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Marco Polo | 
 enlarge | Manufacturer: Knopf
Category: EBooks
List Price: $17.95
Buy New: $9.99
You Save: $7.96 (44%)
Avg. Customer Rating:  23 reviews
Sales Rank: 10294
Format: Kindle Book
Media: Kindle Edition
Number Of Items: 1
Pages: 432
Dewey Decimal Number: 910.4
ASIN: B000W968Z0
Publication Date: October 23, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 24 hours
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Amazon.com Review
Drawing on original writings and walking in the footsteps of Marco Polo himself, Laurence Bergreen's Marco Polo: From Venice to Xanadu is the most definitive biography of the legendary traveler to date, separating the man from his considerable myth. Look inside Marco Polo (Click on thumbnails to see a larger image):
 |  |  | | Marco Polo: a traditional portrait; Granger | Frontispiece of an early published edition of Marco Polos Travels, Nuremberg, Germany, 1477; Granger | Kublai Khan, emperor of the worlds largest land-based empire; Granger |  |  |  | | Marco Polo commanded a Venetian galley similar to this in the Battle of Curzola; Granger | Stone carving on the Marco Polo bridge; Laurence Bergreen | Marco Polos vivid and occasionally misinterpreted descriptions of his travels inspired this medieval artist to depict dragons in China; Granger |
Marco Polo timeline (All dates given in the Julian calendar): 1215 - Kublai Khan, the grandson of Genghis Khan and Marco Polo's mentor, is born. 1254 - Marco Polo born in Venice, although one tradition locates his birthplace in the Venetian colony of Dalmatia. 1260 - Kublai Khan becomes leader of the Mongols and in 1271 founds the Yuan ("Origin") Dynasty. 1271 - Young Marco Polo leaves Venice with his father Niccolo and uncle Maffeo, bound for the court of Kublai Khan. 1274 - Kublai Khan oversees a failed Mongol invasion of Japan, as the Mongols, masters of the Steppe, meet their match at sea. 1275 - The three Polos arrive in Shang-du, Kublai Khan's summer palace immortalized by Samuel Taylor Coleridge as Xanadu; Marco begins his years in the service of the Khan. 1276 - 1293 - Marco travels throughout Asia, reaching the coast of India, and possibly Zanzibar, gathering intelligence for Kublai Khan and serving as a tax collector for the Yuan (Mongol) dynasty. 1281 - Kublai Khan's second failed invasion of Japan, a serious blow to his prestige. 1292 - The Polos escort Princess Kokachin to Persia to marry, their last formal service to Kublai Khan before departing. 1294 - Kublai Khan dies, freeing the Polo family, who undertake a dangerous return voyage by sea. 1295 - Marco, his father, and uncle, arrive in Venice after their 24-year absence. They have been away for so long that their fellow Venetians do not recognize them. 1298 - Marco is captured by the Genoese in the Battle of Curzola, according to some accounts, and confined to a cell in Genoa with a romance writer, Rustichello of Pisa, to whom he dictates his adventures in China, his reminiscences of Kublai Khan, his life among the Mongols. 1300 - Safely back in Venice, Marco Polo marries Donata Badoer; the couple has three daughters. 1324 - As manuscript versions of his exploits spread throughout Europe, Marco Polo dies in Venice, claiming that he did not reveal the half of his experiences in his remarkable Travels.
Product Description
As the first European to travel extensively throughout Asia, Marco Polo was the earliest bridge between East and West. His famous journeys took him across the boundaries of the known world, along the dangerous Silk Road, and into the court of Kublai Kahn, where he won the trust of the most feared and reviled leader of his day. Polo introduced the cultural riches of China to Europe, spawning centuries of Western fascination with Asia.
In this lively blend of history, biography, and travelogue, acclaimed author Laurence Bergreen separates myth from history, creating the most authoritative account yet of Polo's remarkable adventures. Exceptionally narrated and written with a discerning eye for detail, Marco Polo is as riveting as the life it describes.
