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Dominion: The Making of the Western Mind Hardcover – 6 September 2019

by Tom Holland (Author)
4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,597 ratings
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Christianity is the most enduring and influential legacy of the ancient world, and its emergence the single most transformative development in Western history. Even the increasing number in the West today who have abandoned the faith of their forebears, and dismiss all religion as pointless superstition, remain recognisably its heirs. Seen close-up, the division between a sceptic and a believer may seem unbridgeable. Widen the focus, though, and Christianity's enduring impact upon the West can be seen in the emergence of much that has traditionally been cast as its nemesis: in science, in secularism, and yes, even in atheism.

That is why Dominion will place the story of how we came to be what we are, and how we think the way that we do, in the broadest historical context. Ranging in time from the Persian invasion of Greece in 480 BC to the on-going migration crisis in Europe today, and from Nebuchadnezzar to the Beatles, it will explore just what it was that made Christianity so revolutionary and disruptive; how completely it came to saturate the mind-set of Latin Christendom; and why, in a West that has become increasingly doubtful of religion's claims, so many of its instincts remain irredeemably Christian. The aim is twofold: to make the reader appreciate just how novel and uncanny were Christian teachings when they first appeared in the world; and to make ourselves, and all that we take for granted, appear similarly strange in consequence. We stand at the end-point of an extraordinary transformation in the understanding of what it is to be human: one that can only be fully appreciated by tracing the arc of its parabola over millennia.
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  1. Print length
    624 pages
  2. Language
    English
  3. Publisher
    Little, Brown
  4. Publication date
    6 September 2019
  5. Dimensions
    16 x 4 x 23.6 cm
  6. ISBN-10
    1408706954
  7. ISBN-13
    978-1408706954
  8. See all details
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  1. That a man who had himself been crucified might be hailed as a god could not help but be seen by people everywhere across the Roman world as scandalous, obscene, grotesque.
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  2. To live in a Western country is to live in a society still utterly saturated by Christian concepts and assumptions.
    Highlighted by 736 Kindle readers
  3. So profound has been the impact of Christianity on the development of Western civilisation that it has come to be hidden from view. It is the incomplete revolutions which are remembered; the fate of those which triumph is to be taken for granted.
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Product description

Review

Terrific: bold, ambitious and passionate -- Peter Frankopan, author of The Silk Roads

Tom Holland is fun to read, monstrously erudite, wickedly joyful, and ahead of the established consensus, on average, by four years, three months, and two days -- Nassim Nicholas Taleb, author of the Incerto (The Black Swan, Antifragile...)

This extraordinary book is vintage Tom Holland: history boldly and elegantly retold, with fascinating interconnections traced to create a narrative that cannot fail to stimulate, for it leads to a never-ending question -- Diarmaid MacCulloch

Holland is an illuminating guide on a journey from Ancient Athens to 21st-century gay rights ― History Revealed

Sustained with all the breadth, originality and erudition that we have come to associate with Holland's writing ― Spectator

Fizzing with insights and challenges, this is one history book that is timely and important, as well as a feast of intellectual entertainment -- Christopher Hart ― Sunday Times

Holland is an exceptionally good storyteller with a marvellous eye for detail ― The Economist

An all-absorbing story ― Literary Review

This book has ruffled feathers . . . lyrical, vivid ― Evening Standard

It's not often that you come across a book that completely transforms your understanding of the world ― Spectator

A rich and compelling history of Christendom . . . A masterpiece of scholarship and storytelling, Dominion surpasses Holland's earlier books in its sweeping ambition and gripping presentation -- John Gray ― New Statesman

[Holland encapsulates] so much, so intelligently and entertainingly, in a book that's fizzing with ideas -- Andrew Lycett ― Mail on Sunday

I love the sweep of it ― Sunday Telegraph

Tom Holland's stupendous new book . . . There isn't a page of this magnificent book that does not contain some
fascinating detail and the narrative is held together with a novelist's eye for character and theme

-- Tim Stanley ― History Today

A brilliant meditation on how Christianity in its Latin and Protestant forms entirely changed the way humans conceive life and their relationship to each other -- Helen Thompson ― New Statesman

An absorbing survey of Christianity's subversive origins and enduring influence is filled with vivid portraits, gruesome deaths and moral debates . . . Holland has all the talents of an accomplished novelist: a gift for narrative, a lively sense of drama and a fine ear for the rhythm of a sentence -- Terry Eagleton ― Guardian

