Reviews for Architect, Owner and Builder Before the Law: A Summary of American and English Decisions On ...

The average rating for Architect, Owner and Builder Before the Law: A Summary of American and English Decisions On ... based on 2 reviews is 4 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2013-03-24 00:00:00 Sam Montano If you’re looking for just one book to take you on a journey starting with the very beginnings of Greek culture, through the turbulent times of fratricidal wars up to the death of Alexander the Great, I’d say this one does its job. You need to keep in mind tough that with almost 1500 years to cover (including those 200 that witnessed an almost continuous warfare) even the 700 pages Hammond invested in the task still means merely scratching the surface. Forced to make a choice the author opted for a geopolitical narrative that only cursorily mentions the cultural development of successive periods. He puts the works of Plato or Phidias in the context of the events described but that’s about it. If you’re looking for even a simplest introduction to their heritage you need to look elsewhere. This tendency also means that preference is given to reporting the facts rather than intentions and emotions that stand behind people decisions. It’s not that this aspect is entirely missing, you’re able to get a general idea of forces that drive individual people, groups or póleis, but it’s hardly enough to let you grasp the reason behind sometimes a page long sequences of “A sacked B but two lines further allied with them to fight C who got money from D who until now had been paying A..”. These all are real shortcomings but if you account for them and supplement the missing aspects from somewhere else the book is outstanding for its own part. I read the book simultaneously listening to Donald Kagan’s lectures/podcast on Ancient Greece. It’s pure merit, it’s Yale, it’s free and it’a all about why. You’ll find the missing parts there.

Review # 2 was written on 2014-10-23 00:00:00 Jason Newton Never dull, with a satisfying balance of political, military, and cultural developments.