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Sumerians: A History From Beginning to End
The Sumerians A legendary civilization vanished under the Fertile Crescent and escaped a fate worse than death until Sumerologists questioned widely accepted truths. The Sumerians reemerged onto the extraordinary timeline of human history. Their tales of kings and gods, including the Epic of Gilgamesh, and their fearless trade in distant lands, during the remarkable Bronze Age, centered in the world’s first city-states that chronicled ancient rivalries and their enduring impact. Inside you will read about... ✓ How We Know What We Know About Sumerians ✓ The Bronze Age – Sumer And Its Contemporaries ✓ How Did The Sumerians Become Civilized? ✓ How Long Were They Around ✓ Primer Of Impact Of Sumerian Ancient Civilization On Our World ✓ What Did They Look Like? ✓ What Shaped Their Worldview? And much more! Our journey relies on excavated and historical evidence to explore their productive fascinations with order and man’s place in the universe. Their application of impressive knowledge helps us unfold their mysterious civilization.
287 pages, Kindle Edition
First published July 17, 2016
1196 people are currently reading
1042 people want to read
About the author
Henry Freeman
52 books88 followersHenry Freeman is an author and archaeologist. He has a passion for history and loves to travel the world exploring various historical sites.
Henry graduated from the University of Cambridge with a double major in History and Archaeology and shortly after that started his career as an archaeologist.
After traveling the world getting first-hand experience with history, Henry was determined to take up his dream of becoming a best-selling author.
He decided to partner up with the newly formed publishing company Hourly History writing short, concise and straightforward history books that never takes more than one hour to read.
Henry graduated from the University of Cambridge with a double major in History and Archaeology and shortly after that started his career as an archaeologist.
After traveling the world getting first-hand experience with history, Henry was determined to take up his dream of becoming a best-selling author.
He decided to partner up with the newly formed publishing company Hourly History writing short, concise and straightforward history books that never takes more than one hour to read.
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 80 reviews
January 10, 2018
I can’t in all honesty recommend this book. It’s not just that it is short and skims over the history with all the shallow narrative of a Wikipedia article. I expected that, given that this comes from a series of books that markets itself as ‘history in an hour’; just enough summary to fill the hour, and very little depth.
But, for a book published in 2016, the book relies an awful lot on very questionable sources. Many are out of date, over 50 years old, with some over 100 years old, and some of its cited references are even children’s books. As a result, not only does the book end up being simplistic narrative, but it also gets some of its facts just plain wrong. For example, it claims that Sumer was the first to invent the urban centre – that honour in fact belongs to the towns of the Mesolithic across the Near East – or that Sumer invented writing – not exactly true; it is neck and neck with ancient Egypt for that title. Other poppycock includes repeating the claim from a 120-year-old book that the Hittite language is Mongolian (long since discredited). The book also claims that “there is no evidence of women ever becoming scribes” in ancient Sumerian society, right after referencing Samuel Kramer’s book in which Kramer attested that there was at least one mention of a woman becoming a scribe (I should know since I just read Kramer’s book before this one, and I even went back and looked it up again to confirm what Kramer wrote). I can’t recommend this at all.
But, for a book published in 2016, the book relies an awful lot on very questionable sources. Many are out of date, over 50 years old, with some over 100 years old, and some of its cited references are even children’s books. As a result, not only does the book end up being simplistic narrative, but it also gets some of its facts just plain wrong. For example, it claims that Sumer was the first to invent the urban centre – that honour in fact belongs to the towns of the Mesolithic across the Near East – or that Sumer invented writing – not exactly true; it is neck and neck with ancient Egypt for that title. Other poppycock includes repeating the claim from a 120-year-old book that the Hittite language is Mongolian (long since discredited). The book also claims that “there is no evidence of women ever becoming scribes” in ancient Sumerian society, right after referencing Samuel Kramer’s book in which Kramer attested that there was at least one mention of a woman becoming a scribe (I should know since I just read Kramer’s book before this one, and I even went back and looked it up again to confirm what Kramer wrote). I can’t recommend this at all.
