Shortlisted for the Stanford Dolman Travel Book of the Year 2020 In
Epic Continent, Nicholas Jubber is proposing a compelling and
wonderful idea - that it is story that binds us together, that the
great tales of Europe are not only far older than the nation-state
but offer a more resilient understanding of our diverse and
troubled continent. It is a masterly book, adventurous and wise'
Philip Marsden 'The prose is colourful and vigorous ... Jubber's
journeying has indeed been epic, in scale and in ambition. In this
thoughtful travelogue he has woven together colourful ancient and
modern threads into a European tapestry that combines the sombre
and the sparkling' Spectator 'Compelling, thought-provoking, and
courageous, this epic-poetic journey peels back layers of
collective emotional and imaginative inheritance. Jubber gets under
the skin of our complicated continent and his timing is dead right'
Kapka Kassabova 'A genuine epic' Wanderlust Award-winning travel
writer Nicholas Jubber journeys across Europe exploring Europe's
epic poems, from the Odyssey to Beowulf, the Song of Roland to the
Nibelungenlied, and their impact on European identity in these
turbulent times. These are the stories that made Europe. Journeying
from Turkey to Iceland, award-winning travel writer Nicholas Jubber
takes us on a fascinating adventure through our continent's most
enduring epic poems to learn how they were shaped by their times,
and how they have since shaped us. The great European epics were
all inspired by moments of seismic change: The Odyssey tells of the
aftermath of the Trojan War, the primal conflict from which much of
European civilisation was spawned. The Song of the Nibelungen
tracks the collapse of a Germanic kingdom on the edge of the Roman
Empire. Both the French Song of Roland and the Serbian Kosovo Cycle
emerged from devastating conflicts between Christian and Muslim
powers. Beowulf, the only surviving Old English epic, and the great
Icelandic Saga of Burnt Njal, respond to times of great religious
struggle - the shift from paganism to Christianity. These stories
have stirred passions ever since they were composed, motivating
armies and revolutionaries, and they continue to do so today.
Reaching back into the ancient and medieval eras in which these
defining works were produced, and investigating their continuing
influence today, Epic Continent explores how matters of honour,
fundamentalism, fate, nationhood, sex, class and politics have
preoccupied the people of Europe across the millennia. In these
tales soaked in blood and fire, Nicholas Jubber discovers how the
world of gods and emperors, dragons and water-maidens, knights and
princesses made our own: their deep impact on European identity,
and their resonance in our turbulent times.
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