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Making History

The Storytellers Who Shaped the Past

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Making History

By: Richard Cohen
Narrated by: Richard Cohen
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About this listen

 'A huge, fizzing omnium-gatherum of a book . . . marvellous' Daily Telegraph
'Witty, wise and elegant . . . a classic of history itself' The Spectator
'Grave and witty, suave yet pointed . . . full of energy' Hilary Mantel
'An enthralling investigation . . . consistently entertaining' The Times
'Epic . . . whatever Cohen writes about he writes about with brio' New Yorker

Who writes the past? And how do the biases of storytellers - whether Julius Caesar, William Shakespeare or Simon Schama - influence our ideas about history today?

Epic, authoritative and entertaining, Making History delves into the lives of those who have charted human history - professional historians, witnesses, novelists, journalists and propagandists - to discover the agendas that informed their world views, and which in so many ways have informed ours. From the origins of history-writing through to television and the digital age, Making History abounds in captivating figures brought to vivid life, from Thucydides and Tacitus to Voltaire and Gibbon, from Winston Churchill to Mary Beard. Rich in character, complex truths and surprising anecdotes, the result is a unique exploration of both the aims and craft of history-making that will lead us to think anew about our past and ourselves. Art & Literature Authors World Imperialism Winston Churchill Ancient History

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Critic reviews

Superb . . . Highly entertaining . . . Witty, wise and elegant, this tremendous book deserves to become a classic of history itself
What a brilliant achievement! Like all Richard Cohen's writing, Making History opens a dialogue with the reader - grave and witty, suave yet pointed - erudite yet engaging and full of energy. It has huge scope, but never forfeits the telling detail. It is scholarly, lively, quotable, up-to-date and fun (HILARY MANTEL)
An enthralling investigation into the ways in which the background of historians affected and affects the way they present the past. Using autobiographies, letters and the comments of contemporaries, Cohen brings to life legendary figures. Black history and "herstory", novelists and journalists, Bible stories and military campaigns, Putin's revision of Russian history: all pass under his consistently entertaining scrutiny . . . [a] historical Tower of Babel
A huge, fizzing omnium gatherum of a book . . . marvellous (Noel Malcolm)
Richard Cohen has written an utterly engaging love letter to History's hidden story tellers. Provocative, funny but scrupulously fair, Making History is a timely reminder that history doesn't write itself (AMANDA FOREMAN)
This absorbing survey begins with the early historians of the classical world and continues through to the modern era
Supremely entertaining . . . epic . . . whatever Cohen writes about he writes about with brio
Insightful and entertaining . . . there are so many things to like about this book: its breezy tone, its author's Herodotus-like curiosity and delight in anecdote, his readiness to recognise the vices as well as the virtues of historians, and the splendid in-text illustrations . . . a gargantuan achievement
[A] magisterial and wide-ranging examination of the way that historians and other significant witnesses distort through their own prejudices what have become records of human experience
With meticulous research and riveting anecdotes, Richard Cohen has peeled back the hidden history behind those who record our past. He brilliantly shows how an extraordinary gallery of characters - from prodigies to charlatans, from ideologues to heroes - has exposed, shaped and, at times, bent and even covered up the facts. In the process, Cohen has achieved what only the finest historians can: he has scrupulously and engagingly made history (DAVID GRANN, author of Killers of the Flower Moon and The Lost City of Z)
What a grand, illuminating and fun book! Richard Cohen takes us on a learned tour through the cacophony of history and of the characters who've told the stories that shape us. To understand who we are, we have to understand who we've been - and, as Cohen amply demonstrates, who's framed those understandings (JON MEACHAM, Pulitzer Prize-winning author of American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House and Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power)
A fascinating and finely wrought history of history
All stars
Most relevant
The book has the potential to be very interesting on the development of historiography from the classical world to the present. I suspect that the book is well written, though this is based on a small portion of the book, the narration though is the perfect cure for insomnia, it is very clipped posh English but with no passion, it just drones on and on.
There is enough in what i have listened to, to suggest that there is an interesting book here but the narration does not in any way do it justice. With it being the author as narrator it feels as if the authors passion project has gone a bit too far, he should really just stick with the written word.
There is enough of an interest been sparked that i have ordered the book.
Avoid if you have not got insomnia

i have had to order the physical book

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Richard Cohen illuminates not just the authors, historians and their critics, but the times they lived in, their mental and emotional landscapes. He conjures up their most brilliant, personal and intellectual aspects so that you feel you're encountering them yourself. Along the way, even in eras and subjects you thought you knew something about, you're presented with events and ideas and opinions which engage your mind and which are usually utterly persuasive.

An education and a pleasure for your mind

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The author narrates his own book here, which is very unfortunate and does a great disservice to a very interesting work. It is a long and complex book, and if ever a subject needed professional presentation, this was it. Probably best to buy the book.

Poor narration

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