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Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu Audible Audiobook – Unabridged

Laurence Bergreen (Author), Paul Boehmer (Narrator), Random House Audio (Publisher)
4.4 4.4 out of 5 stars 647 ratings
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As the most celebrated European to explore Asia, Marco Polo was the original global traveler and the earliest bridge between East and West. A universal icon of adventure and discovery, he has inspired six centuries of popular fascination and spurious mythology. Now, from acclaimed author Laurence Bergreen, comes the first fully authoritative biography of one of the most enchanting figures in world history. In this masterly work, Marco Polo’s incredible odyssey - along the Silk Road and through all the fantastic circumstances of his life - is chronicled in sumptuous and illuminating detail.

Drawing on original sources in more than half a dozen languages, and his own travels along Polo’s route in China and Mongolia, Bergreen explores the lingering controversies surrounding Polo’s legend, settling age-old questions and testing others for significance.

Synthesizing history, biography, and travelogue, this is a timely chronicle of a man who extended the boundaries of human knowledge and imagination. Destined to be the definitive account of its subject for decades to come, Marco Polo takes us on a journey to the limits of history - and beyond.

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  1. Listening Length
    16 hours and 29 minutes
  2. Author
    Laurence Bergreen
  3. Narrator
    Paul Boehmer
  4. Audible release date
    September 26, 2007
  5. Language
    English
  6. Publisher
    Random House Audio
  7. ASIN
    B000XSAXUG
  8. Version
    Unabridged
  9. Program Type
    Audiobook
  10. See all details
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Product details

Listening Length 16 hours and 29 minutes
Author Laurence Bergreen
Narrator Paul Boehmer
Whispersync for Voice Ready
Audible.com Release Date September 26, 2007
Publisher Random House Audio
Program Type Audiobook
Version Unabridged
Language English
ASIN B000XSAXUG
Best Sellers Rank #44,561 in Audible Books & Originals (See Top 100 in Audible Books & Originals)
#81 in History of Civilization
#113 in Adventurers, Explorers & Survival Biographies
#292 in History of Civilization & Culture

Customer reviews

4.4 out of 5 stars
647 global ratings

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Customers say

Customers find the book easy to read and well-written. They appreciate the author's storytelling ability that brings history to life. The book is described as informative and scholarly, with great indexes and notes. Readers describe it as an adventure and a great traveler.

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ReadabilityStory qualityInformativeAdventure
53 customers mention "Readability"48 positive5 negative

Customers find the book engaging and well-written. They describe it as a must-read for historians and travelers. The author is clear about when he's quoting Marco Polo.

"...So much for flaws. Now to the virtues. These are many and mighty. The book is not just a biography. It is a panorama of the Medieval world...." Read more

"This is a good book in a basic meatloaf-and-potatoes way. It nourishes but doesn't delight...." Read more

"...surrounding its publication and dissemination. The author is an easy read........smooth flowing text, well paced...." Read more

"Epic life, well told...." Read more

38 customers mention "Story quality"32 positive6 negative

Customers enjoy the book's story. They find it well-researched and engaging. The author brings history to life with a skillful storytelling. Readers appreciate the factual account and intelligent take on Marco Polo's life. Overall, they describe the book as an entertaining and fun way to understand this period of history.

"...Now to the virtues. These are many and mighty. The book is not just a biography. It is a panorama of the Medieval world...." Read more

"...Captures the time period and scenery along with cultures. Great job" Read more

"This book is a travel log of a historic character, namely Marco Polo...." Read more

"Epic life, well told...." Read more

30 customers mention "Informative"30 positive0 negative

Customers find the book informative and fascinating. They appreciate the well-researched and detailed writing style. The author provides explanations and historical context, providing a great historical perspective.

"...However the side drifts are knowledgeable, and well-researched as well as entertaining. There is more then enough to take delight in...." Read more

"...Captures the time period and scenery along with cultures. Great job" Read more

"...enjoyed this book and for anyone interested in history with excellent commentary, it is a great read" Read more

"...All of this being said, Bergreen's book is informative and I learned a lot from it...." Read more

5 customers mention "Adventure"5 positive0 negative

Customers enjoy the book's adventure. They find it a detailed and amazing account of an extraordinary trip in human history. The traveler is described as extraordinary.

"...Marco Polo and his travels is told with a vibrant urgency and an adventurous spirit. It's hard to put the book down!" Read more

"This amazing adventure traverses the sands of time. Eloquently written and quite detailed...." Read more

"...and fascinating story about the world's greatest traveller and adventurer. He lived in a time of Wow...." Read more

"Extraordinary Traveler..." Read more

Not exactly "Brand New"
4 out of 5 stars
Not exactly "Brand New"
The description says "Brand New Book - May have light shelf-wear". I can stand with light shelf-wear, but the book has pencil markings on quite some pages, not exactly brand new, otherwise it's good. Maybe they made a mistake because they didn't check it carefully.
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Top reviews from the United States

