Rewarding Listening, Uncut (and Unexpurgated)
☆
☆
☆
☆
☆
“So much of history has been encapsulated into tiny digestible taglines ("Napoleon was a tyrant", "Caesar was too ambitious", "The North won the Civil War, then Carbetbaggers usurped Reconstruction until the First World War let the US become a world power", "Castro was an evil socialist", etc.) that it is utterly refreshing to hear the DETAILS of something for a change -- the actual sequence of events, unencumbered by the instinct to assess or summarize or "cut to the chase", but instead letting the stories unfold in whatever direction they actually go, and to be okay with them going there. And to have the stories entertainingly told -- with engaging asides, drill-downs, and modern parallels thrown in for good measure, not to mention eighties music and lovingly juvenile humor -- that makes it all the more sweet! I frankly credit Cam for this. Ray has a pleasant demeanor, it's true, and a real interest in history, yes, but, like so many, his brain rushes to summarize. Cam, on the other hand, likes to savor the details, for it is in the details that we break out of the straitjacket of the taglines. Neitzsche once lamented that the Old Testament, while full of passages as grand as the greatest of the Greek epics, was ruined for him (among many other reasons!) because the chroniclers had turned the great history of the Jewish kings into a tediously reductionist tale of who was merely "good" or "bad" in the sight of the Lord (i.e., basically, in the partisan opinion of the priestly editors). Most thankfully, this podcast avoids such problems, but instead takes on the whole legacy of the Alexandrian era, knowing enough to tell the backstory (Philip II, etc.) in some detail, then telling Alexander's story in great detail and without judgment, then tracing the legacy of the successors into the decades and centuries following. This podcast is not everyone's cup of tea, but for me it is a highly refreshing swim in a great historical sea.”Read full review »
Greenday rox!!! via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
11/08/17
More reviews of Life Of Alexander The Great
☆
☆
☆
☆
☆
“I'd like to improve on Ray's lame attempt at a Macedonian marching song. Here's a ditty I'm sure Alexander's phalanxes would sing. Grasp your sarissa with the right hand and your crotch with the left and sing along...
This is my sarissa
This is my sword
I use this when I...”Read full review »
Boomy town via Apple Podcasts ·
United States of America ·
09/29/16
☆
☆
☆
☆
☆
“Alexander the Great is said to have heterochromia iridum where one eye is light and the other dark. You could say the same about the podcasters Cameron Reilly and Ray Harris Jr. One is the well read academic and the other always manages to lower the tone and make listening to history wonderfully...”Read full review »
Chris of Melbourne via Apple Podcasts ·
Australia ·
12/14/14
☆
☆
☆
☆
☆
“Bummer. I was looking forward to this, having been a fan of Ray’s WW2 podcasts.
Unfortunately, it seems about 50% of the show is given to some loudmouth who probably knows a pile of fart jokes and probably can do the under-the-armpit ones for true devotees.
If you like some history mixed with...”Read full review »
PeteTheHog via Apple Podcasts ·
Canada ·
01/08/15
Do you host a podcast?
Track your ranks and reviews from Spotify, Apple Podcasts and more.
Listen now
Links
Twitter
Facebook
Instagram
Patreon
Genres
Artwork or description wrong?
Request an update »
Updates may take a few minutes.
Do you host a podcast?
Track your ranks and reviews from Spotify, Apple Podcasts and more.
