I generally do not like to read nonfiction. I find that most nonfiction authors merely state facts. Cahill is different. Although some may argue that his enthusiasm and sarcasm detract from the academic quality of the book, I found that it made me pay more attention and learn more than I expected. At times Cahill is a little too gungho and seems more of a cheerleader than a historian, but at the same time it is fun to read a book on a subject that the author seems to thoroughly enjoy. The sections on Saint Patrick are perhaps the most memorable and enjoyable parts of the book. All in all this is a good read and I recommend it to western history enthusiasts. ( )

Contains a fine biography of Saint Patrick. ( )

Cute. A fun read if you're Irish, but be careful of over-interpreting the Irish role in all this

This book was really RAH RAH RAH Irish. While I hadn't realized the role of the Irish in helping preserve the ancient texts of the Romans, this was definitely a revision of history rather than a straightforward narrative. Don't get me wrong, I am glad someone wrote a book about the contributions of the Irish to Western civilization by helping restore Catholicism and Western learning after the Dark Ages, but at times it really felt like "BOO YEAH THE IRISH ROCK!!!!!!!!!!!" Which maybe they do, of course. I bet if I was of Irish ancestry and I went crazy every St. Paddy's I'd be all over this book. I am not at all surprised it sold so well!

Cahill wrote a great deal about the Roman empire in the first third of his book, and its slow decline, and I thought I was drawing a lot of parallels between our modern society and the old Roman ways. The increasing divide between rich and poor, immigration/border control issues, swelling bureaucratic government, etc...it's not a great sign for us in America, is it?

The book was read by Donal Donnelly and sadly, I didn't much like him. Some quality in his voice and storytelling, plus some of the HUGE pauses he would take drove me batty. Several times I wanted to take the CDs out and return them early, but I am not sure if it's because of the narration or the text itself, which just seemed lacking in supporting information. Cahill didn't use a strong variety of primary source documents, which was disappointing. ( )

A quick, insightful read. This book was one of the texts used in a class I took focused on Irish history, and I have loved it ever since. The thing that has always struck me is that even though the Irish were so separated from the rest of the world, they still managed to save so much of it. ( )