  • Jason S. Taylor
    5.0 out of 5 stars The Best Marco Bio
    Reviewed in the United States on December 2, 2008
    Verified Purchase
    Marco Polo is something of a hero of mine. I think of him as an archetype of the "Intrepid Merchant" figure that travels through both real life and literature and still exists today in some of the more dangerous parts of the world. People like Marco brought knowledge and wealth back and forth and could be credited with a great part in the develpment of democracy.
    In the old "eat your spinach first" tradition I will deal with the faults first. The first is simply presumption. The author makes so many guesses about Marco's personality that one might wonder if he was writing a novel. Moreover much of his guesswork looks suspiciously like wishful thinking. That is pardonable when doing a biography of someone for whom there are so few real records. But the author takes it way to far and occasionally even questions the authenticity of versions of "Travels" because they disaggree with his preconceptions. The second fault is the author's preachiness. The author seems to like to paint a "deliverance from ignorance" morality tale, and tends to be shocked, shocked that medieval people did not in fact think like a twenty-first century academic's version of Political Correctness. This is a fairly conventional fault too and again, any historian should be pardoned a little preachiness-it kind of goes with the vocation. However the author hammers on it enough to take away some of the fun. Both of these faults are in fact conventional to the Marco tale. But the author takes these quite far.
    So much for flaws. Now to the virtues. These are many and mighty. The book is not just a biography. It is a panorama of the Medieval world. From the ambitious, shrewd, and sometimes ferocious merchant princes of Venice. To the splendours of the Khan's court. To the conquered but ultimatly unconqurable vastness of China. Not to mention the hardships of the trade routes and the romantic cities whose very names give visions of glory. The author has the love for his subject and the epic sensibility that is an asset to a history writter. Nor is detail neglected and there is plenty of detail to go around. A surefire attraction to those like me who have a taste for romance and a love of detail-and appreciate when they are combined.
    Some may be annoyed by the frequent tendency to drift aside from the plain narrative. To me they are the most interesting part. While I sometimes imagine myself hearing coffeehouse tales from Marco in heaven(of course they have coffeehouses in heaven-who could doubt it!)on Earth there is little to work with besides the simple Idea of his journey. However the side drifts are knowledgeable, and well-researched as well as entertaining. There is more then enough to take delight in.
    I have a personal story to go with this. One of the reasons I like my Kindle is that it allows me to have a vast diversity of subjects at my grasp. But I felt it somehow incomplete because it did not have anything on the great Silk Road that I was satisfied with. Well now it has and this book is a great addition to my collection.
    12 people found this helpful
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  • Vince
    4.0 out of 5 stars Great book
    Reviewed in the United States on August 20, 2023
    Verified Purchase
    This is the second book I read from this author, not disappointed. Captures the time period and scenery along with cultures. Great job
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Glen
    5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating if slightly uneven commentary. Wraps up nicely in epilogue
    Reviewed in the United States on December 11, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    What a fascinating journey. The author does a nice job of the pre-travel bio. At times I was frustrated because there was no commentary on the passages being discussed while at other times there was insightful in-depth commentary. For example the author explained references to what must’ve been crocodiles and rhinos but other selections were simply neglected that begged explanation, for example frequent references to lions. We’re some of these tigers or leopards?
    At first I was exasperated because I could not get a sense of a map of where he actually was and what he just heard about and the timeline didn’t make sense. But then in the last chapter or two the reasons for this are explained well and it really vindicated the whole book. The source material itself was deficient in chronology.
    All in all I really enjoyed this book and for anyone interested in history with excellent commentary, it is a great read
    2 people found this helpful
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  • Graybeard
    3.0 out of 5 stars OK but not great
    Reviewed in the United States on June 24, 2010
    Verified Purchase
    This is a good book in a basic meatloaf-and-potatoes way. It nourishes but doesn't delight. I've listened to the audiobook version four times already and although each time it gets better, it tops out at 3 stars -- i.e., just average. After listening to it the first time, I would have rated it 2 stars.

    The story as it is told by the author, Laurence Bergreen, doesn't convey a sense of place in any of the many places where the action takes place. Obviously, this is a huge irony. One reads a book like this or listens to its audiobook version with the expectation of basking in the author's descriptions of Marco Polo's travels to faraway places. Having previously listened to the audiobook version of Bergreen's "Over the Edge of the World: Magellan's Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe," in which Bergreen succeeded in conveying a sense of place for each of the many places Magellan visited, I had high expectations for Bergreen's story of Marco Polo. Unfortunately, those expectations weren't met. What this story lacked was the type of sense-of-place treatment that Simon Winchester excels at and reliably delivers, book after book after book.

    Before listening to the audiobook version I was pleased to see that Bergreen, himself, wasn't doing the reading, as his reading of his story on Magellan didn't match the high quality of his writing. The reader for Bergreen's book on Marco Polo, Paul Boehmer, was OK, but 4 stars at best.

    All of this being said, Bergreen's book is informative and I learned a lot from it. It's just that the story isn't delivered in a 5-star, knock-your-socks-off way.
    10 people found this helpful
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  • The Last Stand
    5.0 out of 5 stars A judicious mix of fact and fiction
    Reviewed in the United States on November 20, 2024
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    The story of Marco Polo and his travels is told with a vibrant urgency and an adventurous spirit. It's hard to put the book down!
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Top reviews from other countries

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  • Jon
    5.0 out of 5 stars Highly readable account of Marco Polo's travels
    Reviewed in the United Kingdom on October 17, 2021
    Verified Purchase
    Readable, enjoyable and informative account of Marco Polo's travels from Venice to the court of Kublai Khan. Really enjoyed reading this.
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  • Mauricio Maeda
    5.0 out of 5 stars Ótimo livro, a história prende a atenção.
    Reviewed in Brazil on November 20, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    Excelente livro, valeu a pena. E as ilustrações são um bônus que não esperava.
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  • MARIANO
    4.0 out of 5 stars ok
    Reviewed in Mexico on December 5, 2019
    Verified Purchase
    ok
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  • Mike Page
    5.0 out of 5 stars Excellent reading
    Reviewed in Australia on January 5, 2020
    Verified Purchase
    Still reading the book, about 3/4 through, but enjoying it.
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  • Amazon Customer
    5.0 out of 5 stars Five Stars
    Reviewed in Canada on January 16, 2016
    Verified Purchase
    Excellent read, as is Bergreen's book on Magellan's circumnavigation of the globe.
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