Reformations

The Early Modern World, 1450-1650

By: Carlos M. N. Eire

Narrated by: David Drummond

Length: 39 hrs and 42 mins

Publisher's summary

This fast-paced survey of Western civilization's transition from the Middle Ages to modernity brings that tumultuous period vividly to life.

Carlos Eire, popular professor and gifted writer, chronicles the 200-year era of the Renaissance and Reformation with particular attention to issues that persist as concerns in the present day. Eire connects the Protestant and Catholic Reformations in new and profound ways, and he demonstrates convincingly that this crucial turning point in history not only affected people long gone but continues to shape our world and define who we are today.

The book focuses on the vast changes that took place in Western civilization between 1450 and 1650, from Gutenberg's printing press and the subsequent revolution in the spread of ideas to the close of the Thirty Years' War. Eire devotes equal attention to the various Protestant traditions and churches as well as to Catholicism, skepticism, and secularism, and he takes into account the expansion of European culture and religion into other lands, particularly the Americas and Asia. He also underscores how changes in religion transformed the Western secular world.

©2016 Yale University (P)2018 Tantor

Powerful and Thought Provoking

It is obvious to me that Mr. Eire vested many hours in researching and compiling this volume. I am personally very grateful for his efforts; there was much during the reformation period I did not know, but now my understanding is greatly improved!

Also, David Drummond did an outstanding job reading the text!

solid

ok, so this is very well writen but the audio book itself has technical problems. the narrator is difficult to listen to at a distance because his vocal register is too low and he peaks the audio with his 'S' sounds. Also it has false stopped like four times on chapter 58 and wont register that I have finished the book.

Reformation(s) Textbook from Catholic Perspective

Carlos Eire is a leading historian of early modern Catholicism. This book is written in the style of a textbook. It is less of a scholarly history (and is therefore both less deep and ranging) than Diarmaid MacCulloch's Reformation history (also on Audible), but it is not a popularizing or apologetic work either. It is a textbook—probably the best textbook on Reformation history available today. With that said, those who have read MacCulloch's history or other textbooks on the Reformation will benefit from this work's unique Catholic perspective. Though he does not engage in polemics or apologetics, Eire, as a Catholic, gives more attention than is usual to Catholic reformers and Catholic countries—hence the title Reformations (vs. Reformation).

Eire's discussion of conciliarism and the conflicts of councils and papacy in the century and a half before the Reformation should be supplement by consideration of the works of another Catholic historian, Francis Oakley (e.g., The Conciliarist Tradition), who gives a very different account of that crucial period.

For those interested in Reformation history, I highly recommend reading both this work and MacCulloch's as the top two histories of the period (both available on Audible). They complement each other nicely with unique information and unique perspectives. Both are written by preeminent scholars, specializing in this period. I hope Audible acquires more of Eire's books.

The narrator, David Drummond, is eminently intelligible, but admittedly sounds like a robot.

What a story!

Absorbing. Fair to both Protestants & Catholics. I learned an enormous amount of historical information. If the reader pronounced a good number of words more correctly this listening experience would be perfect. it makes me wonder why the reader's don't check in advance how to pronounce these words. It's not a fatal flaw. I've listened to this twice now so it must not be too bad. I must underline just how thoroughly absorbing the author makes the subject matter. Great writer. leaves no stone unturned.

Surprisingly Compelling Historical Survey

Structured as a historical survey that could (and should) be the foundational text in a college course on the Reformations, Eire's book is remarkably engaging. There are narrative flourishes that make his writing work in an audiobook format and he does much more than simply recount events. Eire manages to reflect on shifting religious thought from 1450 to 1650 and make important connections to today without falling victim to reading past events solely through the prism of twenty-first century sensibilities. The book is impressive in that it serves as a great introduction while also posing enough provocative questions and offering enough unique analysis to stimulate a reader well versed in the history. Highly recommended.

The reader has a good tone and pace, although like everyone he has some idiosyncratic pronunciations (elite sounds like A-leet, for example). In a way his unapologetically American pronunciations of Latin, German, French, Italian and Spanish added clarity compared to other narrators who have varied proficiencies yet try to pass themselves off as polyglots.

Authoritative

Best overview of the Reformation on the market. The narrator does an excellent job and has a very good pronunciation of non English words throughout the book .

Fascinating

This is a fascinating book that brings together a lot of research and perspectives on the period 1450-1650. A times some of the sections are something of a "Pump and dump" meaning that because there was research on a topic it had to be included.I wanted to know more about Scandinavia. But still I found it a very insight book.

Superb....an absolute must read.

Informative, challenging, provocative, can't-put-down...Leaves the mind re-examining what notions we may have had before......the rest is silence!!!

Super

As a cradle Roman Catholic seeking a deeper history not written by a R.C. and not as boring as a text book this account has been superior. This is an interest holding tome.

Excellent, Well Researched, Eye Opening

This book was immensely helpful to me in coming to understand not only the theology and history of the reformations but how the reformations have reverberated throughout history even now in our own time. I came to appreciate my own faith tradition more and pray that we all may be one someday. If you take history seriously this cannot help but cause you to think about your own faith tradition and why you believe what you believe.