From the Trade Paperback edition.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 18 more reviews...
Marco Polo's Journeys to the East August 3, 2008
Laurence Bergreen's MARCO POLO: FROM VENICE TO XANADU is an interesting biography about the Venetian explorer and merchant, Marco Polo. Polo opened the doors for the Western world to sail into the Orient. Adapted from Polo's legendary journals, Bergreen revisits early western trade from Constantinople to China as well as the legendary Silk Road where Polo shared eye-opening observations that westerners may never imagined before; Polo is best known for bringing back rich spices, silk, and natural remedies to the West that greatly influenced European and Asian trade and culture. In addition, Bergreen uses references to Venetian, European, Asian, and Religious history that contributes to his narrative, which is helpful when understanding the entire scope of Polo's journeys.
One of the interesting aspects of Bergreen's interpretation of Polo's enchanting journeys is his account of the meeting with Kublai Khan. Amazingly, Polo served as a Council to the Mongols, and Bergreen reveals the seventeen years in which Polo lived and experienced the most infamous Mongol Empire of the East. The book is not a lackadaisical retelling of the history of the Mongosl, but it is rather the relationship between East and West that became unified when Polo, his father, Niccolo, and brother, Maffeo, served as ambassadors to the West, were in presence of Kublai Khan's, and participated in his high court during China's Yuan Dynasty.
Polo's journals have been considered a romanticized and sensationalized depiction of the East that has been widely read by many for centuries because of its mythical and folktale quality. However, Bergreen shows that his journeys are a symbol of early globalization that forged the way for trade and diplomacy to occur between two completely different civilizations. Polo unlocked the West's somewhat unknown knowledge of the East during the thirteenth century, which preceded maritime explorations that would occur in the fifteenth century.
 unsophisticated analysis June 11, 2008
0 out of 1 found this review helpful
The subject matter is interesting, but the narrative and analysis are on the level of a high-school report. The text is full of trite phrases and hackneyed expressions, and the author applies a modern-day slant to his assumptions. There is too much "it was as if..." and "he might have...." The illustrations are badly selected and not always relevant. The author uses quotations ineffectively. This book just didn't work for me.
 An exotic jouney to the orient May 7, 2008
What an Excellent Read !!!!!!!!!! history, travelogue, adventure, biography ...................... totally fascinating,
The new revelations on the life, times and travel of Marco, his father and uncle are mind boggling. Based on recent research, it turned out Marco wasn't just a b.s.'ing Venetian after all.
From the great naval battle of Korcula to Marco's final days, this bio/adventure is hard to put down. The history involved, from the "Divine Wind" to Marco's visits to south east asia, india, socotra island .......... history of the great mongol empire, life and times of Kublai Khan, glimpses of the early christian church, voyages, intrepid travellers ....................... it is all here !!
excellent read, rabbie b.
Great material, but flawed delivery May 3, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
A thoroughly researched account of a fascinating life. You could spend a lifetime going through the sources in the book's notes & bibliography, and the book inspires you to do just that. However, it's marred by Bergreen's writing style. His comments after quoted material-- and there is, rightly, a LOT of quoted material-- are often superfluous and give the unpleasant impression of reading a book report. A very well-researched book report, but a book report nonetheless. Still, a good launching point to learn more about an intriguing chapter in history.
lost in translation April 13, 2008
Having just read Laurence Bergreen's "Over the edge of the world", I couldn't wait to read his new work on the travels of "Marco Polo" Mr. Bergreen is a stickler for accuracy and research. I think he spends more time researching than writing. This is an excellent account of Marco's adventures and experiences traveling along and beyond The Silk Road. My only criticism is that in trying to be so factual some of the passages were difficult for me to understand. Maybe it is the translation from Medieval Italian to English. As of now, I'm just waiting for Mr. Bergreen's next book.
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