamesh
- A New English Version
- By: Stephen Mitchell - translator
- Narrated by: George Guidall
- Length: 4 hrs and 4 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This brilliant new treatment of the world's oldest epic is a literary event on par with Seamus Heaney's wildly popular Beowulf translation. Esteemed translator and best-selling author Stephen Mitchell energizes a heroic tale so old it predates Homer's Iliad by more than a millennium.
-
-
A defense of this "translation"
- By George on 07-16-08
-
The Lost Book of Enki
- Memoirs and Prophecies of an Extraterrestrial God
- By: Zecharia Sitchin
- Narrated by: Micah Hanks
- Length: 8 hrs and 1 min
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Zecharia Sitchin’s best-selling series The Earth Chronicles provided humanity’s side of the story concerning our origins at the hands of the Anunnaki, “those who from heaven to earth came.” In The Lost Book of Enki we now view this saga from the perspective of Lord Enki, an Anunnaki leader revered in antiquity as a god, who tells the story of these extraterrestrials’ arrival on Earth from the planet Nibiru.
-
-
Micah, problems with reading voice.
- By Sir_RUSH on 12-08-19
By: Zecharia Sitchin
-
The Ancient Celts, Second Edition
- By: Barry Cunliffe
- Narrated by: Julian Elfer
- Length: 10 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For 2,500 years, the Celts have continued to fascinate those who have come into contact with them, yet their origins have remained a mystery and even today are the subject of heated debate among historians and archaeologists. Barry Cunliffe's classic study of the ancient Celtic world was first published in 1997. Since then, huge advances have taken place in our knowledge: new finds, new ways of using DNA records to understand Celtic origins, new ideas about the proto-urban nature of early chieftains' strongholds. All these developments are part of this fully updated edition.
-
-
History of the other part of Europe
- By Christopher on 08-29-19
By: Barry Cunliffe
-
Sumerians
- A Captivating Guide to Ancient Sumerian History, Sumerian Mythology and the Mesopotamian Empire of the Sumer Civilization
- By: Captivating History
- Narrated by: Duke Holm
- Length: 2 hrs and 53 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The sheer importance of Sumerian culture in regards to world culture as a whole is impossible to overstate. This civilization is single-handedly responsible for some of the most major innovations in nearly every field relevant to maintaining a civilized society - this includes religion, lawmaking, architecture, schooling, art, literature, and even entertainment. Naturally, most of what we see as negative aspects of society were established in ancient Sumer as well. There wasn’t an aspect of Sumerian life that wasn’t plagued with corruption or devastation of one form or another.
-
-
Succinct and detailed
- By Silaoon Rome on 06-23-18
Publisher's Summary
These people, the Sumerians, influenced not only all the other civilizations that arose in Mesopotamia but virtually every other human society that followed. Without the Sumerians, the world today would be a very different place. However, although we know a great deal about these people, there are fundamental mysteries about the Sumerians that have still not been solved by historians or archaeologists. For example, the Sumerians seemed to appear in Mesopotamia with a complex and developed society and skills and technologies that no other culture possessed, yet there is no agreement where they came from.
They created a complex language, but no one knows what it sounded like. There are striking examples of similarities between the art of the civilization of Sumer and the art of other ancient civilizations, yet we know that these cultures had no contact with each other. The Sumerians were able to observe and record astronomical and celestial phenomena in very advanced ways that are still not understood.
In this audiobook you will learn about:
- Sumerian culture
- Sumerian inventions
- How long they were around
- What they looked like
- Fascinating insight into their everyday life
More from the same
What listeners say about The Sumerians
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- David Brice Carlisle
- 11-02-19
Fascinating! Enlightening! A definite must read / listen!
Do you find the “fire & bull$4!#” of corrupt religions hard to swallow? Does the psychotic sociopathic sadism & masochism of ancient Roman society make your stomach turn? Ever wonder how humanity could evolve to corruption and why?
Then read this book and it can all begin to make sense. This is truly the beginning of civilization on Earth.
From out of the Stone Age conscious enlightenment arose.
Beautifully read by a soothing, well spoken voice. Very well written.
Bravo!!!!
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Son of Thor's whimper
- 10-09-19
Not good enough
Several issues with this audiobook. Foremost, the content is basically a history of Sumer which was what I wanted so that is Ok, but it is not helping me. Firstly, it is rather shallow, and secondly, where it had information which I was interested in there was no possibility to a follow up on my side as there neither in the narrative nor in a pdf was any references. The two times I would have had an interest to follow up I was left in the dark as to who made this claim, what year it was made and where it was published. The Great Courses publish a pdf with among other things a list of relevant litterature. I missed this here. Not even the author was made known, baring me from figuring out for myself via that persons publications. So interesting to a degree, but way too shallow.
Second, the narrative made the impression of a computer voice, in spite of the narrator having a name. During the only three and half hours, I many times got the impression that the voice was trying to text letter by letter and thereby lost the resemblance of a human voice. As well as a correct pronunciation. The narration made an airy impression.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Margaret
- 06-21-19
So much I learned.
This is the first book I’ve read/listened to by Innovating History and I would gladly listen to another. I learned a lot from this book. It was well organized and covered a variety of topics. Each chapter described a different area of Sumerian history. I was fascinated to learn how much we can attribute to them - they are the earliest recorded people to accomplish many things. We have this wealth of knowledge do to the Sumerian’s extensive record keeping.
This is the first book I’ve listened to by this narrator ( Cheryl May ) and I would listen to another. She did well reading this content- her style was comfortable to listen to. Her diction was clear and pacing good.
