H. W. F. Saggs (1920–2005)

First, let's start with the fact that this is a Folio Society edition. That equates to one simple fact...if public transit is crowded and there's only one seat left, I get the seat. Because my book is superior to those flimsy paperbacks and Mc-eBooks. Bow down to my book. No, don't even look at it. The paper is real. The spine is real. The cover is real. It's real. Kneel!

We have given you kingship over everything

Mesopotamia comes alive in this classic history of the people who built those cool ziggurats. The myths, the literature, the wars, the gardens, the religions...they're all brought to life with knowledge (and opinions) by Saggs. That seat is mine.

Book Season = Summer (feel the heat)… (más)

In this book H.W.F. Saggs shows us the foundations of civilization. Easy to read and understand this is a good overview of life in the three thousand centuries between 3,500 and 500 BC. Evidence from Mesopotamia; Egypt; Syria and Palestine; the Indus Valley and Crete are brought together.

An opening chapter gives us information about the uncovering of these early civilizations and the people who deciphered the writings left behind. Then each chapter is devoted to a different aspect of what makes a society. An abundant use of source material shows us the development of cities, writing, technology, agriculture, laws, maths and religion; the importance of trade and the drift of ideas.

An informative and well written book.… (más)

This book concentrates primarily on Mesopotamia and Egypt but there is some discussion of Crete, Assyria, the Indus Valley, etc. Saggs divides his narrative into sections where he discusses how civilization moved from from hunter societies to city-states, the invention of writing, urban life , development of codes of law, science, the ancient's view of religion, and how the different regions were the same and how they differed. This includes how the geography of an area affected the way its culture grew and changed and sometimes quit changing.

A very readable book that I enjoyed and a good introduction to the subject.… (más)