August 9, 2017
3.5 stars, so I'll round up since it was free. I love this period of history and the book was a decent summary.
December 1, 2021
Knjiga je kratka, i na površan način se dotiče znanja o Sumerskoj civilizaciji. Što je dobro za one koji žele znati malo, ili pišu seminarski rad u osnovnoj školi. Za one koji žele znati više, tu je popis literature na kraju knjige.
June 26, 2017
I read this book after a conversation with a friend where we casually mentioned that Mesopotamia is the cradle of civilization. I have had it in my kindle for some time now, and have always been putting off reading it, but I decided to go for it now. Sitting in a quiet cafe on an early morning off seemed like the perfect setting to indulge in this historic book. I found it to be an easy read and I liked the way it was arranged for easier comprehension. I was also pleasantly surprised to find really recent events and dates incorporated in it (as recent as 2016) with major political events of today also brushed upon. However, as with most historic books, I find that certain elements get repeated so much that they are engraved in our memories (like the bit about Sumerians being the first to write, agriculture advancements and the 60 minutes in an hour and 360 degrees in a circle), while more interesting elements (atleast for me) are not highlighted as much (like monuments, relevance of the names, more about kings, etc).
Did I enjoy this book? Yes, tremendously! I learnt a lot of new things and small interesting facts that will make me smile every time I remember them. It is a good book for anyone to read, but would be of special importance for my fellow Mesopotamians.
Would I recommend it? I think the above makes it clear. However, I would add to it that I think Henry Freeman explains the Sumerian civilization in a "Sumerians for dummies" sort of way, which I happen to be a big fan of.
Did I enjoy this book? Yes, tremendously! I learnt a lot of new things and small interesting facts that will make me smile every time I remember them. It is a good book for anyone to read, but would be of special importance for my fellow Mesopotamians.
Would I recommend it? I think the above makes it clear. However, I would add to it that I think Henry Freeman explains the Sumerian civilization in a "Sumerians for dummies" sort of way, which I happen to be a big fan of.
October 4, 2023
The strengths of this are that it is written in a bright and breezy style and is a succinct summary of the information about the Sumerians in an easily digestible form. Often, other such books have such a mass of detail that the most important themes are not easily discernible. However, there are some major faults. Very outdated theories – such as the absurd Victorian notion that the Hittites were somehow connected to the Mongols – are sometimes given equal billing with more credible ideas, without alerting the reader to the fact that mainstream scholarship has long since moved on. Also, there is a very annoying habit of not giving any footnotes, but incorporating everything into the text. So, for example, “Lugal-Anne-Mundu, the ruler of Adab in the 2400’s BCE, is sometimes credited as incorporating the first empire in history, according to Michael C Howard in “Transnationalism in Ancient and Medieval Societies: The Role of Cross-Border Trade and Travel”.” We get this kind of thing on almost every page, which is quite fatiguing.
The author’s enthusiasm for what is a fascinating subject is infectious, but for the the reasons given – and on account of the complete absence in my Kindle edition of any maps or illustrations – I cannot recommend this book.
The author’s enthusiasm for what is a fascinating subject is infectious, but for the the reasons given – and on account of the complete absence in my Kindle edition of any maps or illustrations – I cannot recommend this book.
January 3, 2021
The book starts with a great entr’/ intr’o-duct’ion, and the author tries to understand the modern history RIGHT by understanding the ancient history right first!
It is the unknown introduced to us in a brief and fast way, but with in-form’ation abundant enough to fill in the blanks of our missing kn’owledge about one of our common ancestors who did be-gin/ -gene everything we have inherited for our daily lives.