If great books encourage you to look at the world in an entirely new way, then Dominion is a very great book indeed . . . Written with terrific learning, enthusiasm and good humour, Holland's book is not just supremely provocative, but often very funny ― Sunday Times

A bravura swing through centuries of Western European history . . . a cornucopia of characters and information: almost everyone would learn from it something they didn't know . . . the range and unobvious sweep of his narrative are most impressive ― Times Literary Supplement

An erudite and fascinating look at the enduring legacy of Christianity, which, as numbers of believers are dwindling ― The Lady

Those who like their history with a dose of lessons about the present will be impressed by Tom Holland's ambitious Dominion ― Telegraph

Definitely my book of the year -- Bernard Cornwell

Review

Terrific: bold, ambitious and passionate

Tom Holland is fun to read, monstrously erudite, wickedly joyful, and ahead of the established consensus, on average, by four years, three months, and two days

Product details

  • Publisher ‏ : ‎ Little, Brown; 1st edition (6 September 2019)
  • Language ‏ : ‎ English
  • Hardcover ‏ : ‎ 624 pages
  • ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 1408706954
  • ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-1408706954
  • Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 16 x 4 x 23.6 cm
  • Customer Reviews:
    4.5 4.5 out of 5 stars 1,597 ratings

About the author

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Tom Holland

Tom Holland

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Tom Holland is an award-winning historian, biographer and broadcaster. He is the author of Rubicon: The Triumph and the Tragedy of the Roman Republic, which won the Hessell-Tiltman Prize for History and was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize; Persian Fire his history of the Graeco-Persian wars, won the Anglo-Hellenic League’s Runciman Award in 2006; Millennium: The End of the World and the Forging of Christendom, a panoramic account of the two centuries on either side of the apocalyptic year 1000; In the Shadow of the Sword, which covers the collapse of Roman and Persian power in the Near East, and the emergence of Islam; and Dynasty, a portrait of Rome's first imperial dynasty.

He has adapted Homer, Herodotus, Thucydides and Virgil for the BBC. His translation of Herodotus was published in 2013 by Penguin Classics. His biography of Æthelstan, the first King of England, was published in 2016 under the Penguin Monarchs series, and his biography of Æthelflæd, England’s Forgotten Founder, was a Ladybird Expert Book published in 2019. In 2007, he was the winner of the Classical Association prize, awarded to ‘the individual who has done most to promote the study of the language, literature and civilisation of Ancient Greece and Rome’.

Holland is the presenter of BBC Radio 4’s Making History. He has written and presented a number of TV documentaries, for the BBC and Channel 4, on subjects ranging from ISIS to dinosaurs.

He served two years as the Chair of the Society of Authors and is Chair of the British Library’s PLR Advisory Committee.

