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The Edge of the World: A Cultural History of the North Sea and the Transformation of Europe
The Edge of the World: A Cultural History of the North Sea and the Transformation of Europe | Michael Pye
6 posts | 5 read | 15 to read
An epic adventure ranging from the terror of the Vikings to the golden age of cities: Michael Pye tells the amazing story of how modernity emerged on the shores of the North Sea. Saints and spies, pirates and philosophers, artists and intellectuals: they all criss-crossed the grey North Sea in the so-called "dark ages," the years between the fall of the Roman Empire and the beginning of Europe's mastery over the oceans. Now the critically acclaimed Michael Pye reveals the cultural transformation sparked by those men and women: the ideas, technology, science, law, and moral codes that helped create our modern world. This is the magnificent lost history of a thousand years. It was on the shores of the North Sea where experimental science was born, where women first had the right to choose whom they married; there was the beginning of contemporary business transactions and the advent of the printed book. In The Edge of the World, Michael Pye draws on an astounding breadth of original source material to illuminate this fascinating region during a pivotal era in world history.
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sparrowssavvy
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Pickpick

Loved this book. At times I found the writing to get a bit too convoluted but it was still enjoyable. An excellent history of the North Sea and the many cultures that existed around it. Some chapters were definitely more intriguing than others. I thoroughly enjoyed seeing the cultural progress charted though, especially in relation to Southern Europe.

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Oblomov26
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Pickpick

Well have been on a holiday and have taken a break from the internet, but will return with this book which was billed as a history of the North Sea. I did not really find this as a strict history, but more a collection of historical essays on subjects like the law, money and the plague as it applied to the merchant communities around the North Sea from the Roman era through to the start of the renaissance. A study in interconnectedness.

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VeevaReads
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Do other folks also take the dust jacket off when reading a hardcover?

marge Every time! 8y
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I-read-and-eat
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It's Wednesday and time for #historymonth. Today's theme is vikings. Michael Pye has written an amazing book about the history of the north sea countries. The most dominant people in the early middle ages were the vikings. The Volsung Saga is their epic story about the hero Sigurd. Eirik the Red is a collection of Icelandic stories. And Joanne Harris has made a lovely adaptation of the Norse mythological lore. Any other viking recommendations?

LeahBergen My husband really liked 8y
I-read-and-eat @LeahBergen I'll check those uit. You can never have enough good viking fiction 😊 8y
sneirr I recommend Sea of Trolls! I only read the Dutch translation Leerling van de kraai, but it was one of my favourite books as a teenager (now I want to reread it in English). 8y
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colindickey
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Some edgy reading.

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Joriebooks
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What to read? Got a 4 hour drive and 3 hour plane ride.

Megabooks I just like the name of Adventures in Funeral Crashing! 8y
22 likes1 comment