(Kindle Ed. p. 106)
Enduring mysteries surround the ancient city-states of the Sumerian civilization. They help us to continue to question previous thought on interpreting archaeological finds and help find new data relating to the history of Sumer and humanity’s shared cultural inheritance. The search continues to reconstruct the story of humanity’s past. Given that the Sumerians shaped many aspects of our world with their inventions and early systems, our curiosity continues to lead us down a path to better understand ancient civilizations as we continue the uniquely human trait of making sense of our world for our own knowledge and to collect it for future generations. As humans, besides seeking morality and culture, we pursue knowledge for its own sake and yearn to apply it to improve our circumstances. As the inventors of writing, Sumerians started to represent the world around them - and that’s something our human ancestors would appreciate that we still do today. Despite the language barriers and thousands of years, humans still rely on each other.
Great con-clos’/ -clus’ion! Okay, this is a five-star conclusion! Just revise the book and edit the mistakes, and then this book will be a brief and easy, yet "complete" work that could be stored like a real stor'y and hi-stor'y to be cherished and remembered for many, many generations.
(Kindle Ed. p. 87)
...and as Sumerologist Samuel Noah Kramer observed, “it represents man’s first recorded attempt to deal with the age-old yet very modern problem of human suffering.” In his book, “History Begins at Sumer,” Kramer also credited the Sumerians with the “The First Noah,” “The First Moses,” and “The First Tale of Resurrection,” among other biblically related firsts...
It's the "point" why this book is still a must-read.
So we simply don't know the events before their records; we must depend on our imagination based on logics and reasoning after all.
(Kindle Ed. p. 92)
...Scholars who study Sumerian myths consider that the myth of Inanna, the Queen of the Heaven, is a direct reference to the movements of the planet Venus when it disappears near the Sun for a period of time...
See? Everything had to be explained based on their own imaginations, and they called it "knowledge." It is their “innocent” logic based on imaginations vs. our “mature” reasoning based on actual scientific facts.
Let's not forget: We Humans have progressed and matured far beyond our "innocent" ancestors, and today we are million times smarter than them.
It is really an awesome read. The best about this book is it's not even long and dragging. It's short and brief, but it makes the readers think. It’s really, really, really a great work of study!
Nevertheless, the book is incomplete with so many errors to be revised and edited while the readers “pay” for it, therefore it leaves me no other choice, but to vote for three stars.
You can read the full review here.
It is the unknown introduced to us in a brief and fast way, but with in-form’ation abundant enough to fill in the blanks of our missing kn’owledge about one of our common ancestors who did be-gin/ -gene everything we have inherited for our daily lives.
(Kindle Ed. p. 106)
Enduring mysteries surround the ancient city-states of the Sumerian civilization. They help us to continue to question previous thought on interpreting archaeological finds and help find new data relating to the history of Sumer and humanity’s shared cultural inheritance. The search continues to reconstruct the story of humanity’s past. Given that the Sumerians shaped many aspects of our world with their inventions and early systems, our curiosity continues to lead us down a path to better understand ancient civilizations as we continue the uniquely human trait of making sense of our world for our own knowledge and to collect it for future generations. As humans, besides seeking morality and culture, we pursue knowledge for its own sake and yearn to apply it to improve our circumstances. As the inventors of writing, Sumerians started to represent the world around them - and that’s something our human ancestors would appreciate that we still do today. Despite the language barriers and thousands of years, humans still rely on each other.
Great con-clos’/ -clus’ion! Okay, this is a five-star conclusion! Just revise the book and edit the mistakes, and then this book will be a brief and easy, yet "complete" work that could be stored like a real stor'y and hi-stor'y to be cherished and remembered for many, many generations.
(Kindle Ed. p. 87)
...and as Sumerologist Samuel Noah Kramer observed, “it represents man’s first recorded attempt to deal with the age-old yet very modern problem of human suffering.” In his book, “History Begins at Sumer,” Kramer also credited the Sumerians with the “The First Noah,” “The First Moses,” and “The First Tale of Resurrection,” among other biblically related firsts...
It's the "point" why this book is still a must-read.
So we simply don't know the events before their records; we must depend on our imagination based on logics and reasoning after all.
