Wolf Of The Plains
February 10th 2007 10:38
Those that know me well, know that there is a certain genre that I very, very much enjoy. Historical based fiction. The Masters of Rome series by Colleen McCulloch, anything written by Eiji Yoshikawa and now Wolf Of the Plains by Conn Iggulden.
The most successful military force of all time is without doubt the mongols. They have conquered more of the known world, defeated more armies, destroyed more civilisations and fought against radically different armies. Successfully. The most well known of their leaders is Genghis Khan.
The book is about the great Khan before he was the great Khan. He was a boy named Temujin, in the line of Yesugi, the Khan of the Wolf tribe. He was one of many brothers, but not the oldest. He was however, easily the most capable. Proud but not arrogant, strong and courageous but not foolhardy, he was a brilliant leader of men before his 21st birthday. In fact at that time, he was leading his own troops as well as other peoples. He isn't the most compassionate guy around but then I guess that isn't a surprise. He is tempered by the time and the society he finds himself in, but is not limited by it.
It's an interesting read, and perhaps only possible, due to the author spending so much time amongst the mongols themselves. The charm of the story is in it's details. Such as the way of life of nomads, their justice, their beliefs all these things. What bugs me is the lack of detail of certain military engagements, but I think this is more due to the fact that at this point in time, there were few large scale engagements to talk about.
Honestly, I enjoyed the read. It was quick and easy and there were some parts that will be staying with me for quite awhile. Well written, not the best I have ever read, but certainly worth it.
JZ
The most successful military force of all time is without doubt the mongols. They have conquered more of the known world, defeated more armies, destroyed more civilisations and fought against radically different armies. Successfully. The most well known of their leaders is Genghis Khan.
The book is about the great Khan before he was the great Khan. He was a boy named Temujin, in the line of Yesugi, the Khan of the Wolf tribe. He was one of many brothers, but not the oldest. He was however, easily the most capable. Proud but not arrogant, strong and courageous but not foolhardy, he was a brilliant leader of men before his 21st birthday. In fact at that time, he was leading his own troops as well as other peoples. He isn't the most compassionate guy around but then I guess that isn't a surprise. He is tempered by the time and the society he finds himself in, but is not limited by it.
It's an interesting read, and perhaps only possible, due to the author spending so much time amongst the mongols themselves. The charm of the story is in it's details. Such as the way of life of nomads, their justice, their beliefs all these things. What bugs me is the lack of detail of certain military engagements, but I think this is more due to the fact that at this point in time, there were few large scale engagements to talk about.
Honestly, I enjoyed the read. It was quick and easy and there were some parts that will be staying with me for quite awhile. Well written, not the best I have ever read, but certainly worth it.
JZ
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Comment by DuskDevi
Rucks and Rolls
Rugby World Cup 2007
I love that!
Another excellent review JZ.
Hope you are well my friend.
Dusk
Comment by JoshZ
A Simple Christian
glad I can give you something to think about and enjoy.
Come back anytime.
JZ