THE MIDDLE EAST A Brief History of the Last 2,000 Years

In light of current events this audio could not come at a better time. It is full of exactly the kind of information we need at the moment to help us make informed decisions based on real comprehension of the issues. Brief it might be by comparison, yet there is still a wealth of detail here that requires careful listening. It is well worth the effort. Lewis takes you from the very birth of Muhammad straight through to the prevailing problems in Palestine. It's a pleasure to discover how advanced Islam was in science, literature, and government and how moderate and tolerant as compared to, say, medieval Europe. Richard Davidson does an admirable job with the material. He achieves a proper balance between melodrama and a flat monotone rendering which can be a problem with nonfiction audio. He sounds interested all the time. His fine voice moves smoothly over many difficult pronunciations, which helps the listener not get bogged down in foreign names and places. This is a good reason to choose the audio over the book in some cases, and this timely subject can use all the leavening of understanding it can get. D.G. (c) AudioFile 2001, Portland, Maine [Published: DEC/ JAN 02]