(Kindle Ed. p. 92)
...Scholars who study Sumerian myths consider that the myth of Inanna, the Queen of the Heaven, is a direct reference to the movements of the planet Venus when it disappears near the Sun for a period of time...
See? Everything had to be explained based on their own imaginations, and they called it "knowledge." It is their “innocent” logic based on imaginations vs. our “mature” reasoning based on actual scientific facts.
Let's not forget: We Humans have progressed and matured far beyond our "innocent" ancestors, and today we are million times smarter than them.
It is really an awesome read. The best about this book is it's not even long and dragging. It's short and brief, but it makes the readers think. It’s really, really, really a great work of study!
Nevertheless, the book is incomplete with so many errors to be revised and edited while the readers “pay” for it, therefore it leaves me no other choice, but to vote for three stars.
You can read the full review here.
September 30, 2021
3.5🌟
Good starting point or recap of an interesting and rather overlooked period of history.
Good starting point or recap of an interesting and rather overlooked period of history.
October 28, 2024
I forgot all about this app!
Okay, this book is a nice introduction to everyday Sumerian life and the contributions these people made to shape our world even today.
Okay, this book is a nice introduction to everyday Sumerian life and the contributions these people made to shape our world even today.
November 30, 2025
a decent summary but not much more than that!
March 24, 2021
مزوپوتامیا همیشه به عنوان منطقه ای حساس و اسرار امیز از نظر تاریخی و فرهنگی مورد توجه باستان شناسان بوده و مهمتر از آن تاریخ سومر به عنوان اولین تمدن بشری!
کتاب به زیبایی پیشرفتهای مردم این دوران از نظر روانشناسی، پیدایش خط، هنر، نجوم و... را بیان میکند .
شاید بی دلیل نیست که جنگ های دنیای امروز هم بیشتر در این منطقه میان رودان واقع شده است .
در هم تنیدگی ای ناگزیر از اقوام و فرهنگهای گوناگون...
پیشنهاد میکنم کتاب را بخوانید
کتاب به زیبایی پیشرفتهای مردم این دوران از نظر روانشناسی، پیدایش خط، هنر، نجوم و... را بیان میکند .
شاید بی دلیل نیست که جنگ های دنیای امروز هم بیشتر در این منطقه میان رودان واقع شده است .
در هم تنیدگی ای ناگزیر از اقوام و فرهنگهای گوناگون...
پیشنهاد میکنم کتاب را بخوانید
February 5, 2018
Sumerian texts found in Fara, Iraq dating to the middle of the third millennium BCE contain the earliest references to tin and bronze, with copper imported from Armenia in the Caucasus Mountains.
The study of changing settlement patterns of the times suggests that after the Ubaid period (circa 650 to 3800 BCE), which was characterized by small settlements by the semi-nomadic Ubaid people and some degree of site planning, the Sumerians came from the north or east, settled in the southern Mesopotamia region, and were the first to completely depend on irrigation systems.
Based on evaluations of clay tablet documents, trade may have been the main motivator for the Sumerians to develop a system of writing initially.
Many of the clay tablets that have been found are of a business nature.
There are numbers of bills of sale, receipts, and documents that, upon further investigation, reveal that the Sumerians documented their economic production using a specific pictographic writing that had more than 2,000 shapes. The sheer volume caused confusion; as a result Sumerians began to develop cuneiform script. The first written tablets in this proto-cuneiform are around 85% administrative or accounting in nature.
How do we know that ancient cultures were in communication with each other? Who was the communication with? For one thing, we know that there was contact during the Bronze Age that was established between Sumer and the Zagros or Caucasus, as foreign products were needed in most cases in the use of bronze.
The Sumerians called themselves Sag-giga (the “black-headed” or “bald-headed” ones) and their southern Mesopotamia land Kengi (“civilized land”) or Kengi-Sumer. Sumer is an Akkadian name, which means land of the civilized kings.
