The Silk Roads: A New History of the World

From the Middle East and its political instability to China and its economic rise, the vast region stretching eastward from the Balkans across the steppe and South Asia has been thrust into the global spotlight in latest years. Frankopan teaches us that to have in mind what is at stake for the cities and nations built on these intricate trade routes, we will have to first have in mind their astounding pasts.

Frankopan realigns our understanding of the world, pointing us eastward. It was once on the Silk Roads that East and West first encountered every other through trade and conquest, leading to the spread of ideas, cultures and religions. From the upward thrust and fall of empires to the spread of Buddhism and the advent of Christianity and Islam, right up to the great wars of the twentieth century—this book shows how the fate of the West has at all times been inextricably linked to the East.

Also to be had: The New Silk Roads, a timely exploration of the dramatic and profound changes our world is undergoing at this time—as seen from the perspective of the rising powers of the East.