There are no explicit sex scenes, excessive violence or swearing.
I was given this free review copy audiobook at my request and voluntarily left this unbiased review.
Please feel free to comment on whether you found my review helpful.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Courtney Odor
- 05-07-19
History can be interesting
As always, I have to let you guys know that I received this book for free in exchange for a review. But as always, this does not affect my opinion of the book, so I always give honest feedback.
I enjoyed learning about the ancient history that we know little about.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Alfredo
- 05-06-20
Exatctly what you'd expect
Not too much fluff, just interesting stuff around the sumerians and mesapotania. So much history, and yeah if you want to know more about those crazy theories (yeah aliens , and that mystic handbag), this book got you covered too
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Deedra
- 06-24-19
The Sumerians
This was a very good,but short,overview of the Sumerian civilization.It was fascinating and told well by Cheryl May. I was given this book by the narrator,author or publisher free for an honest review.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Kevin Potter
- 05-08-19
Concise and informative
Even for a learned amateur, there is some great information to be found here.
Cheryl May's narration is pleasant and easily understandable, though there were a couple of mispronounced words and a handful of pauses in unusual places.
Although I'm far from a scholar, I consider myself relatively learned about history, particularly ancient history. I've made several studies of Sumerian history in particular.
And even so, I found a fair bit of new information herein, much of it fascinating. There is so much about the ancient Sumerians that is both extremely interesting and quite mysterious.
However, there are two issues that bear mentioning.
1) At the start of the book, the text couldn't decide what measurement to use. First we see hectares, then miles, then kilometers before it finally settles in kilometers as the standard.
2) This one is the larger issue. There is a factual error around the reasons the Sumerians (among others) initially worked with bronze rather than iron. The text states this as bronze being stronger, which is factually incorrect. Although Iron is only marginally stronger than bronze, it is less brittle and has the advantage that its strength increases each time it is tempered (heated and rapidly cooled). It is true that in the ancient world, before this was understood, that generally only happened when repairs were made, but the point is that even at its initial forging bronze is still not a stronger metal.
The actual reason bronze was chosen is because it is far easier to work with as it has a much lower melting point (1,000 c vs 1,600 c).
Apart from that relatively minor issue, however, I found this book both entertaining and informative, if rather shallow. It is much more of a broad overview than any kind of detailed study of the Sumerians.
I would definitely recommend this book to anyone looking to learn a bit about the first advanced culture. Even if you already know a bit and are looking to learn more, this would be a great jumping off point before digging into something with more depth.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- KatMama
- 05-07-19
Concise and informative review
Good overview of the history of the Sumerians, including the creation of their society and progression. The narration could be rather dry at times, however the subject matter was interesting and compelling. Overall I thoroughly enjoyed this audiobook and found it a good way to shore up what I’ve forgotten since middle school history class. Recommend!
I was given this free review copy audio book at my request and have voluntarily left this review.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Jan
- 05-04-19
Great read for non academics!
anthropology, historical-places-events, historical-research, historical-setting
Anthropology for the rest of us! I learned even more than I hoped to. Everybody has heard of the Sumerians, but most of us couldn't write a paragraph about them. I'll grant you that there is a lot of the unknown, including where they came from and why was their language so different from others in the area. But I learned they were innovative in roads, transportation, water distribution, art, music, architecture, literature, and development of cuneiform writing. They built ziggurats, developed the city of Babylon, one of their rulers was Hamurabi, and one of the scribes was Gilgamesh. Their time of reign was roughly 4500 to 1900 BCE, and some credit them with developing bronze. Great reference!
The narrator for the audiobook is Cheryl May who seems to have enjoyed reading it as much as I enjoyed learning from it.
I entered and won it in a giveaway without expectations.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Freddi Högabo
- 08-19-20
A very good go thru of the sumerian epoch.
I really enjoyed this short book that managed to covet the esentials of the sumerian epoch.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Norma Miles
- 05-21-19
A large and far reaching culture.
This is a good starter book for anyone wanting a taster of the Sumerian history and culture, either for simple curiosity or as a decider whether or not to research more fully. It does an excellent job of pointing out the sudden advances which they brought about in, amongst other things, farming and technologies and highlighting those areas which still remain unresolved, like where they came from and how, without any form of telescope, their knowledge of astronomy was advanced enough to know that the Earth was one of several planets circling the sun. It presents known facts quite well, plus a brief history, but would have benefited enormously from a bibliography.
Narration is poor. Although Cheryl May has a reasonably pleasant voice with the benefit of being clear, her phrasing of the text is bizarre, with frequent displaced pauses ('They just hoped - pause - that the ...' Or 'Another Sumerian city state - pause - would become...') and several mispronunciations (such as 'squilmesh' instead of skirmish), which become irritatingly distracting as the book progressed. In fact, to this reader, it increasingly sounded as if Ms.May was reading it aloud like a children's book, and paying little attention to the content as she skipped through a text about which she knew nothing, having never seen it before. A more text focused, interested and smooth narration would have transformed the book.
A pity, as the textual content was very interesting. My thanks to the rights holder of The Sumerians, who, at my request, freely gifted me with a complimentary copy via Audiobook Boom. A good source of basic background information - but best buy a printed copy if eccentric narration is distracting.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Derek Antoncich
- 11-08-20
Maybe for Children
I couldn't finish it. The narration was poor, stilted, and did not flow. It may be good for children, but I found the content basic and uninteresting.