{"product_id":"great-sea-david-abulafia-9780195323344","title":"Great Sea: A Human History of the Mediterranean","description":"Connecting Europe, Asia, and Africa, the Mediterranean Sea has been for millennia the place where religions, economies, and political systems met, clashed, influenced and absorbed one another. In this brilliant and expansive book, David Abulafia offers a fresh perspective by focusing on the sea itself: its practical importance for transport and sustenance; its dynamic role in the rise and fall of empires; and the remarkable cast of characters-sailors, merchants, migrants, pirates, pilgrims-who have crossed and re-crossed it. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eRanging from prehistory to the 21st century, \u003cem\u003eThe Great Sea\u003c\/em\u003e is above all a history of human interaction. Interweaving major political and naval developments with the ebb and flow of trade, Abulafia explores how commercial competition in the Mediterranean created both rivalries and partnerships, with merchants acting as intermediaries between cultures, trading goods that were as exotic on one side of the sea as they were commonplace on the other. He stresses the remarkable ability of Mediterranean cultures to uphold the civilizing ideal of \u003cem\u003econvivencia\u003c\/em\u003e, \"living together.\" \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eNow available in paperback, \u003cem\u003eThe Great Sea\u003c\/em\u003e is the definitive account of perhaps the most vibrant theater of human interaction in history.\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e David Abulafia\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0195323343\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780195323344\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e Oxford University Press, USA\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 10\/13\/2011\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 816\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 2.79lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.44h x 6.44w x 2.34d\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eReview Citation(s): \u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003ePublishers Weekly\u003c\/i\u003e 06\/20\/2011\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eKirkus Reviews\u003c\/i\u003e 07\/15\/2011\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eShelf Awareness\u003c\/i\u003e 10\/21\/2011\u003cbr\u003e\u003ci\u003eChoice\u003c\/i\u003e 05\/01\/2012","brand":"David Abulafia","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":43987262472447,"sku":"9780195323344","price":54.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_4626b88b-8dc6-4836-b442-143f77ae09e7.jpg?v=1683287933","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/great-sea-david-abulafia-9780195323344","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}