@holland_tom

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Top reviews from Australia

Rossity
5.0 out of 5 stars Dominion
Reviewed in Australia on 11 May 2023
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It was a very good book. Extremely well written and researched, highlighting the pivotal role of Christianity in the development of the Western World.
Accessible to the layman and engaging.
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Col P
5.0 out of 5 stars Fascinating and most readable
Reviewed in Australia on 18 October 2020
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An enormous breadth of history presented in a most interesting and entertaining way. I will return to this book again and again so as to absorb more of the detail I couldn't retain in one reading. Particularly enjoyed the re-telling of the Old Testament because the integration the author achieved gives me context and some understanding. Some parts left me wanting more, eg. I'm still not entirely sure what motivated the Nazi hatred of the Jews but feel I now have a good basis for further inquiry (I see such deficit as a good thing). There is no downside to investing the time in this book; as someone of ordinary intellectual capability and no academic background I found it a superb read and most educational.
2 people found this helpful
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Nicholas Reid
4.0 out of 5 stars Tom Holland is one of the best.
Reviewed in Australia on 30 July 2021
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It's an engaging romp through western history, emphasising the contributions of Christian thought to our development. Holland has no desire to proselytise and he makes his case well. If you are already familiar with the relevant history of thought, you will want more depth--but for most readers it will be an ideal introduction.
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Grantus
5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding
Reviewed in Australia on 2 May 2022
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By viewing a span of history through the lens of a major influence, Holland reveals so much about the rough and tumble journey of Christianity, but also its deep, impregnable influence on the modern world. With laser factual precision, he maps out realities that will no doubt infuriate the enemies of Christianity, for even the way we name our years, such as 2022, is Christian in origin. A rich, fabulous read for anyone serious about Western history.
One person found this helpful
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Robert Voigt
5.0 out of 5 stars Wow - that's different!!
Reviewed in Australia on 14 August 2021
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"Dominion" provides a different way of looking at the history of Christianity & the church as an institution. I found it fascinating to read about the events the author chose to demonstrate their influence on the making of the church - very different from the traditional views. I enjoyed the challenge of changing my own presuppositions to consider other perspectives. This book is worth your time & effort to read.
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Adam Dodds
5.0 out of 5 stars Outstanding
Reviewed in Australia on 14 October 2022
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Long, but well worth the read.
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Darryl Greer
4.0 out of 5 stars AN AMBITIOUS PROJECT
Reviewed in Australia on 28 February 2020
The copy of "Dominion" by author, Tom Holland that was lent to me bears the subtitle 'The Making of the Western Mind' (which is how it appears on Amazon) whereas, at least in Goodreads, it is shown as 'How the Christian Revolution Remade the World'. A sign of the times perhaps, that the publishers decided a subtitle with the word “Christian” in it wasn’t going to sell books. Or perhaps it was the other way around. Whatever the subtitle, "Dominion" stylishly charts the making of society as we know it today, with a breathtaking study that reaches back from 479BC to current day. Holland seamlessly moves from one historical event to the next, each one a link in a 2,500-year-long chain of important steps in the development of mankind. It is an ambitious project that sometimes had my eyes glazing over as there are some periods of history that just don’t stimulate my interest. And there are areas of his work which have been shown to be subject to serious challenge. That said, it does shine a light on many historical events that do interest me and it asserts the influence Christianity has had on the world – whether we like to think so or not. "Dominion" is no light read – there are 526 pages of text and 67 pages of notes, bibliography and index.
4 people found this helpful
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Paul Meleng
5.0 out of 5 stars A very important work
Reviewed in Australia on 24 January 2021
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A well written and comprehensive history that reminded me or woke me up to how terrible and brutal life was in ancient times and the great shift in values that lead to what we now take for granted. Makes one wonder how our own era will look from a few centuries hence.
One person found this helpful
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Top reviews from other countries

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Francisco Rebolledo
4.0 out of 5 stars Bien escrito y narrado
Reviewed in Mexico on 15 May 2023
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Fascinante relato de historia
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Amazon Customer
5.0 out of 5 stars A fresh approach to a familiar subject
Reviewed in the United States on 10 April 2023
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I enjoyed the book immensely. I think anyone interested in history would. The author does not write from a
religious or theological stance, but as a rather objective historian, and demonstrates convincingly the influence Christianity has had on Western values and virtues, even though that influence is very often unacknowledged
or recognized. And he does so in an extremely interesting and readable manner, picking his historical periods and personages very judiciously to illustrate his thesis.
12 people found this helpful
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CGH
5.0 out of 5 stars Very important book
Reviewed in the Netherlands on 7 February 2024
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A very important modern history; essential reading for Christians and secular readers.
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Adam
2.0 out of 5 stars Książka ma inną okładkę i jest porysowana
Reviewed in Poland on 3 October 2023
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Książka nie wygląda na nową. Po rozpakowaniu okazał się że jest cała zakurzona i porysowana. Rogi są lekko zniszczone.

Poza tym książka sama w sobie jest super (czytałem już na Kindle)
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Adam
2.0 out of 5 stars Książka ma inną okładkę i jest porysowana
Reviewed in Poland on 3 October 2023
Książka nie wygląda na nową. Po rozpakowaniu okazał się że jest cała zakurzona i porysowana. Rogi są lekko zniszczone.

Poza tym książka sama w sobie jest super (czytałem już na Kindle)
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RoC
5.0 out of 5 stars The ever climbing stars of my Dominion review
Reviewed in Sweden on 23 December 2023
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At first I gave this 3 stars as it was good but a bit all over the place (I had trouble with the jumps in logic throughout), then I thought a bit more about it and I gave it 4 stars as it made a good point and ultimately I agreed with the premise (even as an atheist, this was not difficult). No worries, 4 stars it was but...I kept thinking about the book, kept mulling the idea over and then started to see WHY this idea was so important to how I should ultimately view "Western values" and it's so unique and WHY it is so worth preserving them. 5 stars, how could it not be?
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