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"The West: A New History in Fourteen Lives" by classical archaeologist and ancient historian Naoíse Mac Sweeney

 Book cover for "The West: A New History in Fourteen Lives"
Dutton

In "The West: A New History in Fourteen Lives," prize-winning historian Naoíse Mac Sweeney unpacks the myths and origin stories that underpin the history we thought we knew about western civilization and examines the institutions and structures that have been built on this shaky foundation, through the lives and times of fourteen remarkable individuals from antiquity to modern day.

These fourteen figures each played a role in the creation and execution of the Western idea. These characters span millennia and the continents, representing different religions, varying levels of wealth and education, diverse traditions and nationalities. Each life tells us something unexpected about the age in which it was lived and offers us a piece of the puzzle of how the modern idea of the West developed, why we've misunderstood it for too long, and how it still persists today.

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Joe talks to people on the radio for a living. In addition to countless impressive human "gets" - he has talked to a lot of Muppets. Joe grew up in Philadelphia, has been on the area airwaves for more than 25 years and currently lives in Washington County, NY with his wife, Kelly, and their dog, Brady. And yes, he reads every single book.
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