The study of changing settlement patterns of the times suggests that after the Ubaid period (circa 650 to 3800 BCE), which was characterized by small settlements by the semi-nomadic Ubaid people and some degree of site planning, the Sumerians came from the north or east, settled in the southern Mesopotamia region, and were the first to completely depend on irrigation systems.
Based on evaluations of clay tablet documents, trade may have been the main motivator for the Sumerians to develop a system of writing initially.
Many of the clay tablets that have been found are of a business nature.
There are numbers of bills of sale, receipts, and documents that, upon further investigation, reveal that the Sumerians documented their economic production using a specific pictographic writing that had more than 2,000 shapes. The sheer volume caused confusion; as a result Sumerians began to develop cuneiform script. The first written tablets in this proto-cuneiform are around 85% administrative or accounting in nature.
How do we know that ancient cultures were in communication with each other? Who was the communication with? For one thing, we know that there was contact during the Bronze Age that was established between Sumer and the Zagros or Caucasus, as foreign products were needed in most cases in the use of bronze.
The Sumerians called themselves Sag-giga (the “black-headed” or “bald-headed” ones) and their southern Mesopotamia land Kengi (“civilized land”) or Kengi-Sumer. Sumer is an Akkadian name, which means land of the civilized kings.
April 19, 2023
This book is a basic summary about what we know currently (as of 2015-16) of the ancient Sumerian civilization. It contains a wealth of information for the laymen or those, who are just now starting to get acquainted with the history of these times. Its general structure is well defined, but within the chapters themselves I found that facts are just being thrown at the reader without real plan. Also, it would have been a better choice to use professional citation rules with indexed numbering and footnotes, instead of adding it into the text itself and giving a bulk list in the end. This way it seemed much like just bloating the corpus of the text intentionally. Additionally there are a number of grammatical or text errors in this kindle edition, that is frustrating.
My last problem was the over-idolation of the Sumerians in the text. True that we owe much to them in terms of civilizational advancement, but hinting at someone going back to these times, would almost be able to engage with them almost like a fellow modern human is a big stretch, at least in my personal opinion. Literacy did not penetrate 5 or 10% of their society as per the most conservative assessments and their technological advancements happened during multiple thousands of years. But apart from these concerns from a historian-in-training, there is a group of non-university students or interested laymen who will find this book really informative and interesting.
My last problem was the over-idolation of the Sumerians in the text. True that we owe much to them in terms of civilizational advancement, but hinting at someone going back to these times, would almost be able to engage with them almost like a fellow modern human is a big stretch, at least in my personal opinion. Literacy did not penetrate 5 or 10% of their society as per the most conservative assessments and their technological advancements happened during multiple thousands of years. But apart from these concerns from a historian-in-training, there is a group of non-university students or interested laymen who will find this book really informative and interesting.
October 12, 2021
A thorough summary with a lot of reading references in the bibliography. At 119 pages, it really can't be much more than that, to cover some 1500 years of history. At times, due to his many references to The Sumerians: Their History, Culture, and Character by Samuel Noah Kramer - I felt I should have just bought that book. And I just might. But this was free under Kindle Unlimited and Mr. Kramer's certainly isn't. As a book to read and absorb for free - it doesn't get better than this.
As to the subject matter of the Sumerians in general, it is astounding what they accomplished. In fact, it is so astounding that it felt that they just couldn't be the first civilization to have so many firsts. Either way, what they did reverberates even today. If you have any interest in the Sumerian civilization or culture, this is a great place to start.
Mr. Freeman pulled his sources together cogently and in bite-sized pieces for a general readership. It's highly readable and understandable. But he left me wanting a lot more. If that was his goal, he succeeded. In every section, it was a "More, please."
I highly recommend it as a superb overview. But you'll need a weightier tome for more detail.
As to the subject matter of the Sumerians in general, it is astounding what they accomplished. In fact, it is so astounding that it felt that they just couldn't be the first civilization to have so many firsts. Either way, what they did reverberates even today. If you have any interest in the Sumerian civilization or culture, this is a great place to start.
