
Nomads
The Wanderers Who Shaped Our World
Anthony Sattin(Author)
John Murray Publishers Ltd
Published on 27. April 2023
Book
Paperback/Softback
368 pages
978-1-4736-7789-0 (ISBN)
Description
A Spectator Book of the Year
'Sweeping . . . Poetic . . . Not only readable but also vital' Literary Review
'A terrific storyteller' New York Times
'Exceptional . . . tender and beautifully written' Country Life
The groundbreaking story of Nomadic peoples on the move across history.
Tracing the epic paths of wanderers across twelve thousand years, acclaimed travel writer Anthony Sattin recovers the stories of tribes who lived beyond imperial borders and created their own kingdoms and empires: Scythian, Xiongnu, Persian, Hun, Arab, Mongul, Mughal, Ottoman and others. With their embrace of multiculturalism, respect for nature's rhythms, and need for free movement, wandering peoples brought a glorious cultural flourishing to Eurasia, enabling the Renaissance and changing the human story. This sweeping narrative reconnects us with our deepest mythology, our unrecorded antiquity and our natural world. Nomads is the untold history of civilisation, told through its outsiders.
'Sweeping . . . Poetic . . . Not only readable but also vital' Literary Review
'A terrific storyteller' New York Times
'Exceptional . . . tender and beautifully written' Country Life
The groundbreaking story of Nomadic peoples on the move across history.
Tracing the epic paths of wanderers across twelve thousand years, acclaimed travel writer Anthony Sattin recovers the stories of tribes who lived beyond imperial borders and created their own kingdoms and empires: Scythian, Xiongnu, Persian, Hun, Arab, Mongul, Mughal, Ottoman and others. With their embrace of multiculturalism, respect for nature's rhythms, and need for free movement, wandering peoples brought a glorious cultural flourishing to Eurasia, enabling the Renaissance and changing the human story. This sweeping narrative reconnects us with our deepest mythology, our unrecorded antiquity and our natural world. Nomads is the untold history of civilisation, told through its outsiders.
Reviews / Votes
In a book of sensitivity and grace, Sattin does not just describe the nomadic way of life, but also evokes it . . . This is a book of beauty and beguiling rhythm that offers unsettling lessons about our present-day world of borders -- The Times Thoughtful, lyrical yet ambitiously panoramic . . . As fleet and light-footed as its subject, it takes us along a dizzying path, over many of the highest ridges of human history . . . An important, generous and beautifully-written book -- William Dalrymple, author of 'The Anarchy' A terrific storyteller -- New York Times A fabulous piece of evocative writing, mixing personal stories with an epic sweep of history, the unique insight of location and an intimate connection to the subject. I loved it -- Jerry Brotton, author of 'A History of the World in Twelve Maps' Anthony Sattin's Nomads spreads before us a sweeping panorama of nomadismthat resonates through the past and echoes poignantly even in the present -- Colin Thubron, author of 'Shadow of the Silk Road' I was riveted by the shifts to nomadic culture, Sapiens-like, and by the feeling of learning lightly worn and deftly transmitted. This is a major book -- Roland Philipps, author of 'A Spy Named Orphan' The saga of the lost mobile cultures and empires that have impacted global history . . . a spirited defence of freedom of conscience, freedom of movement and migration, a romantic tribute to independence and to free spirit, and to being in tune with the rhythms of nature -- Marc David Baer, author of 'The Ottomans' An incredible work combining brilliant scholarship with an epic, page-turning narrative . . . His landmark book -- Nicholas Crane Sweeping . . . Poetic . . . Sattin brings together a huge range of material with great elegance, making it not only readable but also vital -- Literary Review Exceptional . . . tender and beautifully written -- Jason Goodwin, Country Life Nomads is a kind of rhapsody on how this aspect of human nature has contributed as much, if not more, to civilization, than the tillers of the soil -- Asian Review of Books Nomads is a monumental work, exhaustively researched that sets out to explain nomadism, its importance, rise and decline over the centuries in the minutest detail -- Irish Examiner Not only readable but also vital -- Literary Review Triumphantly tells the story of another way of living . . . This is a book that does not labour in the fields but gallops full stretch towards the horizon -- Spectator A much-needed act of historical revisionism -- Times Literary Supplement An unashamedly impressionistic paean to nomadic life interwoven with travelogue and memoir -- The Times
More details
Language
English
Place of publication
United Kingdom
Publishing group
John Murray Press
Illustrations
1x8pp
Dimensions
Height: 194 mm
Width: 126 mm
Thickness: 27 mm
Weight
260 gr
ISBN-13
978-1-4736-7789-0 (9781473677890)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Person
Anthony Sattin is an author, journalist and broadcaster. A graduate of the University of East Anglia Creative Writing Masters programme, he began his career writing and reviewing fiction before turning to narrative non-fiction. His highly acclaimed books of history and travel include Young Lawrence, A Winter on the Nile, The Pharaoh's Shadow, The Gates of Africa and Lifting the Veil. His latest book, Nomads: The Wanderers Who Shaped Our World, is a work of history that looks at the shifting relations between nomadic and settled people over the past 12,000 years, since the time when we all lived on the move. A contributing editor to Conde Nast Traveller, editorial advisor on Geographical Magazine and a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, he lives between London and the Middle East. Each spring for the past 18 years Anthony has guided a tour by sailboat up the Nile.