{"product_id":"persian-fire-the-first-world-empire-and-the-battle-for-the-west","title":"Persian Fire: The First World Empire and the Battle for the West","description":"\u003cb\u003eA \"sweeping popular account\" (\u003ci\u003eThe Seattle Times\u003c\/i\u003e) of how Athens and Sparta withstood an assault from the Persian Empire in the cradle of Western civilization, from the acclaimed author of \u003ci\u003eRubicon \u003c\/i\u003eand co-host of the hit podcast \u003ci\u003eThe Rest Is History\u003c\/i\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003c\/b\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003e\"Excellent. . . . There is an even handedness in Holland's treatment of both Greek and Persian cultural riches that is rare in popular accounts of these wars.\" --\u003ci\u003eThe Sunday Times\u003c\/i\u003e (London)\u003c\/b\u003e \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eIn the fifth century B.C., a global superpower was determined to bring truth and order to what it regarded as two terrorist states. The superpower was Persia, incomparably rich in ambition, gold, and men. The terrorist states were Athens and Sparta, eccentric cities in a poor and mountainous backwater: Greece. \u003cp\u003e\u003c\/p\u003eThe story of how their citizens took on the Great King of Persia, and thereby saved not only themselves but Western civilization as well, is as heart-stopping and fateful as any episode in history. Tom Holland's brilliant study of these critical Persian Wars skillfully examines a conflict of critical importance to both ancient and modern history.","brand":"Tom Holland","offers":[{"title":"Paperback","offer_id":47274393698540,"sku":"9780307279484","price":21.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0684\/1791\/3068\/files\/9780307279484.jpg?v=1770156848","url":"https:\/\/allstora.com\/products\/persian-fire-the-first-world-empire-and-the-battle-for-the-west","provider":"Allstora","version":"1.0","type":"link"}