Mr. Freeman pulled his sources together cogently and in bite-sized pieces for a general readership. It's highly readable and understandable. But he left me wanting a lot more. If that was his goal, he succeeded. In every section, it was a "More, please."
I highly recommend it as a superb overview. But you'll need a weightier tome for more detail.
April 1, 2022
I enjoyed this general overview of the Sumerians. I was pleasantly surprised by how diverse his resources were, including women, BIPOC authors, and the historical lens of gender & women's studies. There are some misspelled words and other editorial misses and sometimes reads like a college research paper, but is definitely useful a general, holistic, overview of Sumerians & a great starting place for finding more resources. If you are interested in Near Eastern history it's absolutely worth the read.
July 7, 2025
I honestly think you could have trimmed at least 30 to 40 pages off of this by shortening or removing all the passages that boil down to "Why did they do this? We don't know. Did they believe this? We don't know."
I understand a lot of knowledge is lost or yet to be recovered but find a better way to summarize this, because God did it drag. I did learn a few neat things but would say this mainly works as a basic introduction to the subject for the passingly curious. Probably great for middle school and high school aged history nerds particularly.
I understand a lot of knowledge is lost or yet to be recovered but find a better way to summarize this, because God did it drag. I did learn a few neat things but would say this mainly works as a basic introduction to the subject for the passingly curious. Probably great for middle school and high school aged history nerds particularly.
October 17, 2020
This was a quick primer on the subject that provided a lot of high level information leaving the reader to dig deeper and explore topics at their will. I found it organized and engaging, but wished more substantive information or details were provided to help support many of the bigger concepts that are introduced and glossed over. I read this book with Google at the ready to help fill in gaps and connect the dots that the author tossed about.
Currently reading
June 23, 2021Can be a starting book about one of the earliest human civilizations, Sumer.
Sumerians developed several key technologies, throughout a couple of thousand years, when there was competitions between those city-states while relatively peaceful.
It is amazing one civilizations can develop that well, on the other hand, it is noticed that the development was going through thousands of years. The persistence paid off.
Sumerians developed several key technologies, throughout a couple of thousand years, when there was competitions between those city-states while relatively peaceful.
It is amazing one civilizations can develop that well, on the other hand, it is noticed that the development was going through thousands of years. The persistence paid off.
July 3, 2021
This isn't so much a book as an extended a-level essay on a topic a student is extremely interested in.
It makes for a dull read, and fails to be academic enough to make the effort worth it. Instead it seems to serve as a summary for the (admittedly extensive) reading list provided. The style is often clunky and could really do with a good going-over by an editor since I spotted more than a couple of typos, and I wasn't looking for them.
It makes for a dull read, and fails to be academic enough to make the effort worth it. Instead it seems to serve as a summary for the (admittedly extensive) reading list provided. The style is often clunky and could really do with a good going-over by an editor since I spotted more than a couple of typos, and I wasn't looking for them.
March 20, 2024
A very basic introduction. Helpful in getting the gist of the Goliath that was 'The Sumerians'. Though far from perfect, casual readers who have a sudden or fleeting interest in the subject matter can gain a lot. But for serious Ancient History enthusiasts, this book will not do the job.
However, one thing that must be given credit for is that it can lead you to further explore the topic. Simply put, it doesn't create aversion to the subject for first time readers.
However, one thing that must be given credit for is that it can lead you to further explore the topic. Simply put, it doesn't create aversion to the subject for first time readers.
December 1, 2025
Contributions to Civilization
This nice summary of the history of Sumer (aka, Sumeria) provides a balanced view of ancient people who contributed much to succeeding generations up to our own. Although the text is somewhat dry, in an academic tradition, it is easy to read and very informative. I did notice that some events were referenced before being covered in subsequent chapters (e.g., the Great Flood).
