Histories cover art

Histories

 Preview
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free
Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.
Prime members: New to Audible? Get 2 free audiobooks during trial.
Just £0.99/mo for your first 3 months of Audible.
1 bestseller or new release per month—yours to keep.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, podcasts, and Originals.
Auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly.
Pick 1 audiobook a month from our unmatched collection - including bestsellers and new releases.
Listen all you want to thousands of included audiobooks, Originals, celeb exclusives, and podcasts.
Access exclusive sales and deals.
£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically.

Histories

By: Herodotus
Narrated by: David Timson
Get this deal Try Premium Plus free

£8.99/mo after 3 months. Cancel monthly. Offer ends 29 January 2026 at 11:59PM GMT.

£8.99/month after 30 days. Renews automatically. See here for eligibility.

Buy Now for £29.99

Buy Now for £29.99

LIMITED TIME OFFER | £0.99/mo for the first 3 months

Premium Plus auto-renews at £8.99/mo after 3 months. Terms apply.

About this listen

In this, the first prose history in European civilization, Herodotus describes the growth of the Persian Empire with force, authority, and style. Perhaps most famously, the book tells the heroic tale of the Greeks' resistance to the vast invading force assembled by Xerxes, king of Persia. Here are not only the great battles - Marathon, Thermopylae, and Salamis - but also penetrating human insight and a powerful sense of epic destiny at work.

PLEASE NOTE: When you purchase this title, the accompanying reference material will be available in your Library section along with the audio.

Public Domain (P)2016 Naxos AudioBooks Ancient Civilization Europe Greece Military World Ancient History Ancient Greece Mythology Inspiring Greek Mythology

Listeners also enjoyed...

 The History of the Peloponnesian War cover art
Annals cover art
The Aeneid cover art
The Persian Expedition cover art
The Histories cover art
The Greek Histories cover art
Parallel Lives of the Noble Greeks and Romans cover art
The Twelve Caesars cover art
The Odyssey cover art
The Other Side of History: Daily Life in the Ancient World cover art
Genghis Khan and the Making of the Modern World cover art
Homer Box Set: Iliad & Odyssey cover art
The History of the Ancient World cover art
The Antiquities of the Jews cover art
The History and Topography of Ireland cover art
The Iliad cover art
All stars
Most relevant
The irony of how patterns repeat throughout history. What is essentially an Ancient Greek History Textbook, is eloquently delivered so as not to bore the audience with a wooden pitch that might so readily be associated with the reading aloud in a classroom.

Masterpiece

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
listened to this several times. Recommend it to anyone with a love of ancient history.

great listen

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.

What did you like most about Histories?

The scope, it covers a broad span of time and topics.

What does David Timson bring to the story that you wouldn’t experience if you had only read the book?

He just gets it right. I can almost imagine his voice is that of Herodotus reading his own work, albeit in English.

Any additional comments?

Lion cubs destroy the womb as they are born? Hmm Mr Herodotus, you may have wanted to fact check some of those stories you heard!

Beautifully narrated

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
When reviewing an audio book version of an ancient classic it is hard to decide what you are assessing: the classic itself, the translation or the performance.

The Histories stands on its own; if you are contemplating listening to this then you know why you have chosen to do so and have a good idea what it is about. Suffice it to say that if you have the slightest interest in the ancient world you then you owe it to yourself to read or listen to it.

Being unable to translate the Greek I am in no position to comment on the quality of the translation. The translator is not specified. As well as listening I also read Tom Holland's translation; the version here seemed no better (or worse).

I can, however, comment on the performance of the reader, which really is quite excellent.

Great reading

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
This version of the classic is very well read and easy on the ear. Recommended.

Brilliant book

Something went wrong. Please try again in a few minutes.
See more reviews