This nice summary of the history of Sumer (aka, Sumeria) provides a balanced view of ancient people who contributed much to succeeding generations up to our own. Although the text is somewhat dry, in an academic tradition, it is easy to read and very informative. I did notice that some events were referenced before being covered in subsequent chapters (e.g., the Great Flood).
April 24, 2018
I thought this was going to be a concise summary of Sumerian History but it got bogged down in too much geographic description that really kind of lost me. I didn't have a map handy and frankly got bored. I wanted to learn about the people and their accomplishments and this just wasn't giving me that.
December 12, 2018
Not incredibly detailed, but it also covers quite a lot of information... For instance, the Teaching Company has a 12 hour program about basically the same topic(s). Good information if you don't know a whole lot about Sumer and want to start the research off with a fun, simple book. For more detail, checkout books about more specific topics or find a much larger book. Definitely an overview.
December 20, 2018
A broad, rudimentary overview of Sumer civilization without going into much detail. We learn that Sumer was not a semitic culture unlike the following Babylonians, Acadians, and Asurians. Some of the references by academicians listed at the end are expected to provide more insights into the down of this extraordinary civilisation.
December 9, 2019
Good Intro
One of our foundational ancient civilizations, the Sumerians had an outsized influence on Western thought and the author does a good job of conveying the advancement and origins of these elements in this easy to read, short and interesting book. A great choice for a quick intro and trip back nearly 5000 years.
One of our foundational ancient civilizations, the Sumerians had an outsized influence on Western thought and the author does a good job of conveying the advancement and origins of these elements in this easy to read, short and interesting book. A great choice for a quick intro and trip back nearly 5000 years.
May 27, 2021
Short intro into the Sumerian history. Good to read if you have no knowledge about the people and the time at all. Book could have used an editor as sometimes the author directly contradicts earlier statements and gives wrong dates or names, which was a bit confusing.
The nature of the writing made it easy to read, it was not very dry as non-fiction can be sometimes.
The nature of the writing made it easy to read, it was not very dry as non-fiction can be sometimes.
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July 23, 2021Brief
It was quite repetitive despite it being a relatively short text. With the multiple references and somewhat reliance on Kramer in particular, it read more like a university essay than informative text. That being said, there were a number of fascinating facts and the author is clearly passionate about the subject.
It was quite repetitive despite it being a relatively short text. With the multiple references and somewhat reliance on Kramer in particular, it read more like a university essay than informative text. That being said, there were a number of fascinating facts and the author is clearly passionate about the subject.
July 19, 2022
Excellent Introduction
The author bills this as a brief summary or introduction to the Sumerians. This is exactly what he gives us.At the same time he provides a great deal of information about sources so that one can further study this ancient civilization. It was surprising how many things that we still enjoy where originally created or invented by this ancient people.
The author bills this as a brief summary or introduction to the Sumerians. This is exactly what he gives us.At the same time he provides a great deal of information about sources so that one can further study this ancient civilization. It was surprising how many things that we still enjoy where originally created or invented by this ancient people.
April 17, 2018
Quick, nteresting read
I enjoyed this book. A compulation, I believe, of several others work wrapped into one. I enjoyed reading about the Sumerian people. What they invented and how they evolved. Interesting 2100 - 4000 BCE era
I enjoyed this book. A compulation, I believe, of several others work wrapped into one. I enjoyed reading about the Sumerian people. What they invented and how they evolved. Interesting 2100 - 4000 BCE era
August 28, 2018
A step above a wikipedia article, without the warm fuzzies for authoritative resources. I think it read like someone's C-graded research paper. But there were some tidbits that I hadn't read before, so I did find it of interest.
March 31, 2019
Contradiction
Ook was written with poor style with constant reference of opening a subject then stating it would be covered in a later chapter. Author bounces between chronological and subject context writing. His conclusions often are contradictory.
Ook was written with poor style with constant reference of opening a subject then stating it would be covered in a later chapter. Author bounces between chronological and subject context writing. His conclusions often are contradictory.
Displaying 1 - 30 of 80 reviews